Top News: Brotherhood Reacts to Lifting of Travel Ban
ByMara Revkin
Leading members of the Muslim Brotherhood reacted negatively to the Egyptian government’s decision to lift the travel ban on NGO employees. "The departure of the Americans who were initially banned from travelling is the most dangerous thing that happened after the revolution," FJP MP Akram El-Shaer said. El-Shaer said that the government refuses to explain why the judiciary caved to international pressure, “then it should be disbanded. El-Shaer continued, “The People’s Assembly will summon the prime minister for questioning over the matter." Meanwhile, Brotherhood spokesman Mahmoud Ghozlan described the Americans’ departure as a "catastrophe," and echoed El-Shaer’s demand for an explanation. "I saw [US Secretary of State] Hillary Clinton saying her country is pressuring the Egyptian government into letting the Americans leave. This means that pressure has affected the independence of the judiciary," he concluded.
ELECTIONS:
1) After surviving a carjacking last week, presidential candidate Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh said he will not withdraw from the presidential race “unless it is as a dead body,” warning of efforts by “terrorists and dictators to tamper with the elections process. [al-Masry al-Youm, Arabic, 3/2/2012]
NGO INVESTIGATION:
2) Following Egypt’s decision to lift their travel ban, Several American NGO employees workers left the country on the night of March 1 on a chartered plane and landed in Cyprus. The travel ban, which also affected NGO employees from other countries, was lifted after the nongovernmental organizations they worked for paid bail of several million dollars in a deal struck with Egyptian officials.[Washington Post, English, 3/2/2012]
3) Following the removal of the travel ban on indicted Americans, State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland said the U.S. is pleased with Egypt’s decision but “we remain deeply concerned about the prosecution of NGOS in Egypt and the ultimate outcome of the legal process.” [Washington Post, English, 3/2/2012]
4) In a statement on March 1, four U.S. senators (John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Richard Blumenthal and John Hoeven) expressed appreciation for the Muslim Brotherhood’s cooperation in facilitating the resolution of the NGO crisis. "We are encouraged by the constructive role played over the past week by the Muslim Brotherhood and its political party, the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP). Their statement of February 20 [on support for civil society] was important in helping to resolve the recent crisis," the senators said. However, on March 2, leading members of the Brotherhood and FJP said they had “no role in allowing the travel of defendants in the foreign funding case. Ahmed Abdel Rahman, a member of the Brotherhood’s Shura Council, said “the Senators’ statement regarding our assistance in lifting the travel ban in the foreign funding case was untrue.” [al-Masry al-Youm, Arabic, 3/2/2012] [FP, English, 3/1/2012]
5) Leading members of the Muslim Brotherhood reacted negatively to the Egyptian government’s decision to lift the travel ban on NGO employees. "The departure of the Americans who were initially banned from travelling is the most dangerous thing that happened after the revolution," FJP MP Akram El-Shaer said. El-Shaer said that the government refuses to explain why the judiciary caved to international pressure, “then it should be disbanded. El-Shaer continued, “The People’s Assembly will summon the prime minister for questioning over the matter." Meanwhile, Brotherhood spokesman Mahmoud Ghozlan described the Americans’ departure as a "catastrophe," and echoed El-Shaer’s demand for an explanation. "I saw [US Secretary of State] Hillary Clinton saying her country is pressuring the Egyptian government into letting the Americans leave. This means that pressure has affected the independence of the judiciary," he concluded. [al-Ahram, English, 3/2/2012]
6) Judge Abdel-Moez Ibrahim, head of the Cairo Appeal Court, revealed on March 1 that he asked the judge presiding over the NGO case to step down. Ibrahim admitted to asking Judge Mohamed Shokri to recuse himself from the case over a conflict of interest, as Shokri’s son works in a legal consultancy office that deals with the US embassy. [al-Ahram, English, 3/2/2012]
ECONOMY:
7) Egypt’s stock market index climbed this week to its highest level since last July. The IMF has estimated Egypt’s gross domestic product growth will pick up only slightly in 2012, to 1.8 percent after 1.2 percent last year and 5.1 percent in 2010. Some economists think the recovery could be much faster, however. HSBC expects GDP to grow 2.7 percent in the current fiscal year to June, accelerating to 3.9 percent next year. [DNE, English, 3/2]
8) Saudi Arabia announced on March 1 that the kingdom will honor a $3.75 billion aid pledge, following complaints by Prime Minister Kamal Ganzouri that donor countries were failing to respect their commitments. [MENAFN, English, 3/2]
