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Al-Ahram Weekly 10 - 16 June 1999 Issue No. 433 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 10 - 16 June 1999 Issue No. 433
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Profile Features Books Living Travel Sports Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Celebrating a galaxy of stars
By Nevine KhalilFor six hours on Sunday, President Hosni Mubarak presided at Media Day celebrations, launching a number of television and radio projects, and holding meetings with press and media representatives. The official celebrations this year took place at the Nile-side headquarters of the Egyptian Radio and Television Union.
Mubarak's tour of the complex included the inauguration of high-tech studios, a radio library and a new annex, housing the offices of a number of satellite channels. The president, accompanied by Prime Minister Kamal El-Ganzouri and several cabinet ministers, including Information Minister Safwat El-Sherif, spent 15 minutes visiting a studio and listening to a talented young singer. Amal Maher, 14, was recording the soundtrack of a biographical television series on song diva, Umm Kulthoum, and Mubarak was evidently impressed.
During several encounters with people in the field, the president met with young media representatives, newspaper chief editors and writers, and concluded his tour with a prolonged meeting with some 300 people from the entertainment industry.
Mubarak also decorated 22 outstanding press and media figures, some posthumously, including Al-Ahram's managing editor, Salaheddin Hafez, Al-Ahram writer, Amina Shafiq, television director, Ina'm Mohamed Ali, former director of television news, Samir El-Touni, the late literary critic, Ali El-Ra'i, and the late Seham El-Bolok, former director of radio news.
During a 45-minute talk with prominent journalists, thinkers and writers, Mubarak extensively discussed a number of domestic, foreign, political and economic issues. On the Middle East peace process, the president said that he was waiting for a visit by Israeli Prime Minister-elect Ehud Barak in order to gain a better idea of his intentions.
Mubarak acknowledged that the outgoing Binyamin Netanyahu "has placed many minefields for his successor," but, in a recent letter to Barak, the Egyptian president asked that he "stop his rhetoric of 'no's'." Mubarak referred to Barak's ill-boding statements, soon after his victory, pledging to keep Israeli control over all of Jerusalem, as well as Jewish settlements on Arab territories. Barak also vowed that no non-Israeli army would be allowed on the West Bank and that there would be no return by Israel to the borders of 4 June 1967.
Barak's response to Mubarak's advice was that he is "following in the footsteps" of the late Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, who reached the breakthrough Oslo agreement with the Palestinians in 1993.
Mubarak affirmed that despite the government change, he will not visit Israel until progress is made in regional peace-making. "Real progress on the road to peace is a precondition for visiting Israel," Mubarak said. The president has only visited Israel once, to attend Rabin's funeral in 1995, although the two countries signed a peace treaty two decades ago.
Mubarak said that a proposed five-way summit bringing together Israel's immediate neighbours -- Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and the Palestinians -- will no longer be held at the level of heads-of-state. "Representatives of the five countries may meet; it is not necessary that the meeting is held at summit level," Mubarak asserted. He added that the foreign ministers of the concerned parties might continue to meet, "until the differences between some of these countries are overcome."
Syria said that it will wait until Barak forms a government before taking part in any Arab gathering, in order to be able to determine what should be expected from the new prime minister. Syria is also annoyed with the Palestinians for launching separate peace negotiations with Israel and making too many concessions.
The president noted that although the five-way summit is "problematic for the time being", the time will come "soon" for these states to sit together, "because there are many issues to which they are party and which cannot be ignored." These include the status of Jerusalem, water and the fate of the Palestinian refugees of 1948 who mostly reside in neighbouring Arab countries. As for a full-fledged Arab summit, it is "necessary, but the question remains: can we hold one now?" he said.
Mubarak also said that Cairo has temporarily frozen a proposal by the World Economic Forum to relaunch from Egypt the Middle East/North Africa (MENA) conferences on regional economic cooperation. "Our approval is also conditional on progress in the peace process," Mubarak said, adding that Cairo will not take a decision before September.
On other regional economic issues, Mubarak said that the establishment of an Arab common market is a "priority", because economics is the essence of people's lives. He called on all Arab countries "to meet the requirements needed for the creation of an Arab economic and monetary union." Mubarak explained that the reasons for giving priority to the establishment of a common Arab market were the world financial crisis and the drop in oil prices. He affirmed that economic unity will provide the Arab world with "strong negotiating ground" in dealing with other economic blocs.
The president said that he discussed the matter with a number of Arab leaders, who have become convinced of the necessity of establishing an Arab common market. Already, some steps have been taken by some Arab countries in this direction, including various free trade zone agreements, such as those between Egypt and each of Saudi Arabia, Morocco and Jordan. "These are all steps towards the launching of a common market," Mubarak said, adding that more is needed, such as meetings at the technical level between experts to activate the existing agreements.
Speaking about domestic economic development, Mubarak argued that many of the mega-projects underway depend on technologically intensive investments and, therefore, do not provide immediate mass employment opportunities. However, he said that mega-projects, by nature, require big investors to introduce the high-tech. "The technology will trickle down to smaller [producers]," Mubarak said.
