Al-Ahram Weekly 25 - 31 May 2000 Issue No. 483
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875

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Islamists vow to fight on

By Mona El-Nahhas

Officials of the Labour Party described as "illegal" the Political Parties Committee's decision to suspend, for the moment and for all practical purposes, the activities of their party as well as the publication of its trouble-stirring bi-weekly mouthpiece. They vowed to contest their case before the Administrative Court.

"We will appeal to the judiciary in order to have the decision annulled," said Ibrahim Shukri, chairman of the Islamist-oriented party. He affirmed that his party is not in favour of taking violent measures that would threaten public security.

"The decision is a serious setback for democracy in this country," said Adel Hussein, the party's secretary-general. "I think all political parties and democratic forces should resist the decision, which is completely illegal and politically destructive."

The decision of the Political Parties Committee was formally based on a split in the party leadership, which surfaced last week, after two senior party members, Hamdi Ahmed and Ahmed Idris, were chosen by two different congresses to replace Shukri. They claimed that Shukri had dropped the party's socialist platform, turning Labour into an Islamist group, through an alliance with the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood. According to Shukri, both Hamdi Ahmed and Ahmed Idris had no relation to the Labour party. Ahmed was fired from the party last October, Shukri said, and Idris left party ranks a long time ago. On the other hand, Ahmed and Idris said that Shukri and Hussein have no party function because they occupy their posts as a result of rigged elections.

It was therefore no surprise that Ahmed welcomed the decision of the Political Parties Committee, describing it as "very wise." "It will give all the conflicting factions a chance to take a deep breath and make decisions serving the party's interests," he said.

For his part, Shukri said the decision has no legal basis. Its only aim is to silence the Islamists and prevent them from participating in political activity, he added.

Shukri claimed the decision will have no impact on the party's political role, adding that they still intend to take an effective part in parliamentary elections, elections of professional syndicates and municipal elections.

Ibrahim Shukri

Adel Hussein

Hamdi Ahmed

"Anybody who wants to run for election does not necessarily have to wear a badge bearing the name of the Labour party," Shukri said.

Shukri insisted that Labour will go on holding regular meetings on the grounds that the committee's decision does not ban party activities.

However, as party members assembled on Monday in a branch office in Qalyubiya governorate, security forces stormed the building and pre-empted the gathering, on the grounds that the assembled members did not obtain an advance permission from the Political Parties Committee.

The committee has referred the party's dossier to the socialist prosecutor-general who will investigate complaints by Ahmed that Shukri and Hussein were involved in inciting sedition and committed financial and administrative irregularities. The prosecutor will prepare a report on the results of the investigation and submit it to the Political Parties Committee.

Shukri said he is not worried about the investigation results, "because our position is very strong and nobody can condemn us."

Opposition leaders have condemned as anti-democratic the decision practically freezing Labour activities.

"These measures taken against a legal party that has played a role for a long time violate the principles of legality and democracy," said Fouad Serageddin, chairman of the Wafd party.

Diaaeddin Dawoud, leader of the Nasserist Party, told Al-Ahram Weekly that his party, though it disagrees with Labour policies, stands firmly against the committee's decision. Dawoud said the aim of the decision was to intimidate the other opposition parties and silence the Islamists by closing their mouthpiece, which had caused a chronic headache to several government officials. Dawoud argued that Ahmed's action raised several question marks. In fact, many observers believe Ahmed's move to be government-inspired.

In a statement, the Egyptian Organisation for Human Rights (EOHR) described the freeze on Labour activities and the closure of its newspaper as constituting "a flagrant violation of democracy and freedom." The EOHR declared complete rejection of any interference by the executive authority in the affairs of political parties. The statement urged the Press Syndicate to shoulder complete responsibility over Al-Shaab journalists who lost their jobs as a result of the committee's decision.

The Press Syndicate's council held a meeting yesterday to discuss the measures necessary for ending the crisis of Al-Shaab journalists.

"The only way of ending the crisis is the re-issuing of the newspaper," Ragai El-Merghani, deputy chairman of the Syndicate's council, told the Weekly. In a statement issued on Sunday, the council declared its complete disapproval of the decision suspending the publication of Al-Shaab newspaper, describing it as a violation of the press law and articles 48 and 208 of the constitution. The statement said that protecting national interests and security cannot be achieved by freezing parties or closing newspapers. The council announced support for Al-Shaab journalists who started an open sit-in strike on Saturday at the headquarters of the Press Syndicate.

"We urge the Supreme Press Council to pay them salaries in due time starting this month," El-Merghani said.

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