Egypt: Where prisoners become Presidents

Of late, it is not uncommon for political leaders the world over to flaunt their superb educational pedigrees or prestigious qualifications as evidence of their eligibility to govern. We are often reminded that Barack Obama is a graduate of the renowned Law School at Harvard; Britain’s David Cameron lists Eton College – described as the most famous independent school in the world, as his alma mater; whilst Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe is distinguished as the holder of no less than 7 professional degrees from a myriad of noteworthy institutions.

Judged on those criteria, the credentials of the world’s newest Head of State are no less impressive. Egypt’s President-elect Mohammed Morsi is a qualified engineer, who pursued his Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Cairo before receiving his PhD in engineering from the University of Southern California. He even served as an Assistant Professor for 3 years in the US, before his return to Egypt in 1985.

However, as it turns out, Morsi’s main title to leadership may not lie in any of these respected seats of higher learning, but rather in a far more obscure institution commonly associated with wrongdoing and correctional behavior. The great Turkish Reviver, Said Nursi once called it Medrese-i Yusufiye(The School of Yusuf), after the Prophet Yusuf(PBUH) who spent years behind bars for a crime he did not commit. In the very land of Egypt he served his sentence, setting in motion a tradition that has destined the ordeals of prison to become a common, almost universal, ‘subject’ in the syllabus of Muslim thinkers and activists across the ages. For many of them, it has meant not only suffering, but also the opportunity to reflect on past struggles, review strategies, enhance spirituality, sharpen insights and reorganise their mission. For the Prophet Yusuf, the ordeal culminated in him being exonerated and appointed to an influential position of leadership in the land.

In contemporary history this tradition is no better illustrated, than by the chronicles of the Ikhwan al Muslimoon(Muslim Brotherhood). Born in 1928, by the untiring efforts of an Aalim and schoolteacher, the son of a watch repairer, it grew from a base of six members with no formalities to become one of the most influential Islamic Movements of the last century. It was the lifelong dream of founder, Imam Hasan al Banna to guide people to the truth of Islam in concept and practice. Despite setbacks and betrayals, he laboured on, delivering lectures and Khutbahs widely and engaging in discussions with people of all persuasions. The selfless reviver worked day and night and never knew what it was like to relax or go on vacation. His efforts soon paid off. By 1948, the Brotherhood base grew to some 500 000 and hundreds of branches mushroomed across Egypt. Concerned about the movement’s increasing assertiveness and popularity, Prime Minister Mahmoud al Nukrashi Pasha disbanded it in the same year. Assets were impounded and scores were imprisoned.

Ebrahim Moosa in CIIbroadcasting. Here

Enlightened Leadership

The enlightened Muslim leadership of the early empires enabled the rise of the various golden ages. This vision of leadership, however compromised by the unavoidable human ego, institutional failings, bad luck, and corruption, managed for more than eight centuries to inspire a climate of invention and intellectual ferment that was unique and helped shape a future vision of modern leadership in Europe and other non-Muslim countries.

The leadership legacy of Abu Bakr would seem to be in creating a model of humility, compromise, incorruptibility, and a dedication to charity and public welfare. These values provided an enduring ideal of leadership in the Muslim world and beyond, an ideal often contrary to the baser instincts of men.

Ali is one of the first Muslim leaders to set down in writing a detailed template for enlightened leadership, elements of which later surfaced in the Umayyad and Abbasid caliphates, in Fatimid and Sunni Egypt, in Seljuk Persia and Anatolia, in the Delhi sultanate and Mughal India, and in the Ottoman Empire.

Evidence is included in a lengthy letter on leadership, which Caliph Ali sent to his loyal follower, Maalik al-Ashtar, appointing him as the new Muslim governor of Egypt:

... Remember, Maalik, that amongst your subjects there are two kinds of people: those who have the same religion as you have, they are brothers to you; and those who have religions other than that of yours, they are human beings like you.... Let your mercy and compassion come to their rescue and help in the same way and to the same extent that you expect Allah to show mercy and forgiveness to you....

You must always appreciate and adopt a policy, which is neither too severe nor too lenient; a policy which is based upon equity will be largely appreciated. Remember that the displeasure of common men, the havenots and the depressed persons overbalances the approval of important persons, while the displeasure of a few big people will be excused by the Lord if the general public and masses of your subjects are happy with you....

Remember, Maalik.... The thing which should most gladden the heart of a ruler is the fact that his State is being ruled on the principles of equity and justice and that his subjects love him. And your subjects will only love you when they have no grievances against you. So let them have as many justifiable hopes in you as they can and fulfill as many as you reasonably can. Speak well of those who deserve your praise. Appreciate the good deeds done by them and let these good actions be known publicly.

Compiled From:"Lost History" - Michael Hamilton Morgan, pp. 254-257

He is perfectly ordinary man

Alexandria, Egypt: His name was Sayed Bilal, he was thirty years old, married, and his wife was pregnant. He was a practising Muslim, neither an activist nor an agitator. He had a job and did not stand out from the crowd in any way. He lived near the Thahereyya train station. On the evening of 5 January 2011, he received a phone call from state security agents telling him to report to the local police station in the Al Raml District at 10 p.m. to help with an inquiry. ‘Bring a blanket with you,’ he was told. ‘You might need one.’

Sayed Bilal is poor. A simple, unpretentious man, an average citizen. No one is happy to be summoned to the police station in such countries. But since he has nothing to reproach himself for, Sayed takes a taxi with a clear conscience and shows up at the appointed time. No one has come with him. He does not know that his last hour is fast approaching. And how could anyone have known that? Sayed Bilal has no criminal record at all and has never had to deal with his country’s police force. In fact, that is why he has been singled out: he is a perfectly ordinary man.

The interrogation begins with the verification of his identity; a completely normal procedure. Sayed is calm. He doesn’t dare ask what’s on the tip of his tongue: ‘Why am I here? What complaint do you have against me? What are you going to do with me? What have I done wrong?’

Sayed says nothing, answers their questions as best he can and waits to see how things go.

All of a sudden, the men move him to another room. They push him along and take him down to the basement; soundproofed, it is a place where no sound can get in or out, a place for torture. The police have thought of everything. The neighbours must not be disturbed. No noise, nothing shocking, because it seems that certain citizens cry out when they’re hit too hard. They scream. That hurts the torturer’s ears and might split the cork glued to the walls to absorb noise.

Tahar ben Jelloun in Granta. Here

Egypt: Freedom and Justice Party launched

Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, the country’s best organised movement, on Saturday announced the formation of a party to contest up to half of parliament’s seats in a September election.

Mohammed Hussein, the group’s secretary general, said at a news conference that the movement’s consultative council decided at a meeting to adopt a decision to form the new Freedom and Justice Party.
“We have adopted the measures taken by the guidance council regarding the Freedom and Justice Party and adopted its programme,” he said.

He said the party, which will be headed by the Brotherhood’s politburo member Mohammed al-Mursi, will be “independent from the Brotherhood but will coordinate with it.”

The party will contest only between 45 and 50 percent of seats in an upcoming election in September, the first since a popular revolt in February ousted president Hosni Mubarak.

A report in World News. More Here

Freedom and Justice Party could emerge as the biggest bloc

Analysts said the group could win about a third of the votes in the September election and emerge as the biggest bloc in parliament.

Headquarters of Freedom and Justice Party

"The Brotherhood will certainly have a decisive influence over the debates of the assembly, its decisions and the formation of a new constitution," political analyst and university professor, Mustapha al-Sayyid said.

"The Islamist group will have more power to block legislation it does not like more than passing new laws if they were largely opposed by other members."
DEEP ROOTS

The Brotherhood is an Islamist group founded in the 1920s and has deep roots in Egypt's conservative Muslim society. Though formally banned under Mubarak, it was tolerated as long as it did not challenge his power.

At a news conference on Saturday, the group's secretary general, Mahmoud Hussein, confirmed that the group would not field a candidate in a presidential election, due after the parliamentary vote.

But Mohamed Mursi, the newly appointed head of the Brotherhood's Justice and Freedom Party, refused to rule out contesting a presidential vote and said it was too early to discuss the party's plans.
"When the brotherhood group says its party is independent it means it," he said.

A report in reuters. More Here

Emergence of a resurgent Egypt

What is becoming apparent is that Egypt is reclaiming the regional influence it abjectly surrendered when it became a poodle of the US and a collaborator of Israel following the 1979 peace treaty. The spokesperson of the Egyptian foreign ministry told the New York Times, ''We are opening a new page. Egypt is resuming its role that was once abdicated.''

The profundity of the shift in the Egyptian policies is that the military is spearheading the process with the full realization that this is also the collective wish of Egyptian society, its elites and professionals as well as the working class, and the secular-minded as well as the observant Muslim masses. Even the strategic community, as practitioners of realpolitik, feel enthralled that an independent path bestows flexibility to Egypt's policies and earns respect for the country as a regional power when Cairo speaks or acts.

Ali Akbar Salehi

The New York Times noted, ''Egypt's shifts are likely to alter the balance of power in the region, allowing Iran new access to a previously implacable foe and creating distance between itself and Israel.'' No sooner than the news appeared about the Fatah-Hamas accord, Tehran scrambled to welcome it. Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said the agreement is the ''first great achievement of the great Egyptian nation on the international scene''.

The Egypt-Iran rapprochement has indeed gained traction. Starting with the granting of permission (disregarding US and Israeli protests) for the unprecedented passage of two Iranian warships through the Suez Canal in February, Cairo moved purposively and by the beginning of April, Egyptian Foreign Minister was already reaching out for closer diplomatic ties with Iran.

Israel's worst fears about the meaning of the Egyptian revolution seem to be coming true.

The latest Egyptian announcement in the wake of the Fatah-Hamas accord, that it will reopen the Rafah crossing with Gaza permanently, has set alarm bells ringing in Israel. (An Egyptian security team is preparing to visit Gaza). An unnamed senior Israeli official told Wall Street Journal on Friday that recent developments in Egypt could affect Israel's ''security at a strategic level''. The chief of staff of the Egyptian armed forces General Sami Anan promptly warned Israel against interfering with Cairo's plan to open the Rafah border crossing with Gaza, saying it was not a matter of concern for Israel.

The Egyptian military leadership's decision on Rafah reflects a collective wish of the domestic public opinion which empathizes with the sufferings and hardships of the people of Gaza. (A recent poll by US-based Pew Research Center found that 54% of Egyptians want Egypt's peace treaty with Israel to be annulled.) In the circumstances, what will worry Israel (and the US) most is whether the surprise Fatah-Hamas agreement brokered by Egypt is linked in some way to the Palestinian plan to push at the General Assembly session in New York in September for UN recognition for a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza.

Such an apprehension is not unwarranted. The Wall Street Journal commented last week, ''In the more than two months since … Mubarak abdicated … Egypt has reached out to Iran, questioned the price on a contract to export natural gas that is crucial to Israel's energy needs, and won major diplomatic victories with Hamas.''

At the very least, as Helena Cobban, a long-time expert on the region and author, blogged, ''What is true as a general rule in the region is that the kind of sordid backroom deals that regimes like Mubarak's, that of successive Jordanian monarchs, or others have struck with Israel in the past - that is, arrangements to quash Palestinian movements that go far beyond the formal requirements of the peace treaties - have become considerably harder for these Arab parties to uphold, given the long overdue and very welcome emergence of strong movements calling for transparency and accountability from Arab governments.''

Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Jabir al-Sabah

That is to say, any digressions in the nature of stoking the fires of Sunni-Shi'ite sectarian passions may work only momentarily in the developing regional milieu. This became amply clear when Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Abdulaziz Sharaf chose the occasion of a meeting last week with the Kuwaiti Amir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jabir al-Sabah to shrug off the paranoia about Iran whipped up by Saudi Arabia and firmly asserted Cairo's resolve to expand ties with Iran. He said, ''Egypt is trying to begin a new chapter in ties with Iran, which is one of the world's important countries.''

M K Bhadrakumar in Asia Times. Here

Poll: Most Egyptians want Quran as source of laws

A poll conducted by a US-based center has shown that a majority of Egyptians believe laws in their country should follow the teachings of Islam's holy book, the Quran.

The survey reflects a shift toward religious conservatism. It also shows Egyptians are open to the inclusion of religious parties in a future government.

The poll's results, released on Monday, come ahead of September balloting - the first parliamentary elections since President Hosni Mubarak's ouster in February. Islamic parties are expected to make a significant showing

The poll, based on interviews with 1,000 Egyptians, was conducted by the Pew Research Center between March 24 and April 7. Its margin of error was plus or minus 4 per cent.

IBN report Here

Smashing the stereotypes of Muslim women

The Arab revolutions are not only shaking the structure of tyranny to the core - they are shattering many of the myths about the Arab region that have been accumulating for decades. Topping the list of dominant myths are those of Arab women as caged in, silenced, and invisible. Yet these are not the types of women that have emerged out of Tunisia, Egypt, or even ultra-conservative Yemen in the last few weeks and months.

Not only did women actively participate in the protest movements raging in those countries, they have assumed leadership roles as well. They organised demonstrations and pickets, mobilised fellow citizens, and eloquently expressed their demands and aspirations for democratic change.

Like Israa Abdel Fatteh, Nawara Nejm, and Tawakul Karman, the majority of the women are in their 20s and 30s. Yet there were also inspiring cases of senior activists as well: Saida Saadouni, a woman in her 70s from Tunisia,  draped the national flag around her shoulders and partook in the Qasaba protests which succeeded in toppling M. Ghannouchi's provisional government. Having protested for two weeks, she breathed a unique revolutionary spirit into the thousands who congregated around her to hear her fiery speeches. "I resisted French occupation. I resisted the dictatorships of Bourguiba and Ben Ali. I will not rest until our revolution meets its ends, for your sakes my sons and daughters, not for mine," said Saadouni.
Whether on the virtual battlefields of the Internet or the physical protests in the streets, women have been proving themselves as real incubators of leadership. This is part of a wider phenomenon characteristic of these revolutions: The open politics of the street have bred and matured future leaders. They are grown organically in the field, rather than being imposed upon from above by political organisations, religious groups, or gender roles.

Another stereotype being dismantled in action is the association of the Islamic headscarf with passivity, submissiveness, and segregation. Among this new generation of prominent Arab women, the majority choose to wear the hijab. Urbanised and educated, they are no less confident or charismatic than their unveiled sisters. They are an expression of the complex interplay of Muslim culture, with processes of modernisation and globalisation being the hallmark of contemporary Arab society.

This new model of home grown women leaders, born out of revolutionary struggle, represents a challenge to two narratives, which, though different in detail, are similar in reference to the myth of Arab cultural singularity; they both dismiss Arab women as inert creatures devoid of will-power.

The first narrative - which is dominant in conservative Muslim circles - sentences women to a life of childbearing and rearing; women are to live in the narrow confines of their homes at the mercy of their husbands and male relatives. Their presence must revolve around notions of sexual purity and family honour; reductionist interpretations of religion are looked upon for justification.

The other view is espoused by Euro-American neo-liberals, who view Arab and Muslim women through the narrow prism of the Taliban model: Miserable objects of pity in need of benevolent intervention from intellectuals, politicians, or even the military. Arab women await deliverance from the dark cage of veiling to a promised garden of enlightenment.

Arab women are rebelling against both models: They are seizing the reigns of their own destinies by liberating themselves as they liberate their societies from dictatorship. The model of emancipation they are shaping with their own hands is one defined by their own needs, choices, and priorities - not anyone else's.
Although there may be resistance to this process of emancipation, Tahrir Square and Qasaba are now part of the psyche and formative culture of Arab women. Indeed, they are finally given a voice to their long-silenced yearnings for liberation from authoritarianism - both political and patriarchal.

Soumaya Ghannoushi in Al Jazeera More Here

The wonders of the underwater world

An unusual photograph of two see-through goby fish, each no bigger than an inch, is this year's overall winner in the 2011 Annual Underwater Photography Contest, hosted by the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. German photographer Tobias Friedrich captured the view during a dive near Marsa Alam in Egypt. More than 600 pictures were entered in the contest, from photographers representing 20 countries

From MSNBC More Here

Egypt is not free, yet...!

We have been witness to two Revolutions, seen masses on the march, become aware of young people and of new forms of global communication. Media coverage that carried away people’s sense of commitment functioned, literally, as a “blanket”, as a deforming screen that obscured reality and masked key issues. All praise to the people of Tunisia, and of Egypt (whose bloggers have been working to raise public awareness for nearly three years). Their contribution to the awakening of their peoples has been incomparable. Their calls for liberty, and their mass demonstrations have brought about a break ; have opened a path to freedom.
But we must remain lucid. The powers that be are well aware of these developments. To all those who believe that the American administration miscalculated, demonstrated clumsiness or could not keep up with events, we suggest that they would do well to re-evaluate the situation in the light of what has happened and what may happen in the coming days. Egypt—like Tunisia—is still under tight control ; the way in which power was successfully transferred points to a considerable grasp of communication (up to and including apparent errors in judgment exposed to the public in press conferences) and of the internal logic of the Arab world.

People must now be less emotional ; the leaders of the opposition must be more vigilant and responsible. These leaders must shoulder the critical—and historical—responsibilities that are theirs as these lines are being written. Mobilization must always be an option. But now, the primary task for Arab civil society is to create opposition platforms that reflect the multiplicity of political voices and ideological aspirations. No longer is it possible to look on passively as the mass movement is diverted by lessened tensions, by the passage of time, by fulsome speeches and hackneyed declarations of principle. From where we stand, the same basic recommendations mist apply : stay alert, to not confuse political promises or pledges of support for emerging democracies after thirty years of propping up dying dictatorships, with hard cash.

Several years ago, we called for the emergence of a new “We”, based on principles, values, demands for coherence and a sense of belonging to shared national ideals. Now a fresh page of history is opening before us, ours to inscribe with the concrete and practical objectives of this new “We.” Together we must now commit ourselves, freed from potential emotional deafness, and nourished by a realistic knowledge of democratic demands, so that our governments—in the West as in the East—can no longer divide us, can no longer manipulate us, are no longer able to convince us of differences that simply do not exist in our daily lives, and to undermine our hopes to be fully human.

After all the joy and relief it is time for lucidity, time to set up common fronts based on resistance and on reason. Lucidity and perseverance must become the arms of our non-violent resistance. Neither Tunisia or Egypt is free or independent yet ; mass mobilization in support of the revolutions unfolding before our very eyes must continue, inspiring our hope of more to come.

Tariq Ramadan in his website. More Here.

Political work is an integral part of Islamic work : Ikhwan leader

Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat- Dr. Rashad al-Bayoumi is the deputy head of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood. His organization could be set to play a significant role in Egypt's latest political chapter, having recently declared the intention to form a political party. This move has been met with concern in Western circles, with fears that Egypt's domestic and foreign policies could dramatically shift, if it were governed by an Islamist trend.

Dr. Al-Bayoumi, 74, is a long-serving member of the Muslim Brotherhood, and also works as a professor of geology at Cairo University. He has spent a total of 18 years in prison, during the era of the former regime, when the Muslim Brotherhood was a banned organization. His most recent arrest came in 2006, when he along with other Brotherhood members were detained for holding an organized meeting.
Asharq al-Awsat recently spoke with Dr. al-Bayoumi to learn about the Muslim Brotherhood's plans for the coming phase in Egypt. During the interview, he elaborated on his organization's political motives, as well as discussing several controversial aspects of the Muslim Brotherhood manifesto. Dr al-Bayoumi also reflected on the success of the Egyptian revolution, and what needs to be done to build on this. The following is the text from the interview:

Asharq Al-Awsat : Was the Muslim Brotherhood organization waiting for one of its leaders to be chosen [by the Supreme Military Council] as part of the interim Egyptian government, which is now incorporating some political opposition figures?
Al-Bayoumi: Not in the current government, or in any other. We are not asking to be placed in a position of authority, and we do not aim to be in a position of power or have a parliamentary majority, whether in the current phase or in the future.

Asharq Al-Awsat : Some people have expressed their skepticism about a political group making such concessions, why has the Muslim Brotherhood agreed to these political concessions?
Al-Bayoumi: This is because we feel that there are those who want to play the card of warning against the Muslim Brotherhood, and some people have accused the Muslim Brotherhood of wanting to hijack the revolution of the youth, despite the fact that we have lived this revolution from its first day and we have our martyrs. However we only want to be partners of the people, and we have announced that we are of the people and that we do not want to come to power, or form a government, or even put forward [parliamentary] candidates to achieve a parliamentary majority. Our goal is reform.

Asharq Al-Awsat :  However on Egypt's Friday of Victory [18 February 2011] we saw some Muslim Brotherhood figures attempt to promote the role they played in the Egyptian revolution…and Dr. Yusuf al-Qaradawi's Friday sermon at Tahrir Square also gave the proceedings a Muslim Brotherhood flavor. What is your response to this?
Al-Bayoumi: Firstly, al-Qaradawi is too great a figure to be included in any single category or group, he is the head of the International Union of Islamic Scholars, which means that he enjoys a consensus [of support] from all Muslim scholars, and his presence in Tahrir Square was an expression of his general mantle [as head of the International Union of Islamic Scholars], rather than his personal mantle. It is unreasonable to imagine that everybody in Tahrir Square on the Friday of Victory was a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, and those who were present were attended as Egyptian nationalists, so these accusations have no basis. The Copts have embraced al-Qaradawi, his Friday sermon was addressed to all Egyptians, and the revolution belongs to all Egyptians. We are an effective component of [Egyptian] society, and we are keen to engage with members of all faiths, and we do not have any ambition for leadership or rule.

Asharq Al-Awsat :  If the Muslim Brotherhood has no ambitions for power, why isn't this simply an Islamic Dawa [missionary] organization?
Al-Bayoumi: Political work is an integral part of Islamic work, for Islam is a comprehensive religion and politics is part of general Islamic work. It is our duty, with regards to what was happening in the country, to put forward ideas, participate, and offer sacrifices. Those who do not want to understand this perhaps failed to understand what was happening in Egypt, and our experiences are the best evidence [of this]; for at the parliamentary elections our slogan was "participation not combat."

Asharq Al-Awsat :  Now your demands have been met and former President Hosni Mubarak has stepped down from power. What's next for the Muslim Brotherhood?
Al-Bayoumi: This is not accurate, for this was not just our demand, but the demand of the entire Egyptian people. Everybody must [also] be aware that there are hands belonging to the remnants of the former regime playing in the shadows, and some figures [of the former regime] are still taking action or trying to regain control, trying to hijack the revolution and overturn it. There are figures of the former regime who still remain on the scene, figures such as former State Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Mufid Shahab, and he – along with former parliamentary speaker Ahmed Fathi Sarour – was a fundamental partner in the destruction of the constitution and laws. Their presence, with others, raises large question marks. In addition to this, questions remain over other demands issued by the Egyptian revolution which have yet to be met, including the state of emergency that we have been living under for more than 30 years, as well as the state security apparatus continuing their operations, particularly as it was this octopus-like organization which devastated the country. In addition to this, [questions marks remain over] detainees in prison, defendants convicted by exceptional courts. However above all else, there is the current government that was formed by the former president and sworn in by him. All of these issues require detailed attention, and the realization that we have a lot of work in front of us in order to preserve the popular revolution.

Asharq Al-Awsat :  Is the Muslim Brotherhood content with Mubarak stepping down from power, or will you seek to bring him to trial, whether this is regarding the sources of his wealth in particular, or the policies of the former regime, in general?
Al-Bayoumi: The trial of the regime is inevitable, the trial of all members of the regime and its policies, and it is enough to recall that there are 365 martyrs [who died in the Egyptian uprising] and we do not know who is responsible for their death by live ammunition. The public demand now is for the officials who are responsible for what happened in the country – from corruption and more – to be handed over [to the courts], and the priority, of course, is for the crime of murder which occurred against the people of this nation. What is strange is that we are trying former Interior Minister Habib el-Adly for corruption, before we bring him to trial for ordering the killing of people in the streets.

Asharq Al-Awsat :  Is the Muslim Brotherhood satisfied with the decisions taken by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, since it took over running the country?
Al-Bayoumi: Until now, we can consider what has happened to be a beginning, but this has not quenched the thirst of the people, for this is not the hope of the people, the issue was not toppling Mubarak, but rather toppling the entire regime; all of its members, pillars, and policies. The issue is not one of figures, but rather of policies pursued by the Mubarak regime devastated Egypt on different levels throughout the decades of his reign.

Asharq Al-Awsat :  The Muslim Brotherhood has announced that it intends to form a political party, but has yet to clarify what the relationship will be between the political party and the [international] Muslim Brotherhood organization. Can you clarify this relationship?
Al-Bayoumi:The thinking is of a political party that has been present for a long period of time, and there is a decision from the Muslim Brotherhood's Shura Council to this effect, for political work is part of the Muslim Brotherhood organization's work, as we said before, and the political party's will have a role at a specific level. However the fundamental for us, with regards to political work, is binding this with the moral framework and what unites the Muslim Brotherhood organization with the political party is the ideological framework. As for the political party structure, this will certainly be separate from the Muslim Brotherhood organization, and we are not – within the Muslim Brotherhood's institutions – studying the existing [political] models for this in the neighboring countries.

Asharq Al-Awsat :  The Muslim Brotherhood's political manifesto for 2008 was the subject of severe criticism, particularly with regards to your organization being against Copts or women standing for the presidency. This raised a lot of concerns, both internally and externally, can you tell us if the Muslim Brotherhood remains committed to this proviso?
Al-Bayoumi: We consider our position with regards to who can potentially assume the presidency [of Egypt] to be part of the freedom of choose an Islamic jurisprudential opinion, and a Muslim has this choice, and we have chosen this [jurisprudential] opinion as it is the opinion of the majority of Islamist scholars and we do not impose this upon anybody, but rather we, for our part, will not put forward a Coptic or woman candidate for the presidency, however other parties will have the right to do so or not.

Asharq Al-Awsat :  If another party chose a woman or a Copt as a presidential candidate, and this candidate won the elections to become president, what would the Muslim Brotherhood's position be?
Al-Bayoumi:So long as it is the [Egyptian] people who chose this figure and voted, we do not mind, however we are facing a world that is open to us [as Muslims], but can a Muslim become president in the US, or France, or Italy? Of course there are no provisions preventing this, however the majority decides, in Egypt the majority is Muslim, therefore why should the Muslim Brotherhood be subject to all of these attacks when we speak about this? The Muslim Brotherhood is looking at this issue due to its responsibilities and tasks, including leading the Muslims. Can a non-Muslim or woman undertake these responsibilities? However even if a woman should win the elections we will not stand against this, and we will accept this choice, however our own position within our party regarding [presidential] nominations is clear, we will not nominate a Copt or woman.

Asharq Al-Awsat :  The Muslim Brotherhood continually acknowledges following the creed "whenever you must choose between two things, it is better to choose the easier" which is based upon a hadith of the Prophet Muhammad. Why do you therefore stick to this hard-line position with regards to the electoral nomination of a Copt or a woman, particularly when Islamic scholars such as Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi and Sheikh Mohamed Salim al-Awa, have said that there is nothing religiously impermissible about a Copt or woman leading a Muslim country?
Al-Bayoumi: We have not taken a hard-line position, this is the opinion of the majority, and there is a prohibition about shifting between one jurisprudential view and another to choose the easiest. However, God said "and the Jews will not be pleased with you, nor the Christians until you follow their religion." [Surat al-Baqara, Verse 120]. This is clear, whatever we say or do. This issue is being studied and perhaps the Muslim Brotherhood will decide to take a different position.

Asharq Al-Awsat : Some people fear Egypt's foreign relations will be affected by the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood, particularly international agreements that your group may be against. How do you respond to this?
Al-Bayoumi: We respect international agreements and major political issues, whatever they may be, however with regards to an objective and academic look [at this issue], it is the right of either side, or any one side, to review and discuss according to the circumstances and requirements. The Camp David Accords were never put to the people or even to the parliament in the proper manner, but rather these were enforced from above. One of the most important articles of this agreement was the establishment of a Palestinian State, very well, but let us ask: where is this [Palestinian] state? Secondly, where is this comprehensive peace in light of the daily massacres and brutal attacks that the Palestinians are subject to? Who has destroyed this agreement, in light of the genocidal plans against the Palestinian people, and the systematic move to Judaize Jerusalem and destroy the al-Aqsa Mosque? There is also the issue of the secret articles included in this accord, from selling Egyptian natural gas to Israel at a fifteenth of its real price. All of this must be put to the people, and it is the people's right to reconsider thee conventions. Of course, we do not accept the Camp David Accords at all, but re-evaluating and dealing with this must be done according to the law.
 
Asharq Al-Awsat : Some people believe Egypt could be subject to international or even regional isolation should the Muslim Brotherhood come to power, as occurred when Hamas came to power in Palestine. What is your opinion of this?
Al-Bayoumi:  We [the Muslim Brotherhood] are the keenest of all Egyptians for Egypt to return to the Arab and Muslim body, for Egypt's isolation from the Arab and Islamic world only occurred due to the signing of the Camp David Accords, and we want to return to the Arab world, and return it to its status and prestige internationally. We are also calling the most strongly for connecting with the Arab and Islamic societies, and we want to restore Egypt to its place at the fore-front of the Arab world, for Egypt to always lead the way.

Asharq Al-Awsat :  The success of the Egyptian revolution has resulted in lifting the ban on the Muslim Brotherhood organization and institutions. How will this effect the organization?
Al-Bayoumi: We ask God this, and we hope to meet and consult with one another in public, and for everybody to know what we say, and what we want for our people and countries, because what we are saying is no secret, for what we want is to raise up the Muslim ummah, and we do not want anybody to think that we are working in the shadows or against anybody's interests.

Asharq Al-Awsat : Don't you think this will anger the West?
Al-Bayoumi: What's this got to do with them? Why should we care about what they say in the outside world?

Asharq Al-Awsat :  The Muslim Brotherhood was previously interested in communicating with opposition parties; will you remain committed to this policy after the success of the revolution?
Al-Bayoumi: Certainly…we remain keen to communicate with everybody, as long as this is in the interests of society.

Shaaban Abdul Sattar with Rashad al-Bayoumi in Asharq alawsat. More Here.