Blog

25/4/2012 One of the sources of Egypt’s greatness throughout history has been its legislative codes, one of the first in the world. Our modern civil code has been a source of law and inspiration for numerous Middle Eastern countries and our legal scholars have educated generations of Arab minds. Let us not forget such legal giants as Judge Abdel Hamid Badawi Pasha who served at the International Court of Justice, and Dr. Fouad Riad, judge at the International Criminal Court. Nor should we forget that Dr. Mahmoud Azmi was among those who wrote the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted...

25/4/2012 Egypt’s Supreme Presidential Electoral Commission (SPEC) made the decision on April 14 to ban the Muslim Brotherhood candidate, Khairat El-Shater, along with nine other candidates, from running for the nation’s top post. El-Shater, a man I used to respect for his intelligence and moderate views, proceeded to slam the SPEC and its head, Farouk Sultan, accusing them of colluding with the SCAF to recreate the old regime. El-Shater even claimed to have documents to prove it. So now the Brotherhood is spying on the SCAF? I wonder how they pulled that off? If only the SCAF and Sultan would...

25/4/2012 I dedicate this new twist to the old slogan to the wiser members of the Muslim Brotherhood, such as Mahdi Akef, former general guide, and Mohammed Habib, the deputy general guide, to remind them that they live in a country with millions of Christians, liberals and supporters of a civil state. As we redefine our country together, the last thing we need is the slogan “Islam is the Solution”. translated from Al-Akhbar

9/5/2012 National project for housing The Giza Governorate is implementing a three phase housing project in the city of 6th of October to build 11,940 housing units on 199 acres of land. Phase one is complete and of phase two, 85% of it will be delivered in 2 months. This project brings renewed hope for young people, keeping them from falling into despair, or turning to extremism. Elimination and rehabilitation of slums The strategy for the rehabilitation of slums in the Giza Governorate focuses on the unsafe areas where crime and violence are rampant. The development plan will also extend...

9/5/2012 On Friday, May 4, the chaos in Abbasiya reached its peak after five days of demonstrations by Hazem Abu Ismail supporters protesting his disqualification from the presidential election. The protestors blocked the streets leading to the Ministry of Defense and advanced on it, throwing stones. Earlier, ONTV broadcast a video showing men hiding inside the minaret of Abbasiya’s Nour mosque and shooting at the soldiers and military police protecting the area around the ministry. It appears that this was also the scene of the assassination of military conscript Samir Anwar Samir. I was stunned that the soldiers and military...

16/5/2012 For whom to vote? To achieve the objectives that matter most to supporters of a civil state, such as the non-radicalization of religion and the protection of Copts and women rights, Amr Moussa and Ahmed Shafiq should reflect on the consequences of their both running for president. With both of these leading secular candidates in the race, the liberal and nationalist vote will inevitably be split between them. Recent statistics indicate that Moussa has the better chance, while some observers say that the ratings of Shafiq have risen significantly. Regardless, the situation would be tragic if neither of them...

16/5/2012 The top priorities for the next president should be to restore security throughout the entire country, then to stimulate production and investment. People are suffering from the absence of security not only in the capital, but also in Sinai, in Upper Egypt, and along the west coast until Salloum. When I say ‘restore security’, I mean also to reassure policemen that if they perform their duty firmly and correctly, no one will accuse them of injustice or violence. No doubt, establishing security would motivate production. Until then, workers will continue protesting and shouting slogans. We will all pay for...

16/5/2012 Just a few days before the presidential election, Ahmed Shafiq finds himself facing accusations of graft from the opportunist Wasat Party MP Essam Sultan. He claims that Shafiq sold thousands of acres of state land to Hosni Mubarak’s sons at reduced prices. This is clearly another attempt by Sultan to destroy Shafiq’s chances to win the election. Attorney General Abdel Meguid Mahmoud should speed up the investigation into this matter quickly, so that Shafiq’s image will not be tarnished during the election. If it is proven that the allegations are false, Sultan’s parliamentary immunity should be revoked immediately and...

23/5/2012 In the days leading up to the presidential election, we began hearing members of some groups saying: “If we don’t win the election, it must have been rigged!” More voices added: “And then we will flock to Tahrir Square and elsewhere to ignite fires!” I was deeply disappointed to find among these some Muslim Brotherhood (MB) figures that I used to admire like Eng. Khairat El Shater and Dr. Mohamed El Beltagui, executive members of the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP). For them, democracy means only that their candidate must win. From their point of view, if the people...

23/5/2012 Many reports of electoral abuses have surfaced, such as those that describe Islamic groups going into villages, hamlets and slums with huge quantities of food, such as potatoes, oil and sugar and sometimes even money, to distribute to the poor people to buy their votes. (When I say “Islamic groups” I distinguish between those who practice Islam sincerely, as their faith, and those who manipulate religion for political gain.) The media must be vigilant until the end of the election; they must take their cameras into the streets to expose these abuses, which threaten the legitimacy of the election....

23/6/2012 Today in an interview with the largest cable news channel in France, LCI (The News Chanel), I took serious issue with the American and European media that describe the constitutional addendum issued by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) as a coup d’état. I firmly believe that SCAF took these measures to protect the citizens, the ballot box, legitimacy and justice. Americans and Europeans need to realize that Egypt is not like Libya, Tunisia, or Yemen, because the Egyptian Army actually protects the freedom and independence of the Egyptian people. translated from Al-Akhbar

27/6/2012 I would like to offer some advice to President Morsy regarding the reform of the Ministry of Interior: avoid the spirit of revenge in dealing with it, and act in the spirit of a statesman who is aware of the need for the police forces to protect the security of citizens. Those policemen who are guilty must have their guilt established in a court of law. And it would be reassuring if our head of state, when he speaks about the martyrs of the revolution, whom we all respect, would keep in mind that among the martyrs were quite a...