Egypt: Rights Group Warns Against Risks Of Blocking Democratic Transformation

Egypt: Rights Group Warns Against Risks Of Blocking Democratic Transformation

The Civil Observatory for Human Rights (COHR) warned against the risks of what it described as the “arteriosclerosis” of democratic transformation in Egypt which created a climate of despair among many of Egyptians.


 


This has been reflected in the comments of Egyptian citizens during the Shura Council fire, and after the spreading  of the news on internet pages and forums, COHR said.


 


“Those who pretend to be blind to those comments and despair they reveal as well as the people’s pleasure at the misfortune of the Egyptian political system, are contributing to the crime of silence towards what is going on under the surface of the Egyptian society,” COHR added.


 


The civil Observatory also confirmed that these are the voices of many desperate Egyptians, unlike what a government official said, that those people are non-Egyptians” The Observatory added.


The  Civil Observatory called for activating the mechanisms of societal dialogue to find a way to a new social contract activating the role of civil society organizations in Egypt. It is important for this contract to sponsor a societal dialogue between the government on one hand, the opposition and the citizens on the other, that’s because of its neutral role in the societal conflict in addition to its important role in warning against the societal risks, tensions and ethnic and sectarian strife.


 


Despite the attack, which some organizations are exposed to by some governmental writers, some opposition writers and some members of the People”s Assembly and despite the accusations, the societal dialogue is going on its way trying to play its role without any interruption.


 
The Observatory stressed on the fact that the way for restoring hope is full of difficulties and needs struggle by those who are keen on the future of the country, such as civil society and political forces with its different categories. This also requires some concessions from the semi-democratic orientation within the ruling party.

The Observatory called on Egyptian civil society organizations to activate the mechanisms of national dialogue and push the process of democratic reform forward, and to start from a working agenda that contains two items, namely the releasing of all political prisoners including prisoners in criminal cases under political reasons, amending laws which violate the freedom of association including the political parties law, the laws governing professional and trade unions and the  laws governing associations and student regulations.

The Civil Observatory for Human Rights stressed on the importance of the coordination and the cooperation among organizations to maximize civilian activities and to achieve a working program that aims primarily at overcoming the current state of democratic deterioration and will be the slogan of a campaign of the civil society to restore democratic aspirations.