As leading Brotherhood officials are arrested and accusations hurl back and forth, it is business as usual between the government and the outlawed movement Asked to confirm reports that the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) had attempted to infiltrate the ranks of the ruling National Democratic Party the answer given by the NDP's media coordinator Alieddin Hilal was revealing: "I have no specific information," said Hilal, "but it is possible. After all, the Brotherhood has been striving to infiltrate all state organs and there is no reason why the NDP should be immune." Certainly, the government appears to be upping its campaign against the MB, having arrested 27 members the outlawed group within the last month, the most senior being Mohamed Rashad Al-Bayoumi, a member of the politburo. Then there is the ongoing war of words between pro- government media outlets on the one hand, and the MB and supportive independent media outlets on the other, with some analysts claiming the government's campaign to besmirch the reputation of the movement and undermine its credibility amounts to a form of psychological warfare. The battle was in full swing two weeks ago, when the pro-government daily Rose El-Youssef published the full text of an interview, given by the Muslim Brotherhood's Supreme Guide Mohamed Mahdi Akef last September. The interview, conducted by Said Shoeib, originally appeared in abridged form in the Nasserist leaning Al-Karama newspaper, where it attracted little attention: in the published portions Akef did little beyond reiterate MB rhetoric on political reform and offer a well-trodden analysis of the political scene. In contrast, the full text of the interview published by Rose El-Youssef, sparked a debate that has yet to die down, not least because the paper highlighted statements by Akef that could easily be construed as unpatriotic. The day after the interview was published the state-sponsored media launched a barrage of accusations against the Brotherhood, suggesting that the group held Egypt and Egyptians in contempt. In the interview Akef, in discussing the concept of the caliphate, pointed out that as a Muslim he had no qualms about being ruled by a Malaysian or an Indonesian, nor was Egypt -- as an entity -- something about which he particularly cared. As state television channels broadcast sound bites from the recording of the interview the Brotherhood's initial reaction was to remain silent. The group quickly, however, abandoned a policy of no comment to accuse the state media of taking Akef's quotes out of context and twisting facts to undermine the Brotherhood's reputation and foment hostile public opinion. The group's most media savvy figures were dispatched to contain the public relations crisis, with Abdel-Moneim Abul- Fotouh, one of the movement's most respected figures, appearing on the Dream Channel -- MB spokesmen were denied access to state TV -- to argue their case. Abul-Fotouh insisted the incident was part of an ongoing witch hunt against the group, adding that had Akef really spoken in such derogatory terms he would have the courage to offer an apology. "I have not the slightest doubt that if the supreme guide actually said what was reported he will offer an apology to the Egyptian people," said Abul-Fotouh. While the MB contrived unity in public, the incident appears to have highlighted divisions within the group. Al-Mesryoon, an electronic bulletin, reports sources close to the Brotherhood as saying some members of the group are demanding an investigation into the incident. Others have called for the MB to review its media strategy and appoint a spokesperson in order to avoid future embarrassing slips of tongue. Deputy Supreme Guide Mohamed Habib is in no doubt that the heightened campaign against the MB is a response to "political victories" achieved by the movement. The government "is obsessed with one thing, how to tarnish our reputation." The group did receive support from elements within the independent press. Al-Arabi, mouthpiece of the Nasserist Party, railed against Rose El-Youssef : "The Brotherhood is accused of denigrating Egypt but what Rose El-Youssef failed to mention is that it is this government and its ruling elite that daily insults Egypt and Egyptians. They are the ones who allowed Mamdouh Ismail, owner of Al-Salam ferry, to flee the country and escape justice." But criticisms of the Brotherhood grew this week as several Copts joined the pro- government chorus against the group. Mamdouh Takla, a Coptic lawyer, described the Brotherhood position over sectarian tensions in Alexandria following the stabbing to death of a man in a church, as at best "confusing". The Brotherhood, he said, had endorsed the official version of events in an attempt to save face following Akef's controversial statements. Habib denied that the movement had endorsed the government's position, pointing to an MB statement condemning the attack on a parliamentary interpellation to the interior minister tabled by the group's MPs and questioning security measures in churches. Meanwhile, the campaign against the Brotherhood intensified with the arrest of five of its members last week, including Assem Shalabi, head of the MB's media committee, who recently announced his intention to contest the post of chairman of the Egyptian Publishers' Association in the forthcoming elections. All five arrested work within publishing.
