In 1989, the officially banned but tolerated Muslim Brotherhood group decided to establish a political party. Since then, the group’s consultative Shoura Council have faced many political obstacles to declaring themselves, but with their strong belief in the importance of establishing a free political party with no government interference, the group still waits for a suitable time to announce their party.
In Part 2 of an interview with first deputy to Muslim Brotherhood’s Supreme Guide Dr. Mohamed Habib, he spoke to Daily News Egypt about the place of women and Copts and how applying the Sharia affect tourism in the Brotherhood’s program.
DNE: Your program noticeably neglected to highlight the political role of women and Copts. How does the MB classify the roles of these two important segments of society?
Women have complete freedom to play a political role. We cannot ignore the political role of women. They can become MPs or hold any political position except that of president of the republic because this goes against Islamic jurisprudence. It is socially and religiously unacceptable for a woman to hold this post. Although it is not forbidden outright in Islam, scholars of Islamic jurisprudence have set some conditions regarding this while bearing in mind social realities, traditions and customs in Egypt.
Copts have equal rights to Muslims. They can hold almost all political positions like ministers and mayors, but again they cannot be presidents because Egypt is an Islamic country. A Coptic president will not apply Islamic rules.
How do you respond to critics who see MB’s desire to apply Sharia as a serious setback to the country’s democratization?
Islamic jurisprudence asserts that an Islamic country would make an excellent secular state. It affirms that the roles of all institutions and authorities do not overlap. Who said that blending religion with politics is a drawback to democratization?
I don’t think there is any danger in implementing Islam in the political system. In fact, Islam as a religion goes hand-in-hand with politics in any country. Egypt is an Islamic country, but not necessarily a religious state. As long as we respect the laws and the constitution and the mechanisms of democracy, then where is the problem?
What we call for is that the main religion for this country to be Islam, according to the constitution. The basics of Islamic jurisprudence should be the main source of legislation, but this doesn’t mean that Al-Azhar will legislate the laws. Our perspective is that laws issued do not conflict with Islamic jurisprudence. The constitutional court should oversee these laws to ensure they comply with the constitution. According to Article 2, integrating religion with politics is acceptable. The amended Article 5, which states that there is no religion in politics and no politics in religion, refers to a religion that discriminates between people. Such a religion should not be integrated into the political system. However, this does not apply to Islam, a religion that asserts equality and fairness between all people.
How will Islamic jurisprudence be applied in the tourism sector, and could it have a negative effect on tourism in Egypt?
Freedom ends when it violates the freedom of others. Foreigners respect the rules set in their countries. When we visit any foreign country, we respect the culture and the rules there. What we expect is mutual cultural and social respect. There were rumors that we would order female foreigners to wear a veil when they come to Egypt; this is totally untrue. We cannot force anyone to wear the veil, even Muslims in Egypt. What we are asking for is the minimum conservative dress code. We will try our best to encourage a respectful Islamic appearance. Personal freedom does not mean doing what you want in public regardless of society. Foreigners can kiss each other in the streets of their own countries, but this personal freedom ends when the freedom of others begins. If foreigners want to go to beaches in Egypt, we can provide them with private beaches. If they want to drink, they can do so in hotels, but not in public.
The program rejects any kind of foreign interference, probably including US aid which has a significant influence on the Egyptian economy. What is your opinion on that?
The American administration is neither a charity organization nor a reform association. It has its agenda, plans, strategies and interests. The American interests mainly target the division of the ummah (the Muslim community) by misusing its resources, separating its ideologies and redefining the regional map. America blackmails Arab regimes in a number of ways, and one example is Saddam Hussein’s execution. They are telling us (the Arabs) if you do not obey orders, you will suffer the same fate as the former Iraqi president. They use their aid as a kind of threat – there is no room for independence and we are totally against that.
We can maintain Egypt’s economic status by directing our efforts to producing rather than being absolute consumers. Egyptian society must contribute more to the production process so that there will be no need for foreign aid.
Would you link the recent detainment of high-ranking MB members to the declaration of the primary program?
I strongly believe that the last detainments were nothing but a reaction from the government to the program. The government will never approve the establishment of the MB as an official political party. We prepared this program as a response to the questions constantly posed to the group regarding our political vision and plans to deal with different social issues. When we feel that the political atmosphere is ready to allow the establishment of the MB as a political party, we will make the announcement. The final program of the party will be announced in the coming weeks, with some modifications and additions.
