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CLARE deputy Pat Breen last week returned from a three day visit to Cairo in Egypt where he was among the members of a cross-parliamentary European Union observer mission.
Among this delegation was Lord David Steel, former leader of the Liberal Democrat Party and a number of other high-profile European MPs and MEPs. The visit coincided with the Egyptian referendum on amending the present constitution. Nearly 40% of the eligible voting population turned out to vote, with 77% of Egyptians voting in favour of constitutional change paving the way for parliamentary and presidential election later this year.
Speaking about the trip following the Egyptian uprising, which saw the fall of Hosni Mubarak, Deputy Breen said, “It was a marvellous feeling to be in Egypt as a new dawn began for the Egyptian people”.
“We visited the Port Said Street polling station in Cairo and witnessed the unprecedented sight of voters queuing to cast their ballot in a first taste of genuine democracy in their lifetime. A woman in the queue spoke to us and said it didn’t matter what was on the ballot paper, this was her chance to express her voice free from fear and it was the first election ever where the Egyptians didn’t know the outcome before voting, after 35 years of dictatorship and rigged elections,” he added.
According to Deputy Breen, Egypt stands at a crossroads. The Army Council, who are now running the country, want to relinquish authority and return to their barracks by the self-imposed September deadline. Asked how quickly democracy can return to this country, Deputy Breen said this is still uncertain.
“Many of the opposition groups that we met don’t want elections until next year so as to give the new political parties time to organise. Early elections would certainly favour Mubarak’s former ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) and the only opposition party under Mubarak rule, the Muslim Brotherhood. They have said that they will run for only 35% of seats in the parliament and will not run a presidential candidate. The problem for Egypt now is that the political timetable needs to be resolved,” he explained.
One of the pending questions is whether they hold the presidential or the parliamentary election first. Deputy Breen believes it is probably more sensible to hold the presidential election first as politics in Egypt is personality driven. “Stability could be restored with a new leader who would pave the way for a new constitution and parliament elections,” he said.
Deputy Breen also visited Tahrir Square, which is a symbol of freedom for the Egyptian people as it was where nearly one million people gathered for nine successive days in January and saw Hosni Mubarak’s 30-year rule come to an end.
“We visited Tahrir Square in between our 15 meetings with political parties, groups and presidential candidates. You could sense that the country was in the grips of post revolution. Thousands of people were still in the square at their Friday prayers, others were waving flags, making speeches and handing out Arabic leaflets, singing and motorists in old 1960s cars were honking their horns. The charred remains of the NDP headquarters and the graffiti was a stark reminder of the revolution where 500 people died and thousands were injured and the volatility of the current situation was very evident with the tanks, barricades and army still on high alert,” Deputy Breen recalled.
While in Cairo, Deputy Breen said the situation in Libya was discussed at some length and he addressed this issue with Abr Moussa, secretary general of the Arab League at their headquarters.
“He had just returned from Paris where they approved the no-fly zone over Libya. He had little sympathy for Colonel Gaddafi but as the favourite to win the next presidential elections in Egypt, his big worry is a looming civil war where one million Egyptians, who reside in Libya, would cross the border as refugees and make a bad economic situation in Egypt even more desperate,” he continued.
What he gleaned from the trip was that the Egyptian people want economic help from Europe but they have no vision or plan and have little time to organise themselves. He said unemployment is high and felt that Europe must lead and help the Egyptians during their transition period.
“This is the birth of a new Arab world; it started in Tunisia, Egypt and now has moved to other Arab countries. There is pressure for reconciliation in Palestine, Israel must recognise that the region has changed and Europe must grasp this opportunity for change,” he concluded.
