CAIRO: The recently formed movement “Egyptians for Fair and Free Elections is calling for international supervision over Egypt’s parliamentary and presidential elections in 2010 and 2011, respectively.
The movement sent requests to US Carter Center, the African Union and the European Union, George Ishaq, the movement’s official spokesperson and former coordinator of the Kefaya movement, told Daily News Egypt.
The movement also plans on forming public committees for citizens to monitor the elections.
It will also organize nation-wide conferences to promote their ideas and urge citizens to participate in the elections and combat forgery and vote-rigging.
Mahmoud Al Khoderie, general coordinator of the movement, told Daily News Egypt that asking international bodies to monitor the elections is a “regular procedure.
“We are trying to find a way to pressure the government, Al Khoderie said.
International monitoring of elections doesn’t violate a state’s sovereignty, he explained. “We need to convince the government that international monitoring on elections is not considered outside intervention.
“Elections in America and in European countries as well as some African and Asian countries are supervised by international observers, and even Egypt had participated as a formal election watchdog in several countries, according to Al Khoderie.
The movement seeks lobbying local and international public opinion to face what its leaders call “the Egyptian government’s persistent rigging of elections.
“These organizations will have to get the approval of the Egyptian government to monitor the elections, Ishaq said.
“It’s hard to foresee what we will do if the government doesn’t approve, said Al Khoderie.
On Nov. 6, the movement held its first meeting in Alexandria where applications were available for all to join.
Over 100 public figures have already signed the petitions that were sent to the international organizations, including Al Khoderie, Ishaq, author Alaa El-Aswani and celebrity talk show host Hamdi Qandil. -Additional reporting by By Diana Maher Ghali and Omnia Al Desoukie
