UK -Politics & World Current Affairs

Left wing Egyptians have turned Egyptian popular diplomat, Mohamed El-Baradei’s London lecture into Farce……but he still walks tall and remains popular, thanks to public at large.
Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei, former Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and a hopeful candidate for 2012 Egyptian Presidency election, was in London tonight where he spoke for 20 minutes on need for change in Egypt and his hope for restoring democracy and rule of law that existed before the 1952 military coup.
Dr El-Baradei, who was, at one point compared to Mahatma Ghandi by Dr Wafik Moustafa, Chairman of the Conservative Arab Network during the meeting, spoke rather well in the meeting answering questions for another 90 minutes, about the need for change in Egypt.
Dr Moustafa later explained that like Ghandi, who lived outside India ( in South Africa) for many years, but became a focal point for Indian nationalism, gaining independence by peaceful means, Dr El-Baradei, who has been criticised by Egyptian Regime media for ‘ knowing little about Egypt since he lived abroad for 20 years’, brings with him a more rational and scientific approach to Egypt’s chronic social and economic problems.
Dr El-Baradei urged those ‘interested in change for the better’ to pursue peaceful means starting with signing a petition urging the government to hold a fair and transparent election observed by the judiciary. The signatures list to give a strong mandate to a party or a group of people representing the Egyptian nation has its roots in Egypt’s modern history. A movement back in 1919, lead by Saad Pasha Zaghloul, collected one million signature delegating the Pasha and his team to speak to London and the rest of the world on behalf of the Egyptian nation. The Egyptians wanted an independence from the Ottoman Empire, a constitutional monarchy and a secular pluralist parliamentarian democracy. This was achieved in 1922 with a constitutional monarchy of King Ahmad Fuad I and Zaghloul Pasha Delegates ( Wafd) party secured a landslide victory. The movement gave birth to 1923 constitution, the most progressive and equitable one in Egypt’s 7000 years history, giving equal rights to all and the women the right to vote. This lead to an age of prosperity, pluralist Westminster style parliamentarian democracy and unprecedented growth. But constitution was abolished by the 1952 military coup which lead to a one party dictatorship under Colonel Gamal Abdel Nasser, until the late President Anwar Sadat, restored the multi-party system in 1976. But the one party, ( Democratic nationalist Party), still dominates the state owned media, all institution. The party is full of corrupt upstarts and chokes civilian life and all institutions.
No new parties can be formed or fight elections without the approval of the upper house where the DNP controls 90% of the seats, which Dr el-Baradei highlights as a main obstacle to new liberal or Nationalist parties to fight election on a platform of change or reform. The Noble prize for peace laurite had publicly, in the past, put forward a list of conditions for him to accept nominations to fight presidential elections ( since all parties, except DNP urging him to become a leader). Conditions like fair and free elections to be observed by international observers; lifting the 40 years old emergency laws; rule of law, and giving equal airtime on state owned media to all candidates.
He also gave a frank, learnt and concise analysis of Iran’s quest to acquire nuclear ‘know who’ saying he didn’t believe Iran wanted a nuclear bomb at present, but wanted to reach the point where the regional powers do believe she has the material, the knowledge and the skill to build a nuclear device, with the aim of regional dominance.
The downside of the event was the organisers themselves, a bunch of communist losers with some outdated agenda who wanted to ‘ hijack’ el- Baradei as a prize for the left. The Islamists terrorist ‘ Ikhwan’ ( Muslim Brothers) were also there, launching attacks on ‘ liberal’ thinking Egyptians.
The meeting descended into something between farce and anarchy, especially with the ‘ chairman’ ( a Marxist psychiatrist) trying to capitalise on the presence of Dr el-Baradei, which lead to some time heating exchanges between him and members of the 300 or so strong audience who packed one of University College Hospital larger lecture theatres. The Chairman also, foolishly, picked fights with the media, and at one point had a heated exchanging with the BBC Arabic Affairs Editor, who, legitimately, wanted to ask questions reflecting the interests of his listeners, namely UN sanctions against Iran over its nuclear ambitions. Dr Salah Fadl, who chaired the meeting, angrily saying he only invited the media to ‘ cover the event not to ask questions the liked to ask,’ which lead to the BBC man walking out in disgust. I guesses Dr Fadl, would almost certainly live to regret his unwise words.
Many Egyptians left the meeting disappointed by the way it was organised and chaired, by the leftist whose agenda was not clear. Dr el-Baradei, although still popular with many Egyptians, was not given opportunity to further explain his idea of gathering as many signatures as possible to force the government in Egypt to listen for the call to change.
Tonight’s organisers missed an opportunity with a dozen or so TV cameras and scores of journalists, British, Egyptians and Arabs to put out a call for Egyptians everywhere that there is a time for change to restore the democracy which the 1952 military coup has quenched replacing the Westminster style multi-party parliamentarian system with the still going autocracy.
Perhaps next time Dr el-Baradei comes to London he would be too wise to let the communists, with their outdated ( and customary disastrous) agenda, have the better of him.