 |
Al-Ahram Weekly 18 - 24 November 1999 Issue No. 456 
|
||
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
| ||
|
Al-Ahram Weekly 18 - 24 November 1999 Issue No. 456
|
||
| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
| ||
Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Special Profile Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Now for the easy part
The most difficult phase of economic reform has been completed, and many Egyptians feel the time has come for similar political reforms. President Mubarak's pledge before parliament on Saturday to hold "free and fair" elections next year could be the first step in this process of genuine political reform. The president, at the beginning of his new term in office, also noted the clear imbalance in parliamentary representation between government and opposition parties. Of the 454 members of the People's Assembly, only 14 are opposition deputies. Mubarak recognised that "the presence of a strong opposition makes the ruling party more active and committed to the public interest," and announced that he was ready to consider ways to assure opposition parties a more balanced representation.This is an announcement that Egypt's 14 opposition parties must heed, and they must begin to prepare now for the upcoming elections. This will require a process of internal reform in most of these parties, which are racked by deep splits and disputes within the leadership. One opposition party has eight "presidents", who spent almost two years fighting in court over who deserved the post. Such parties have no constituency whatsoever, and do nothing to enrich the country's political life. The other established opposition parties also need a similar reform process, to allow for more democracy within their ranks and to produce a second generation of leaders who will be able to take over one day.
The state is not responsible for all the ills of the opposition. But it could help by allowing opposition parties more venues to express their policies and debate their views. Giving the opposition a share of air time, for example, or allowing them to hold public rallies could be ways to achieve this goal.
All observers agree that the security and economic situations have improved to such an extent that the state must now be able to proceed with more serious political reforms. That, at any rate, is what many Egyptians have understood from President Mubarak's speech.
