CAIRO: Amid the fanfare accompanying Mohamed ElBaradei’s return to the homeland, many Egyptians have been infused with a renewed faith that the much-anticipated change to Egypt’s stagnant political scene is coming closer.
The former secretary general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been making headlines since unofficial opposition groups began nominating him as a possible candidate to succeed President Mubarak.
Even though ElBaradei was vague regarding his intentions to join the 2011 presidential race, he declared his approval for calls by Egyptians who “wish to usher Egypt into a new era of reform and comprehensive change based on true democracy and social justice, as he put it in one interview.
Mohamed Qassem, a 23-years-student and a general coordinator for the “ElBaradei for President campaign, told Daily News that the advent of the former IAEA chief has introduced a new and unpredictable element to Egypt’s slow-moving political scene.
“For the first time in decades, a prominent member with such international respect raises that much enthusiasm in every Egyptian. We haven’t experienced it before. ElBaradei s criticism of Egypt’s current predicament comes from a man who appears eminently qualified for the presidency, he said
But others warn that ElBaradei must be cautious in the coming months.
“He must realize now that he is facing an uphill struggle as he returns to Egypt; the current regime have a loaded history of suspending and harassing many political figures, Tamer Seif, a 42-year-old accountant said.
Seif fears that the regime might make “unexpected moves against ElBaradei as it is now facing its strongest challenge to date: a man with impeccable credentials and the potential to become the face of Egypt’s “leaderless opposition.
Last December, one month after stepping down as the chief of the UN’s nuclear watchdog for 12 years, 67-year-old ElBaradei hinted at his considering joining Egypt’s next presidential elections.
Although President Mubarak, who has been in power for the past 28 years, declared in an interview published last month during Police Day Celebrations, that he welcomes any presidential candidates “who have the potential to serve people and the nation , ElBaradei’s verbal intentions were met with a frenzied criticism by the state-run press. The smear campaign has some editors describe him as the “imported, out of touch president who lacks the necessary political experience and even label him as the “new Facebook President .
Pro-government newspapers changed their previously celebratory tone 180 degrees, going on overdrive in an effort to tarnish ElBaradei’s image, with Al Ahram’s editor-in-chief, Osama Saraya, describing him as a “foreigner to Egyptian reality.
“ElBaradei’s remarks were tantamount to a constitutional coup and opened a door for George W. Bush’s policy of constructive chaos into Egypt, wrote Saraya. He also falsely claimed that ElBaradei holds dual Egyptian-Swedish citizenship, when a presidential candidate must be fully Egyptian.
During the ensuing months, serious campaigns supporting ElBaradei were launched, with many opposition parties rushing to hail ElBaradei as Egypt’s first opposition consensus candidate who is powerful enough to run against Mubarak.
Parties, including El Wafd, invited him to join their ranks, but ElBaradei expresses his preference to run as independent once he could guarantee free and fair elections, subject to judicial and international monitoring.
Osama Bahrawy, Secretary of the Wafd Party in Al-Gharbiya governorate, said that there was a desire among the party’s young leaders to attract ElBaradei to join them.
But Bahrawy’s endorsement of the idea was at odds with the ideas liberal-oriented party chairman Mahmoud Abaza, who later back-peddled on inviting ElBaradei to join them.
Abaza justified his retraction by saying that Egypt has changed significantly during the past 30 years, and that party was no longer “interested in importing presidential candidates.
By far, ElBaradei’s strongest supporters were online, with a Facebook group created to push for his candidacy (“El Baradei Candidate in 2011 Presidential Elections ) attracting over 40,000 people.
Best-selling Egyptian novelist Alaa Al-Aswani, backed this campaign, saying in a column published in Al Shorouk newspaper, “This is a unique phenomenon, the very enthusiastic support for Mr ElBaradei among the youth.
Analysts say that part of the reason for the strong support for ElBaradei is the vague scenarios facing Egypt s future, as President Mubarak, 81, has not yet declared whether he will join the 2011 elections, while media speculation points to his son Gamal’s ascension despite denials by both father and son.
Rafeek Younan, a political blogger, believes that Egyptians are making an analogy between ElBaradei and our former nationalist hero Saad Zaghloul.
“The zealous support for ElBaradei amongst young people is truly a unique phenomenon. They have formed a number of official and popular representative committees for the sake of changing the constitution, an event that has not occurred in Egypt since the revolution in 1919.
“As ElBaradei said, Egypt is the only country operating with this dysfunctional and crippling constitution, as no other constitution in the world requires the candidate to obtain the endorsement of 250 elected politicians who must be members of the Lower and Upper Houses of Parliament and members of municipal councils, he added.
