CAIRO: Over 100 signatures were collected Friday evening at the Hisham Mubarak Law Center (HMLC) in support of Mohamed ElBaradei and his proposed constitutional reforms. Smoke wafted from the end of a lit cigarette as a dozen young men spoke animatedly around a table littered with papers, overflowing ash trays, and half-empty tea cups around 8pm. Among those present were Ahmed Maher, Mohamed Adel and other activists and members of the 6 April Youth Movement. These activists are part of a larger group supporting ElBaradei's National Association for Change and they are currently collecting signatures on a statement that affirms their support for ElBaradei's changes. The statement calls for constitutional amendments, an end to the 29-year-old Emergency Law, international observers for elections and provisions for Egyptians abroad to vote, among other things. The movement wants to gather three million signatures. As of Friday night, they had around 3,000. Sunday, March 21, Egyptian Mother's Day, will mark the beginning of a street campaign to collect more signatures from people on the streets. According to Mohamed Adel, a blogger and member of the 6 April movement, everyone except the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) is supporting the movement, and signatures have even been collected from military officers. The statement signed Friday night is the same shown to Bikya Masr in the office of George Ishaq, the former leader of the opposition Kefaya movement, last week. Adel said the movement has received signatures by mail and via the Internet. In a few weeks time, he will travel to Dubai to collect signatures from Egyptians living abroad. “Dreams are coming soon in this land,” Adel said. Asked if the movement had faced problems from security forces, Adel said as of now they have had no trouble. “They can't stop us,” he added. Once the necessary number of signatures is collected, the papers will be sent to Parliament to demand constitutional changes. Should the target not be reached, Ishaq says he has another plan in mind. “But I can't tell you what it is,” he said, smiling. BM
