Mohamed Mursi, Addis Ababa, Hillary Clinton, Damascus: optimists battle pessimists in the press. Doaa El-Bey and Rasha Saad scan the papers Newspapers followed President Mohamed Mursi's visit to Ethiopia which was hailed as an opportunity to redevelop sound relations with the African continent. It also followed Hillary Clinton's visit to Egypt together with various developments regarding the fate of the parliament and the constituent committee responsible for drafting the new constitution. Al-Akhbar on Monday quoted Mursi as saying 'Egypt regained its status in the heart of Africa' and Al-Gomhuriya had 'Egypt back in Africa after an absence for 17 years'. Al-Youm Al-Sabei on Monday quoted Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi as saying 'Egypt will not be in the grip of one group' and the Al-Ahram banner on Sunday noted 'Egyptian-American talks to improve mutual relations'. Al-Shorouk on Tuesday wrote 'Battle of thanaweya amma ends; another battle for joining top colleges starts' and Al-Wafd on Tuesday wrote 'Mubarak back in Tora prison'. Mohamed Barakat stated as a matter of fact that good intentions are not enough in building sound international relations. And that, he wrote applies to Egypt's relationship with Africa. "Reactivating Egypt's relationship with the black continent requires effective efforts on the economic and political fields on an official as well as popular level," Barakat wrote in the official daily Al-Akhbar. While Barakat appreciated the positive moves to improve relations with Africa and the successful visit that Mursi paid to Addis Ababa, he called for a clear Egyptian plan based on a thorough study of the needs of the states on the continent to improve relations. Barakat also pointed to the importance of starting with the Nile Basin and neighbouring states as the first phase. Thus, he concluded, it is not appropriate to keep the budget earmarked to the Foreign Ministry's Egyptian-African fund in that ridiculously low $30 million. "If we are serious in our attempt to start a new phase in our relations with Africa, the budget should be multiplied tenfold at least." Akram El-Kassas wrote that interests and national security govern relations between states. Egypt's interests in Africa are on various levels, the most important of which is the Nile water issue. Thus, Egypt should improve its relations with the Nile Basin states. "Egypt is in need to rebuild its relation with Africa in general and the Nile Basin states in particular on the basis of mutual economic and human interests," he wrote in the independent daily Al-Youm Al-Sabei. The writer suggested that we could benefit from Egypt's role in Africa in the fifties and sixties in addition to studying the present investment opportunities that could come out with mutual benefits. The visit of Clinton, the US secretary of state, to Egypt raised questions about the nature of relations between the US and the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) on the one hand and the ruling council on the other. Emadeddin Hussein tried to find answers to these questions. He started his regular column in the independent daily Al-Shorouk by wondering whether there is a deal between the US and the MB. Those who argue with that assumption claim that proof of the deal was clearly shown during Clinton's visit to Egypt this week when she called on the military to transfer authority to civilians -- that is Mursi and the MB. That was followed, Hussein wrote, by Tantawi's statement that Egypt would never be ruled by a single faction and that there are various powers that are trying to drive a wedge between the army and the people. While Hussein stated clearly that he is not trying to defend the MB, he wrote that it is premature to accuse the MB of striking deals with any party because Mursi has been in office for only two weeks. "The MB could have reached an understanding or a deal with the US. But the test for Mursi could not be conducted now but after a few months and it will be linked to how he will deal with the US and Tel Aviv," he wrote. The test will also be related to how Mursi will answer some questions, Hussein added, like what would he do to resolve the Palestinian issue, what he would do with US aid -- would he accept conditioned assistance -- and what he would do with the Iranian issue: resume relations and anger the US or wait and see. Yehia El-Gamal looked at what could hit Egypt from the conflict between the president and the constitutional court regarding the fate of the parliament. He described Mursi's decree to annul the constitutional court ruling and order the disbanded parliament to resume its job as a devastating tempest that left Egypt in a strange situation. The president stands on one side, El-Gamal wrote, and the constitutional court on the other. Meanwhile, the military council tends to support the constitutional court. The only way out that El-Gamal saw was the president's acknowledgment that he made a mistake and cancelled the decree. The other problem that is facing the country at present according to the writer is that of the constituent committee and the process of drafting the constitution. "The committee should be the fruit of an agreement with the president, the military council and political powers. It should be representative of all trends in society, Muslims and Christians, men, women and youth," El-Gamal wrote in the independent daily Al-Masry Al-Youm. In that way, the writer added, there would be a consensus on the constitution which would come as a representation of the Egyptian people. He concluded his article by thanking God that Mursi declared before his trip to Saudi Arabia that he respects the rulings of the constitutional court. And that according to the writer is the end of the hurricane that could have hit the country hard. Salama Ahmed Salama, Al-Ahram's former managing editor and Al-Ahram Weekly columnist, who passed away this week, was mourned by several writers. Salah Montasser who expressed his deep sadness for the loss of a dear colleague, wrote in the officials daily Al-Ahram that "the value of the writer is not in the awards he wins or positions he assumes but in his status in the heart of his readers. Salama, he said, acquired the respect and appreciation of his readers.
