Choosing a parliament capable of taking Egypt into the future is a solemn duty for all Egyptians, writes Ibrahim Nafie Hopefully, electoral officials and candidates of all political persuasions bear in mind the ultimate significance of the parliamentary polls, which opened yesterday. The world is watching, just as it has been watching Egypt's political reform process. However, our aim should not to so much be to obtain an international stamp of approval as to make these elections another strong link in the chain of the process of comprehensive reform and development. Electoral procedures are important. But more important is the need to fix such details within an overall vision for change, thereby ensuring that they form the building blocks of the democratic edifice we are trying to build. From the larger future-oriented perspective, the aim of the current parliamentary elections is to bring into being a legislative assembly whose primary task will be to lay the legislative and legal foundations for a democracy that will serve the higher interests of the nation. Certainly such a task requires individuals reputed for their patriotic dedication, as opposed to opportunists and cynics. There is no doubt, too, that our democratic experience will be enhanced by the presence in the People's Assembly of a diversity of political forces bound by the commitment to the welfare of the nation. We need individuals who believe as much in democracy and human rights as they do in the value of Egypt and its political prestige. We need people who are prepared to place democratic development above personal and factional interests, not people who regard membership in our legislative assembly as a route to personal or factional advantage. The assembly we seek can only come about if Egyptian voters fully apprise themselves of the character and public record of the candidates fielding themselves in their electoral districts. This is no small responsibility that falls upon the voters, who must realise that their vote will be instrumental in shaping the future of our process of democratisation. It is the millions of eligible voters who will determine the character of the forthcoming People's Assembly. If these developments are indicative of a new phase of electoral transparency and a higher degree of confidence in the NDP, they nevertheless place before other political parties and independents some important challenges. These can be summed up as the need to demonstrate a sense of responsibility by avoiding glimmering yet unrealistic electoral promises and factional or sectarian sloganeering. Simultaneously, the electorate must be more discerning and politically astute than ever, for only by consciously discriminating between what are patently electoral ploys and what are realistic and constructive platforms will it be able to bring in a parliament with the integrity and dedication needed to undertake the momentous tasks that lie ahead. The forthcoming People's Assembly will be discussing a range of vital issues. There are dozens of new laws it will be expected to pass and dozens of others that will have to be scrapped or amended. Indeed, the possibility of radical constitutional amendment is still on the table and achievable, but only if we choose those representatives with a comprehensive national vision and who are truly capable of and committed to dedicating themselves to the higher national good. As mentioned above, the world is watching the current parliamentary elections. It is watching because of Egypt's regional importance and because Egypt has it in its power to offer a model for democratic development that can be emulated in the rest of the Arab world and the Third World. The debate that preceded the elections made it clear that Egypt is, in fact, on the road to democracy. Some might complain about the pace of political reform -- a position that is not without validity -- but it is undeniable that this year's parliamentary elections are taking place within a political and legislative framework far more advanced than that which had governed previous elections. It is also important to stress again in this context the breakthrough in democratic practice that came with the Administrative Court ruling granting civil society and human rights organisations permission to monitor the elections from the opening of the campaigns to the final tallying of votes. Not only is this ruling a major step towards establishing the right of the Egyptian public to monitor elections, but it also constitutes an important spur to a more vibrant civil society in general. Objectively speaking, then, Egypt has taken several sturdy strides in the direction of guaranteeing free and fair elections. This has restored the confidence of Egyptians in the electoral process and inspired many political forces to emerge from a long spell of apathy or abjection, to re-engage in public life and to elaborate their perceptions on Egypt's present and their visions for its future. I stress that casting a ballot is not only a citizen's fundamental right it is also a fundamental duty that each and every individual should perform conscientiously.
