EGYPT’S NEW PRESIDENT?
How does a contender for being elected President of his country, which is a democracy, run for office when the law restricts his running? That is the issue facing one of Egypt’s greatest sons. His approach is to remain visible to the citizenry but not to campaign openly. Corazon Aquino did this in The Philippines until a huge uprising of people power swept President Marcos from power in 1986 when she was allowed to campaign successfully.
Is the concept of democracy strong enough in Egypt, where many people want an end to the unpopular President Mubarak’s 29-year reign, when they remain apathetic towards their leadership? Of course, in most popular uprisings it is the students who lead the running for change until others join in. In Egypt, the student body want change and they want their man in office.
Their choice, Mohamed ElBaradei, 67, is one of Egypt’s greatest sons. The former Nobel Peace Laureate and former head for 12 years of the International Atomic Energy Agency has returned to his homeland calling for political reform, clean government and respect for human rights. Egyptians have eagerly taken up that cry.
Many are sick of the State riot police with their violent oppression of protesters. It is believed that the regime systematically uses torture against its citizens. The Muslim police force is continually oppressing the Christian Copts, and random murder of citizens occurs.
But it is not easy to challenge the 29-year-long rule of President Hosni Mubarak when the law bans meetings of more than three people. Any challenger must be the leader of a political Party, but no party is allowed to exist, no Party offices can be opened, and no public demonstrations are permitted.
President Mubarak has not ruled out running for another 5-year term and he has said he prefers his son to replace him. Most civil servants in the Government owe their position to the President’s patronage and so know they will lose their position if the President loses his.
But he cannot stop the internet, and young people particularly are reading and sending huge numbers of emails to each other, and on ElBaradei’s Facebook there are now over 242,000 followers and over 9,000 have signed up for his daily Tweets on Twitter. They are unanimous in their desire for change and a restoration of Egypt as a truly democratic country.
REV THE HON DR GORDON MOYES, A.C., M.L.C.