Centre II turned down

By Amira Howeidy

The decision came only five days after an unprecedented meeting between the committee and the party's would-be founders, led by Abul-Ela Madi, a former secretary-general of the Engineers' Syndicate and a former Brotherhood member.

In a 21-page report, the committee said it had rejected the application because the platform of the new party is "not unique". Referring to a previous unsuccessful attempt by Madi and others to establish a party called Wassat, the committee said the platforms of Wassat and Egyptian Wassat were "almost identical". It also recalled that the rejection of the Wassat's application had been upheld by the Higher Administrative Court.

However, Madi vowed to file an appeal with the Political Parties Tribunal.

Madi and his colleagues applied for the establishment of Egyptian Wassat last May, 48 hours after the Higher Administrative Court upheld the decision of the Political Parties Committee to turn down their application for the establishment of Wassat.

Since its creation in 1977, the Political Parties Committee has not approved the establishment of a single political party. The parties already in existence were either legalised before its establishment or won court orders that sanctioned their activity. "Given the committee's history, its decision is not surprising, but we believe that it is the wrong decision," Madi told Al-Ahram Weekly. "Anyone who wishes to establish a party knows in advance that he will definitely end up filing an appeal." The group's lawyer, Mohamed Selim El-Awwa, will file an appeal within 30 days.

Madi said the situation had changed drastically between 1996 when he tried to establish Wassat and now. He said three major obstacles no longer existed. First, the "misunderstanding and confusion" that Wassat was a front for the illegal Brotherhood has been cleared up. Second, by the time the committee began looking into his first application, Madi was arrested and put on trial for "attempting to form a party as a front for the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood". Although he was acquitted, Madi believes that his arrest and trial affected the committee's decision. The third factor, he pointed out, is the pressure that was exercised by the Brotherhood leaders on some Wassat members to withdraw. "We consumed so much time and effort because of this pressure which resulted in mass walk-outs," he said. "As a result, the minimum number of would-be founders required by law could not be ensured."

Madi said that by the time he prepared another platform for Egyptian Wassat, "we had new members who genuinely support our ideas."

With the three obstacles removed, he argued, Egyptian Wassat stands a better chance in court.

Madi would not reveal his options if the appeal was also quashed. "Our decision is to operate legally and this will never change," he said. "It is not a tactic. It is a strategic choice. Insistence on respecting the law and using the legal channels, we hope, will help us to be accepted."

While their application for a licence was being considered, Wassat founders have been active on the political scene. Besides taking part in various conferences and seminars, they held seven salons, inviting non-Islamist figures such as Hossam Eissa, Hassan Nafa'a, Amani Qandil and Galal Amin to speak.

Moreover, plans they began a year ago to launch a weekly newspaper under the name of Al-Mustaqbal [The Future] are "moving forward and will be completed soon," Madi said.