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Al-Ahram Weekly 14 - 20 October 1999 Issue No. 451 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 14 - 20 October 1999 Issue No. 451
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Books Features Profile Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters A question of scope
By Omayma Abdel-LatifThe 11th cabinet change under President Hosni Mubarak was received with mixed reaction from forces both political and in civil society.
Some saw the change, which brought to office 13 new ministers out of a total of 33, as reflecting a stress on continuity and sustainability of certain economic and political orientations. But opposition figures received news of the reshuffle with dissatisfaction, although some remained hopeful that it would herald a larger change when parliamentary elections are held in the summer of next year.
A political observer tried to place the reshuffle in context. "It reflects the assertion of the internal discipline and cohesion of the state apparatus in the face of the challenges posed by the forces of civil society," he said.
Mubarak had indicated that there would be a cabinet change to bring greater cohesion to the reform process already under way. But speculation in the press on the scope of the anticipated change was blamed for creating a climate of high public expectations that were not apparently met.
During the past few weeks, opposition parties held several meetings in which they put forward demands for political and constitutional reform. Opposition newspapers featured dozens of articles on the need for radical alterations in the political system. On Monday, opposition newspapers expressed a "sense of shock" that the scope of the change had turned out to be so "meager". "This is not the change we had been waiting for," wrote Said Abdel-Khaleq, co-editor-in-chief of Al-Wafd newspaper. "It is not the change the people were expecting."
Voicing the same concerns, Ibrahim Abaza, secretary-general of the Wafd Party, expressed dismay, describing the change as a "change of faces and names rather than policies and priorities."
"A much more radical change is needed to prepare the country for long sought constitutional and political reforms," Abaza told Al-Ahram Weekly.
While some have argued that the vision behind such a change remains unclear, others believe that the reshuffle marks an end of the synthesis of Gamal Abdel-Nasser's socialism and Anwar El-Sadat's liberalisation policies, with the balance tilting in favour of an open market economy. Within this context, Nasserist Party Chairman Diaeddin Dawoud believes the reshuffle will only serve to strengthen the government's privatisation drive. "The fact that a group of officials who embrace the capitalist doctrine hold positions of power in the new cabinet is living proof of this," Dawoud told the Weekly.
Dawoud expressed fear that the new government's privatisation policies would not bring benefits to the under-privileged segments of society but only to the affluent few. He said the opposition wishes to see a cabinet that is genuinely interested in greater democratic reforms which are introduced responsibly by consensus.
To some the change did not come as a surprise. Salah Eissa, a leftist political writer, said the limited shake-up expressed a "playing it safe" policy.
"The reason behind the limited scope of this change, which did not live up to the public's expectations, is possibly because the old cabinet had some unfinished business left," Eissa said. He expressed fear that talk about social and economic reform will be at the expense of much needed political liberalisation. "If the radical alterations in the political system take place, we will have a political, as opposed to a technocratic, cabinet," Eissa said.
He remained hopeful, however, that the reshuffle was a dress rehearsal for a bigger change and that such major political alterations will take place with the coming of the legislative elections in mid-2000.
For officials of the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP), it was not the principle of change per se as much as its focus that should be considered. "The change does not have to be a change of faces," Mohamed Moussa, head of the legislative committee of the People's Assembly, told the Weekly. "Each new government knows that there are no easy solutions, and that most policies have to be modified in the context of economic, social and international realities. Therefore, it is premature to pass judgment on the policies of this government just because the old faces have remained in office," Moussa added.
While forces within civil society criticised the current path being taken in both political and economic spheres, they said that, with implementation of the privatisation programme, the coming period would be marked by the state's attempt to establish total hegemony over them. "A real change will take place when the role of the state diminishes and civil society is given a greater opportunity in the mapping out of social, economic and political reform," Bahieddin Hassan, head of the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies, said. Hassan said he hoped the new government would reconsider the controversial NGOs law which his institute views as restrictive.
Asked to comment on the change, Ali Lutfi, a former prime minister, said, "In a developing country like Egypt, the continuity and sustainability of policies are badly needed." He argued that the opposition's dismay with the scope of the change was understandable. "Once an opposition is legalised and open debate is permitted there is virtually no end to the demands for further freedoms."
