Mubarak remains unreceptive to opposition agendas

With a new session of Parliament and imminent local elections looming on the horizon, it appears that the hopes of Egypt’s political opposition for significant democratic reforms will be dashed once again, Mail & Guardian reported last week. Egypt’s ruling National Democratic Party (NDP), led by President Hosni Mubarak, had pledged forthcoming constitutional reforms, but recent statements by Mubarak seem to indicate that the recommendations for amendments brought forth by opposition members of Parliament will be dismissed.

The refusal of the NDP to disclose the particulars of the proposed amendments has drawn the ire of leading opposition members of Parliament like Hamdi Hassan, a representative of the controversial Muslim Brotherhood. “For some reason the details of the upcoming constitutional changes remain secret and only the NDP knows their specifics. This is utter manipulation. But then again, eliminating others has always been the philosophy of this regime,” Hassan said.

The growing influence of Gamal Mubarak, the president’s son and a leading candidate to take over for his father, and continued U.S. support for the NDP do not bode well for opposition groups already stifled by internal tensions and an unresponsive Egyptian regime.

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