"If you had the right to vote in the US presidential elections, who would you vote for, and why?" Rarely, if ever before, has this question been as relevant to people around the world as it is today. Al-Ahram Weekly put it to ten prominent public figures, and one hundred randomly picked Egyptian citizens "I would vote for John Kerry, although both he and George Bush are not up to the standard one would expect of a US president. Kerry, however, is not surrounded by the far right like Bush has been. Bush, moreover, is influenced by a fundamentalist religious doctrine that makes it extremely difficult for him to engage in dialogue with the rest of the world. Ultimately, Bush has brought US foreign relations, and America's image in the rest of the world, to its lowest point ever." Mustafa El-Feki Chairman of Parliament's Foreign Affairs committee ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "I would vote for Ralph Nader, knowing it is a lost vote, although none of the candidates really deserves to be the president of the only superpower, or the American empire. What happens in the US today has a direct effect on the whole world, and it will stay that way until God knows when. And yet I don't feel secure about any candidate's potential impact on the citizens of the world, and especially on Arabs and Muslims." Gamil Mattar Director of the Arab Centre for Development and Futuristic Research ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Although, Kerry and Bush are not very different, especially when it comes to their bias for Israel, I would vote for Kerry. To his discredit, Bush is greatly influenced by Likudist thought and the neo conservatives. Moreover, the Bush administration has lost its credibility, especially in the Arab and Muslim world. America is currently terrorising the world. Kerry, on the other hand, is more serious and clear-headed. He is pragmatic and wants to mend fences between the US and the rest of the world." Makram Mohamed Ahmed Dar Al-Hilal publishing house board chairman and editor-in-chief of the weekly Al-Musawwar magazine ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "I would unenthusiastically vote for Kerry. The world would certainly be a better place without Bush. He and the new conservatives are destroying the world's harmony. The role they give religion is dangerous, since mixing religion with politics can be extremely catastrophic." Mounir Fakhri Abdenour Businessman and Wafdist member of Parliament ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "I would choose Kerry. Unlike Bush, Kerry is not an American Zionist, and does not seem to harbour all that hatred and animosity toward Arabs and Muslims. Kerry seems more rational." Diaaeddin Dawoud Chairman of the Nasserist Party "I would be very hesitant to vote for either Kerry or Bush, but since it's a question of choosing between bad and worse, I would choose Kerry. Both have the same negative positions on Arab matters, but at least Kerry seems less dangerous. One point, however, in Bush's favour is that he forced Arab governments onto the road of change." Essam El-Erian Leading member of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Bush would be my choice. There are no indications that Kerry would be better than Bush. Being a second term president, Bush will have the benefit of experience, which will make him wiser. Besides, the US is an institutional state, not one that is purely governed by its presidents." Osama El-Ghazali Harb Editor-in-Chief of Al-Ahram's Al-Siyasa Al-Dawlia (International Politics) quarterly ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "I would vote for Nader, even though I know that it would be a lost vote. Still, it would be an expression of my lack of confidence in the US system. I really don't have much hope that Kerry would be very different than Bush, because real change in America is a very long term process that requires mobilising forces of enlightenment able to expose the defects in the present system." Galal Amin American University in Cairo economics professor ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Kerry would be my choice, because of my contempt for Bush. Kerry's social and economic programme for the US is better than Bush's because Kerry is keeping lower income people and minorities in mind. When it comes to foreign relations, Kerry's first choice will not be military force -- unlike Bush." Hussein Abdel-Razeq Secretary-General of the leftist Tagammu Party ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Kerry seems to be the logical choice. He wants to have positive relations with the rest of the world, and seems to be interested in the Arab region and solving the Palestinian crisis. Moreover, having a new US president would be a psychological change for the entire world, and it might release the unbearable tension that currently exists." Mona Makram Ebeid Secretary-General of Al-Ghad (Tomorrow) Party Interviewed by Shaden Shehab portraits: Tamer Youssef 100 people were polled. Here are a sample of their responses Kerry "Anyone but Bush." -- Sara Mohamed, communications specialist "With Kerry, we'll at least be able to see different pretexts for wars and occupations of weak countries." -- Mo'men Mohamed, university student "Kerry seems to be a little more well educated, and more reasonable than Bush." -- Mai Hisham, university student "Kerry, because Bush is the worst US President ever. He took us back a thousand years, to the dark ages when there was no respect for right and wrong. He has created hatred that will continue for years and years to come. He even harmed his own people. He is responsible for all the young US men who died in battle. Anybody but Bush would be better." -- Sayonara Taher El-Asamar, banker "Kerry, because Bush is being led, and cannot lead a nation. The people around him have misled him. This man is dangerous, he could cause a world war all over again." -- Yahia Hassan, engineer "Bush loves war. We won't lose anything by trying someone new." -- Samy Adly, butcher "Maybe Kerry will try and correct the wrong Bush has done." -- Farouk Ismail, retired civil servant "Kerry, because Republicans are run by fanatical religious groups and the fundamentalist Christian-Zionist alliance." -- Mahmoud, Journalist "Kerry, even though I'm sceptical about his democratic credentials, because he seems to be too right wing. Bush, though, has completely lost it." -- Hany Yehia, project developer "Kerry tends to concentrate on domestic US issues rather than foreign affairs, and that's better for the Arab world." -- Walid Sayed, advertising representative "Kerry, because after the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, no one should re-elect Bush." -- Mahmoud Hosni, university student "I would go for Kerry. I think his policies could be more rationale than Bush's. However, no one knows what tomorrow will bring once Kerry has presidential power in his hands." -- Naglaa, Banker "Kerry has an precise plan which may lead to a better life in the US. He is very clear and honest with his people, which is different from the way Bush dealt with the Iraq war." -- Lina Arafat, university student "Kerry, because Bush had done a lousy job on the local, regional and international levels." -- Ahmed El Baz, brand manager "Kerry, because I don't think the Arab world could withstand another Bush term in power." -- Mohammed Ismail, engineer "Let's find out what Kerry has in store for our region." -- Mohamed Adel, University student "Kerry, because I do not want the world to be governed for another four years by an intellectually challenged president." -- Ahmed Mahmoud, student "Kerry, because Bush is a mentally-backward barbarian and thug." -- Ahmad Abdel-Hamid, TV technician "Kerry, because if Bush stays in office, he will ignite more terrorism and spoil US relations with more countries." -- Mohamed Abdel-Hadi, radio presenter "Kerry, because Bush has sought to destroy the world, and has adopted a purely colonialist policy since coming to power." -- Amir El-Amir, photographer Bush "Everyone thinks Kerry is an angel and will save the Arabs, but it's not true. At least we know what Bush thinks of the Arabs. But if Kerry is president, he will come up with new ideas to destroy us." -- Hazem Refaat, former music teacher "I have become very used to both Bush and his father. I can't imagine a US president that doesn't have Bush as a family name." -- Safia El-Saad, gift shop owner "Bush -- let him finish what he started!" -- Naila Hamdy, university lecturer "The devil we know is better than the devil we don't. You never know what Kerry is hiding up his sleeve." -- Abdel-Fattah Ismail, janitor "Kerry still has to meet his commitments to the Zionists, which is not in our favour." -- Said El-Maghrabi, teacher "I want him to ruin the US by applying his stupid policies." -- Ahmed Abdel-Halim, engineer "Kerry's policies are unconvincing. He is too small for his boots, and that is why Bush will win. Kerry just wants to play on Bush's mistakes." -- Mustafa Hussein, pediatrician "Because he cannot run for a third term, and therefore does not have to adopt policies that satisfy the Jewish lobby, Bush may think about improving his policies towards the Arab region, before leaving office for good." -- Hussein El-Sherif, banker Neither "I abhor America, so why should I care about its presidential election? Every US president is always worse than his predecessor, and so on. US presidential elections have never been good news for the Arabs." -- Hany Mohamed, executive producer "The debates made it clear that neither Bush nor Kerry will be working to support the interests of Muslims in general, and Egyptians in particular." -- Magdi Barakat, salesman "Neither. I haven't been following the presidential elections because I don't care anymore, and I've lost hope in the US." -- Hassan Fadel, computer engineer "Not a single US President ever cared about anything except destroying any country he feels threatens the US." -- Mohsen Saad, grocer "I wouldn't vote for any of them. At first I thought I could vote for Kerry, but after the New York Times announced that it was backing him, I felt that he might not be as trustworthy as he may seem." -- Ahmed Hamdi, university student "Kerry's agenda is vague, and he looks creepy. As for Bush, it's definitely time for him to go." -- Azza Mohamed, housewife "I see Sharon in both." -- Hoda Amer, People's Assembly Media Department director "Bush is Kerry, and Kerry is Bush. They will both do what's best for the US, and both will be controlled by Israel." -- Said Mursi, school teacher "US elections are a stage-play whose end is known. Bush and Kerry are two sides of one coin. It is all fake, and we, the Arabs, will lose in both cases." -- Nermeen Abdel-Meguid, housewife "Bush and Kerry are both working towards the United States being in control of the whole world, and Israel dominating the Middle East region." -- Samir Abul-Ezz, press officer "Neither. I would choose Hizbullah's Hassan Nasrallah, who would consciously work for the prosperity of his people." -- Mohamed Selim, teaching assistant "Arabs should not get their hopes up with this election." -- Amani Mahmoud, housewife Polled by Reem Nafie, Niveen Wahish, Alaa Abdel-Ghani, Nevine El-Aref, Mohamed El-Sayed, Mustafa El-Menshawy,Yasmine Fathi, Magda El-Ghitany and Maria Gabrielsen See also: Rocks in a candy store
