Arab Nasserists continue to squabble, writes Mona El-Nahhas Last week's general conference by the Arab Nasserist Party did little to settle the ongoing struggle for power. Just days after prominent Nasserist figure and chairman of the Bar Association Sameh Ashour was elected the party's first deputy, a war of words erupted between Ashour and the party's secretary-general Ahmed Hassan. Accusations of occupying posts on no legitimate grounds were exchanged. Ashour and Hassan have been at odds since December when the fourth general conference of the party was held. Clashes between the party's old guard and members of the reformist wing in a conference in December failed to address any of its agenda items. Except for renewing confidence in the 80-year-old party leader Diaaeddin Dawoud, steps to elect the party's holders of leading posts were not taken. 15 March was set as the date for another conference, however, it was not much better than its predecessor. It ended at mid- night without electing the party's secretary- general or four deputies. To settle the thorny issue of creating the first deputy post, conference organisers took nearly 12 hours. The post was Ashour's demand, first broached during the December conference and which was strongly opposed by Hassan. For nearly three months, Ashour, supported by reformist Nasserists who seek to minimise Hassan's role in the party, continued to press to establish the post. Ashour and his supporters even vowed to withdraw confidence from Dawoud "if his blind backing of Hassan" as one put it, did not stop. Until the last moment, Dawoud was reluctant to introduce an item in the conference agenda amending the party's internal statutes and creating the new post. But after mediation efforts by respectable Nasserist figures and following two hours of talks with Dawoud, it was decided that two agendas would be presented to the conference's assembled members who in turn had the right to decide which to apply. Members who voted for Ashour's agenda and the first deputy position totalled 241 out of 422. Three hours later conference organisers announced the results, which reportedly shocked Hassan. The vote for post of first deputy followed. The voting opened at 10pm and ended 15 minutes later with Ashour winning the seat after collecting the majority of votes. However, when it came to electing the secretary-general and the four deputies, the voters' list mysteriously disappeared. Accusations of stealing were levelled at Hassan who denied the charge. "I swear to God, I don't have the faintest idea about such lists," Hassan said, adding that he handed them to the organisers before the start of the conference. Shortly before the disappearance of the documents, it was reported that Dawoud and Hassan had left the conference site. Losing hope of finding either the papers or Hassan, conference organisers who remained halted the proceedings and commissioned the party's 100-member central committee to elect the secretary-general and the deputies. No deadline was set, however, according to party members, members of the central committee, the majority of whom are said to be Hassan's supporters, are leaning towards renewing confidence in Hassan. Party members also argue that the sudden disappearance of Dawoud was intentional, a manoeuvre to foil the conference, prevent the election of the secretary-general and cast doubt on the legitimacy of Ashour's victory. To avoid a possible rift within party ranks, Dawoud was later advised that the party's weekly mouthpiece Al-Arabi publish in its Sunday issue a story on the conference, including Ashour taking the first deputy job. Dawoud apparently followed the advice. During a meeting Dawoud held with both Ashour and Hassan, he congratulated Ashour, saying the conference reflected the will of party members. "Its decisions should be respected by everybody," Dawoud said. During the meeting, Ashour pressed to stage elections for the post of secretary-general and the four deputies within a period not exceeding three months. "During the period and unless he is re-elected, Hassan should stop acting as the party's secretary-general otherwise he would be violating legitimacy," Ashour noted. Hassan contested the legality of Ashour's election. Dawoud then asked Hassan to accept the results of Thursday's conference for the sake of the party's unity, noting that "Ashour's existence had become a reality." Farouk El-Ashri, a member of the party's political bureau and who is challenging Hassan for the post, described Friday's conference as being a complete failure. "It did nothing but legitimise the status quo and paved the way for Hassan to continue in his post for another five years," El-Ashri told Al-Ahram Weekly, claiming that all the power was still in Hassan's hands. El-Ashri minimised the importance of Ashour's new post, saying, "the post of first deputy will not limit Hassan's authorities, defined in the party's internal statutes," El-Ashri said. "Limiting Hassan's powers requires an amendment of the party's internal statutes, something which may take years," he noted. "Until this is done, Hassan will remain the party's sole influential figure in the Nasserist Party, something which will harm the party's future," El-Ashri said.
