Friday, February 18, 2011

Egyptian youth leaders moved to set up a new political party Thursday as the Muslim Brotherhood played an increasingly important role in preparing for post-Mubarak elections promised within six months.

Meanwhile, an Egyptian prosecutor ordered the detention of three ex-ministers and a prominent businessman pending trial on suspicion of wasting public funds. The prosecutor said former Interior Minister Habib al-Adli, former Tourism Minister Zuhair Garana, former Housing Minister Ahmad al-Maghrabi and steel magnate Ahmad Ezz must be held for 15 days. All four have denied any wrongdoing.

Pro-democracy leaders plan to bring one million people out on the streets for a “Victory March” Friday to celebrate Mubarak’s ouster, and perhaps remind the generals now in charge of the power of the street that ended Hosni Mubarak’s rule.
Life in Egypt is still far from normal six days after the momentous overthrow of Mubarak, 82, with tanks on Cairo streets, banks closed, worker protests and demonstrations given voice by revolutionary fervor and schools shut down.

“The Higher Military Council will put matters back on track, but help us,” army spokesman General Ismail Etmaan said on state television late Wednesday night, appealing to Egyptians to stop striking and start getting back to work.
“The armed forces do not have future ambitions and want to hand power to the civilian parties when they are strong so that they don’t collapse,” he said.

The Brotherhood has a member on the committee redrafting the constitution, is on a council set up by activists to protect the revolution and has said it will set up as a political party as soon as laws are changed to let it and others do so. The Brotherhood’s spokesman appeared on state television a few days ago, a first for a movement banned in the Mubarak era.

The Brotherhood is viewed with suspicion by Washington but is seen as the only truly organized bloc in Egypt and reckons it could win up to 30 percent of votes in a free election.
In another sign of the transformation of Egyptian politics, Al-Gamaa al-Islamiya (Islamic Group), which took up arms against Mubarak’s administration in the 1990s and was crushed by security forces, held its first public meeting in 15 years.

“Our position is to turn a new page with the new regime,” said Assem Abdel-Maged, a group member who spent years in jail for his role in the 1981 assassination of President Anwar Sadat. “We will perform any positive role we can to help society.”

The Higher Military Council that took over after the overthrow of Mubarak was under pressure Thursday from activists demanding the immediate release of political prisoners and the lifting of emergency rule.
A committee, which includes a member of the Brotherhood, Sobhi Saleh, as well as legal and constitutional experts, met Thursday as the military dismantled the mechanisms that kept Mubarak’s autocratic rule in place.

Saleh said Wednesday the military council had pledged to lift emergency laws before elections are held.