Ten leftist parties and movements announced Wednesday the formation of a joint coalition named the Democratic Revolutionary Coalition (DRC) during a press conference at the headquarters of Egyptian Socialist Party in downtown Cairo. "The Egyptian left has always been one of the main pillars of the national movements in Egypt's history," said Ahmed Bahaa El-Din Shaaban, secretary general of the Egyptian Socialist Party. Shaaban explained the reasons behind the current initiative to unify, due to "the criticality of the current situation in Egypt, with attempts at turning Egypt into a religious state ... Egyptian identity is being threatened, and the revolution is at stake." The long-time socialist activist pointed out that this is the first time in Egypt's history that the left unites. In 2006, different leftist groups tried to form what was known as the Socialist Alliance. This aimed at creating a leftist alternative, especially amid the new wave of industrial action emerging at the time. Yet no sooner had the alliance been announced than differences between its members paralysed its work on the ground. After the 25 January uprising, five socialist groups and newly established parties, namely the Egyptian Socialist Party, the Socialist Popular Alliance, the Tagammu Party, the Workers and Peasants Party, and the Egyptian Communist Party, announced that they would unite with the Revolutionary Socialists to form a "socialist front." Once again the initiative failed to produce a leftist umbrella. Four of the groups that tried to unite in 2011 are now members of the DRC. The new coalition is formed of 10 leftist parties and movements: the Egyptian Socialist Party, the Socialist Popular Alliance, the Tagammu Party, the Workers and Peasants Party, the Egyptian Communist Party, the Democratic Popular Movement, the Egyptian Coalition to Fight Corruption, the Socialist Revolutionary Movement (January), the Socialist Youth Union and the Mina Daniel Movement. Coalition leaders said they aim to ally with other national coalitions; however, Workers and Peasants Party co-founder Kamal Khalil underlined that any coalition is possible except “for whoever allied with SCAF, was party to Mubarak's regime or was against the revolution.” “We're going through a dangerous phase that demands the unity of all national forces and not just the left,” said Khalil. Khalil revealed the DRC's intention to unite with both Nasserist Hamdeen Sabbahi's Popular Current and reform campaigner Mohamed ElBaradei's Constitution Party. “We will unite on the streets and during elections. From now there is no 'I' but 'us.' This is a starting point for a democratic coalition against the classist rulers,” said Khalil, stressing that unity will be based on the goals of the revolution rather on an ideological basis.
