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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 16 - 22 November 2000 Issue No.508 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 16 - 22 November 2000 Issue No.508
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Focus Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters A sharp turn
By Osama El-Ghazali Harb *
The current parliamentary elections hold many surprises that will probably have significant repercussions. The determining factor, of course, was President Mubarak's decisive response to the Supreme Constitutional Court ruling that the electoral process should be placed under full judicial supervision.
Following the first and second stages, it seems that neither the ruling National Democratic Party nor the opposition parties were ready for the sudden change that took place. The NDP underestimated the Egyptian voters' discontent with the party and failed to promote the people's preferred candidates. The opposition parties, headed by Al-Wafd, also seem to have benefited from government intervention in past elections, by coordinating their place in parliament with the NDP, so they too had to face the bitter truth when they lost that kind of support. The elections also revealed that the "Islamists," besieged as they are, make up the greatest opposition force in the entire state, though they still command significantly less power than the NDP.
In light of these revelations, there is every reason to believe that the new parliament, on the strength of both its now fully established legitimacy and the new, previously unheard-of role played by opposition and independent members of parliament, is taking a sharp turn that will generate significant political changes in Egypt. As for what these changes might be, this is currently impossible to predict.
*This week's Soapbox speaker is editor-in-chief of Al-Siyasa Al-Dawliya.See Elections 2000
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