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Al-Ahram Weekly 8 - 14 July 1999 Issue No. 437 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 8 - 14 July 1999 Issue No. 437
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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 Focus Books Travel Living Sports Time Out Chronicles People Cartoons Letters Syndicate harmony
By Shaden ShehabSoon after the results of the Press Syndicate elections for the post of chairman and 12 council seats were announced last week, journalists expressed concern over the make-up of the new council, fearing that the members' varying political affiliations would prove an obstacle in decision-making.
However, at the council's first meeting last Thursday -- three days after election results were announced -- a decision to form the syndicate's bureau was taken smoothly and by consensus.
The new council, under Ibrahim Nafie, chairman of Al-Ahram Organisation's board of directors and chief editor of the daily Al-Ahram, includes Nasserists, other leftists, Islamists and liberals.
The syndicate's bureau is made up of: Raga'i Merghani, a journalist with the Middle East News Agency, as first vice-chairman; Abdel-Aal El-Baqouri, former editor-in-chief of Al-Ahali, mouthpiece of the leftist Tagammu Party, as second vice-chairman and head of the pensions committee; Yehia Qalash, a journalist with Al-Gomhouria newspaper, as general secretary; Salah Abdel-Maqsoud, a journalist with Al-Shaab bi-weekly newspaper, mouthpiece of the Islamist-oriented Labour Party, as assistant general secretary in charge of Arab and international affairs; Mamdouh El-Wali, a journalist with Al-Ahram, as treasurer; Yasser Rizk, a journalist with Al-Akhbar, as assistant treasurer and head of the follow-up committee; Said Abdel-Khaleq, co-editor-in-chief of the Wafd daily newspaper, mouthpiece of the liberal Wafd Party, as head of the housing committee; Ibrahim Hegazi, chief editor of Al-Ahram Al-Riyadi, as head of the activities committee; Osama El-Ghazali Harb, editor-in-chief of Al-Ahram's Al-Siyassa Al-Dawlia (International Politics), as head of the press legislation and improvement of the profession committee; Magdi Hussein, editor-in-chief of Al-Shaab, as head of the freedoms committee; Karim Mahmoud, a journalist with Al-Shaab, as head of the services committee; and Hamdeen Sabahi, director of Al-Said Publishing House and a freelance journalist, as head of the cultural committee.
After the meeting, Nafie said that a team spirit prevailed and all positions were filled by consensus. He said that the new council would work to solve the pressing problems that face journalists and the press.
photo: Medhat Abdel-Meguid
Said Abdel-Khaleq told Al-Ahram Weekly that the "meeting was friendly, which is a positive indication of what the council can offer." He added, "We were not chosen by journalists because of our political affiliations; that is why we take off our political garb when we deal with syndicate issues."
Yasser Rizk said that "the syndicate's bureau was formed by a unanimous decision and there was no need to put the matter to a vote." He added that the council "faced no difficulties or splits" during the meeting.
