For the second week in a row former IAEA director Mohamed El-Baradei's comments on the circumstances that would have to be in place for him to consider standing as a presidential candidate continue to make political ripples, reports Gamal Essam El-Din Mohamed El-Baradei, the outgoing director of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and Nobel Prize winner, once again attracted the opprobrium of ruling party officials when he announced that he would only consider running as a presidential candidate as an independent. "I cannot stand as a party-based candidate since it would imply that I approve of the constitutional amendments in 2007 which bar the vast majority of Egyptians of putting themselves forward as candidates," El-Baradei, 67, said in an interview with the independent daily Al-Masry Al-Yom on 9 December. Article 76 of the constitution now states that any potential presidential candidate must belong to the supreme body of a political party. El-Baradei further argued that "as a man of law I cannot join a political process which lacks constitutional legitimacy". The constitution, he said, including controversial Article 76, was in urgent need of a radical overhaul if competitive presidential elections are to be staged. El-Baradei's comments came less than a week after he had wrong-footed NDP apologists by demanding guarantees, including an unbiased election commission, international monitoring and revision of voter lists "to ensure that the next legislative and presidential elections are run properly". "The presidency is not about personalities but about the future of the country. I want to see Egypt become a democratic country," he said. El-Baradei signalled his willingness to join a peaceful national movement that seeks constitutional change. "I will be at the disposal of the people in their collective struggle to achieve the desired reforms. Should we fail, I will seek to serve my country in any other way I can. But what I cannot accept is to play a role in a farce." He blamed the lack of public participation in Egypt's political life on the fact that "political parties need the approval of the government-controlled political parties committee, headed by the secretary-general of the ruling National Democratic Party [NDP], in order to operate legally." El-Baradei also lashed out at those who, in response to his earlier comments, claimed that he was a Swedish national, a common line of attack in the government-owned press. "Let me point out for the thousandth time that I only hold one nationality, and it is Egyptian." El-Baradei's statements provoked a predictable backlash. The chairman of Wafd, Mahmoud Abaza, whose party had earlier intimated it would welcome El-Baradei, said the Wafd was "not interested in importing presidential candidates". Mamdouh Qenawi, whose Free Constitutional Party (FCP) had also asked El-Baradei to run as its candidate in the 2011 presidential election, told Al-Ahram Weekly that he was sorry El-Baradei had ruled out joining any of Egypt's current parties. "The FCP approached El-Baradei because we believe that he is capable of relieving Egypt of its current political sclerosis," he said. "But whatever he decides, to be a force for change he should return to Egypt as soon as possible, either as an independent or a party-based official. He could lend great impetus to reform efforts. He must know, too, that the ruling NDP will be unable to attack him as they did Ayman Nour and Saadeddin Ibrahim." El-Baradei's interview was welcomed by the protest movement Kifaya. Marking its fifth anniversary with a street demonstration in downtown Cairo on 12 December, Kifaya officials were appreciative of El-Baradei's remarks. The movement's spokesman Abdel-Halim Qandil told the Weekly that "once again El-Baradei's comments have shown that he is well aware of the shortcomings of Egyptian politics." "His refusal to join in the charade of NDP-controlled political life, with its puppet parties, is commendable. We should also thank him for further embarrassing Egypt's despotic regime." NDP officials continued to pour scorn on El-Baradei's statements. Alieddin Hilal, the NDP's secretary for media affairs, said that "if El-Baradei is interested in introducing change and reform, he should fully abide by the rules of the constitution currently in force in Egypt." Addressing the Arab International Forum held in Washington on 11 December, Hilal urged El-Baradei "not to impose conditions on political life in Egypt". He argued that "most of the conditions stipulated by El-Baradei are already in force in Egypt." "We have a national, independent and unbiased commission in charge of supervising presidential elections," said Hilal. Demands that elections be held under the full supervision of judges and be observed by international monitors to ensure transparency were, Hilal said, "excessive". "It would be better for him to come back and initiate a public debate about the guarantees required for fair and free elections," argued Hilal. "It is quite impossible to amend one or two articles of the constitution, especially Article 76, just to satisfy El-Baradei."
