14 - 20 June 2001
Issue No.538
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Al-Ahram Weekly Online 14 - 20 June 2001 Issue No.538 |
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Island hopping
IN RESPONSE to persistent reports that the government is planning to evict some, if not all, inhabitants of the Nile islands of Al-Warraq and Al-Dahab to make room for private developers, Housing Minister Mohamed Ibrahim Soliman told Riad Tawfik, in an exclusive interview, that "we have neither investors nor investments."
photo: Antoune Albert
"Our projects are intended to provide citizens with public services. We have no investors. There were reports that we had reached an agreement with the Sultan of Brunei to launch investment projects on the two islands. But I never saw him, never reached an agreement with anybody, and there are no investments or investment projects."
There remains, though, a great deal of confusion and local resentment over cabinet decree 542 expropriating the land of the two islands for "public benefit," reports Gihan Shahine. Nor were the island's inhabitants reassured by Prime Minister Atef Ebeid's subsequent announcement that those in possession of deeds of ownership would not be evicted. Ebeid also promised that in the absence of deeds inhabitants would be offered the opportunity to buy the land on which they are squatting. Many doubt they will be able to meet the asking price.
Worried inhabitants have resolved to continue with legal proceedings to contest the cabinet decree before the Administrative Court.
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