A protester opposing Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi
wears a mask with the colours of Egypt's national flag and a headband reading,
"Down, down with the rule of the Morshed" at Tahrir Square in Cairo 21 December
2012. (Photo: Reuters - Amr Abdallah Dalsh)
Cairo – The low turnout at the opposition protests on
Tuesday, 18 December 2012, has given the upper hand to the Muslim Brotherhood
(MB) and other Islamist groups, as they seek to rally their supporters to ensure
a “yes” vote in Saturday’s second round of voting on Egypt’s constitutional
referendum.
Ahead of their planned rally in Alexandria on Friday, Islamist leaders were
gloating about the modest showing at the opposition demonstrations. “It
expresses an objective reality, namely that that the reasons that prompted
demonstrators to protest and hold marches no longer apply as they did a week
ago,” said Issam Darbala, a member of the MB’s governing council, or Majlis
al-Shura.
Others cited it as proof that the Islamists continue to command the majority of public support, ensuring that the new constitution will be approved.
“The Egyptian people are intelligent. They gave their verdict in the first round of the referendum, despite the media deception the opposition engaged in,” said Hisham al-Desouqi, a member of the higher council of the MB’s Freedom and Justice Party (FJP).
“The Egyptian people came to the conclusion that the opposition does not want stability for the country, and that the so-called National Salvation Front is in fact a sinking front and that its calculations are petty and personal,” he said. He reasoned that if the groups and parties enjoyed genuine popular backing, they would have rallied their supporters at Tuesday’s protests.
The opposition cannot deny that the protest turnout was meager – in stark contrast to the recent mass rallies and million-strong marches that forced President Mohamed Morsi to rescind the controversial constitutional declaration he issued last month granting himself sweeping powers.
There can be no doubt that the opposition blundered by calling for the demonstrations, both in terms of the timing – ahead of the second round of the referendum which it had already decided not to boycott – and by failing to publicize and mobilize for them adequately.
Ahmad Khairy, spokesperson for the Free Egyptians Party and a member of the National Salvation Front (NSF), insisted that Tuesday’s low turnout “doesn’t mean that people are now happy about the current situation in the country.”
Rather, it was because the protests were called on very short notice, and at a time when opposition energies were supposed to be focused on campaigning in the provinces that will vote in the second round of the referendum.
Indeed, he reasoned that the small numbers of protestors “are to our credit, as they show that the people who join demonstrations opposing the president and the constitution are ordinary citizens, not people who are ordered to be there.” The opposition “has never claimed that we manipulate the people or control the street. We only call for demonstrations, and it is people who participate in them,” he said, adding that only around 20 percent of supporters of the groups and parties in the NSF take part in demonstrations.
Khairy conceded that some of the opposition’s supporters feel dejected, but stressed that the struggle against the ruling Islamists is an ongoing battle that requires endurance. “It doesn’t end with the referendum and the adoption of the constitution,” he said. “There will be parliamentary elections later, and the opposition must persist in its struggle. In the end, whoever can persevere will be victorious”
Khaled Tleimeh, an activist and leading figure in the Popular Current, said that Tuesday’s protests were still under discussion by the opposition when word of them got out despite the lack of preparation. He stressed the opposition’s priority for now is to continue making its presence felt on the streets in the parts of the country where voting will take place on Saturday.
This article is an edited translation from the Arabic Edition.
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Others cited it as proof that the Islamists continue to command the majority of public support, ensuring that the new constitution will be approved.
“The Egyptian people are intelligent. They gave their verdict in the first round of the referendum, despite the media deception the opposition engaged in,” said Hisham al-Desouqi, a member of the higher council of the MB’s Freedom and Justice Party (FJP).
“The Egyptian people came to the conclusion that the opposition does not want stability for the country, and that the so-called National Salvation Front is in fact a sinking front and that its calculations are petty and personal,” he said. He reasoned that if the groups and parties enjoyed genuine popular backing, they would have rallied their supporters at Tuesday’s protests.
The opposition cannot deny that the protest turnout was meager – in stark contrast to the recent mass rallies and million-strong marches that forced President Mohamed Morsi to rescind the controversial constitutional declaration he issued last month granting himself sweeping powers.
There can be no doubt that the opposition blundered by calling for the demonstrations, both in terms of the timing – ahead of the second round of the referendum which it had already decided not to boycott – and by failing to publicize and mobilize for them adequately.
Ahmad Khairy, spokesperson for the Free Egyptians Party and a member of the National Salvation Front (NSF), insisted that Tuesday’s low turnout “doesn’t mean that people are now happy about the current situation in the country.”
Rather, it was because the protests were called on very short notice, and at a time when opposition energies were supposed to be focused on campaigning in the provinces that will vote in the second round of the referendum.
Indeed, he reasoned that the small numbers of protestors “are to our credit, as they show that the people who join demonstrations opposing the president and the constitution are ordinary citizens, not people who are ordered to be there.” The opposition “has never claimed that we manipulate the people or control the street. We only call for demonstrations, and it is people who participate in them,” he said, adding that only around 20 percent of supporters of the groups and parties in the NSF take part in demonstrations.
Khairy conceded that some of the opposition’s supporters feel dejected, but stressed that the struggle against the ruling Islamists is an ongoing battle that requires endurance. “It doesn’t end with the referendum and the adoption of the constitution,” he said. “There will be parliamentary elections later, and the opposition must persist in its struggle. In the end, whoever can persevere will be victorious”
Khaled Tleimeh, an activist and leading figure in the Popular Current, said that Tuesday’s protests were still under discussion by the opposition when word of them got out despite the lack of preparation. He stressed the opposition’s priority for now is to continue making its presence felt on the streets in the parts of the country where voting will take place on Saturday.
This article is an edited translation from the Arabic Edition.
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