CAIRO: Democratic Alliance parties rejected on Sunday the parliament law, saying they don’t “recognize” it and demanding an urgent meeting with the ruling military council to discuss it.
The Alliance said after a meeting it held Sunday that all political powers rejected the law issued by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) last month. The first method of “resisting” it is dialogue, while keeping in mind all possibilities including boycotting the elections.
“We presented a draft law that was approved by all political powers, whilst the current law will allow money and tribalism to dominate the elections. We represent the people and have the right to accept or refuse the new law as we live under the new legitimacy of reconciliation,” said Al-Sayed Al-Badawy, Chairman of Al-Wafd Party.
The alliance refused the law earlier and gave the SCAF and the government two weeks to modify it.
The SCAF law states that 50 percent of the seats will be elected through the individual system and 50 percents through closed party lists, while the Democratic Alliance law suggests the latter system be applied exclusively.
The Democratic Alliance, called for by Al-Wafd and the Muslim Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), comprises 28 parties from the left and far right, bringing together proclaimed liberals and Islamists.
It includes Al-Wafd, Nasserist, Al-Ghad, Al-Karama, Al-Tagammu, Labor, FJP, Al-Geel, Al-Ahrar and the Egyptian Arab Socialist parties, as well as the Salafi Al-Nour, Al-Fadila and Al-Tawheed Al-Araby parties.
“The law diminishes revolutionary legitimacy and is a reversal of the democratic transition process,” the statement said.
The law won’t produce a balanced parliament, it added, and the upcoming parliament must be a consensual one which is applicable in the draft law they presented.
The meeting was attended by presidential hopefuls Amr Moussa and Hisham Al-Bastawisy, Nasser Abdel Hamid, member of Revolution Coalition Youth, and deputy Prime Minister, Ali Al-Selmy.
FJP didn’t attend the meeting for undisclosed reasons. However, its secretary-general told Daily News Egypt Saturday that the party hadn’t received a confirmed invitation.
“We wanted to send a message to the parties that the government is with you and that they must reach more reconciliation especially over constitutional principles,” Al-Selmy said.
Al-Tagammu Party, which has been skeptical of the Islamic stream in the alliance and had twice called upon Al-Wafd to withdraw from it, demanded an apology from the alliance over the Islamists’ demonstrations on July 29 and quit the alliance.
Prior to the July 29 demonstrations, political groups agreed on a unified list of demands to be made in Tahrir Square to avoid expected confrontations or divisions between Islamist and other political groups.
Salafi groups, however, went against the agreement and called for applying Sharia and scrapping the supra-constitutional principals – two issues political powers sought to avoid that Friday.
“We will continue our pursuit to form a national democratic and liberal coalition that demands a civil state and citizenship rights,” read a statement by Al-Tagammu.
Aboul-Ela Mady, head of Al-Wasat Party, said that current division between the political elite is the responsibility of all political powers.
