Role of Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt Unclear
Religious movement expected be major player in coming elections, but its policies remain ambiguous.
Role of Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt Unclear
Religious movement expected be major player in coming elections, but its policies remain ambiguous.
The Muslim Brotherhood, MB, has long been a leading opposition force in Egypt. Following the fall of the Mubarak regime, it is expected to become a major political player, but there remain serious concerns over its possible agenda. Issandr El-Amrani, a leading Cairo-based journalist and blogger, looks at public attitudes towards the movement.
As Egypt prepares for the transition to democracy, is the MB perceived as an emerging political force?
A lot of people are questioning what the political map is going to look like and there is nervousness over the possibility of the success of the MB. They are the only well-organised opposition group and look like they might dominate the coming elections.
There are fears among the elite and among the Coptic Christians too - legitimate fears, because the MB are unclear as to their position on a number of issues. Do they advocate a system of Islamic punishments like they do in Saudi Arabia? How exactly do they envision the role of non-Muslim minorities in public life?
The MB is very dedicated to the issue of Palestine and some people are nervous that Egypt could find itself isolated as a result of this stance. It is not that people love Israel here but the risks associated with the MB stance are severe, for instance, losing United States support and financial aid, which we simply can’t afford.
There are some things, such as opposition to the president being a non-Muslim or a woman, and the provision that the al-Azahr Islamic university play a supervisory role over legislation passed by parliament, to ensure it is Sharia-compliant, that they have shown willingness to change. They clearly don’t want to scare people off.
But there is a great deal of ambiguity, and the MB has been sending contradictory messages.
For instance, since the fall of Mubarak, demonstrations have continued, with people angry over the slow pace of change by the army. The MB pledged support for the ongoing protests. Yet two weeks ago, the MB distanced itself from them, arguing that the army needs to be supported through this period of transition.
And following recent renewed violence during Friday protests in Tahrir Square – in which two people were killed and more than 70 injured – the MB made it clear they did not want to antagonise the army. They are hedging their bets as they work on revising their political programme, which remains controversial.
They do also have to be careful because the law still says that there can’t be a religious political party, and it is still unclear what they can get away with.
As the MB transforms itself into an official political party, are there any internal divisions or tensions emerging?
The MB announced that it will form a Freedom and Justice party and is in the process of arranging the paperwork to make it into a legal entity. They are still arguing over how many seats they will contest – some elements want to go for 30 per cent, while others are more ambitious and say they should compete for 50 per cent.
They do seem confident that they are going to do well, as they are disciplined and well-organised, in contrast to the secular groups. But there are splits within the MB too, and offshoots opposing the current direction of the leadership. One, for instance, is led by Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh and Ibrahim Zafarani, and is gaining the support of more liberal, progressive elements and appealing more to a younger following. It’s still not clear, though, where these offshoots might be heading.
The MB presents itself as always having had a moderate message. They argue that they are not intending to revolutionise society or to include radical new policies – they don’t even necessarily aim to win a majority of seats, and they currently still say they are not going to run a presidential candidate.
Their aim, as they see it, is not to get seats in the cabinet or to form the next government, but to build an Islamic society from the ground up. They want an overall ideological reform of society – first in Egypt, but also spreading to the rest of the Middle-East, resulting in an Islamic model. This obviously scares people, particularly as there are certainly totalitarian aspects to this vision.
While the MB presents itself as a moderate grouping, are there concerns about more extremist elements within the organisation?
No matter how urbane or sophisticated some of the MB leaders may be, there is a worry about the base of the movement. This includes Wahhabi influence, which is a fundamentally undemocratic movement.
Amongst the ranks of the MB are also those with ultra-conservative views which shock many Egyptians even though Egypt is a conservative society. These include things like the full-face veil – something you barely saw in Egypt 20 years ago and is now quite common.
There is widespread acceptance that the MB has the right to form a political party. I know many members of the MB, and they are very respectable people, they have a sincere wish to do something for their country, but I don’t agree with their views.
Daniella Peled is an IWPR editor.
