CAIRO: The Egyptian Center for Women's Rights (ECWR) issued on Thursday a short report on the campaign for November 28′s Egyptian Parliamentary elections, saying women have a number of complaints that must be looked into for a better election. According to the leading women's organization in Egypt, they have “received many complaints from female candidates of the National Democratic Party who were excluded from nomination in the upcoming elections.” The organization listed the complaints from the potential candidates: 1. NDP's exploitation The party made the best use of some female candidates by taking donations from each candidate of up to 10,000 Egyptian pounds. This is why there are calls for the return of the money. 2. Nominating candidates out of the electoral college, based on criteria of relatives and not on partisan basis The party excluded some female candidates in favor of others who are relatives of some secretaries in the party. Moreover, many women in Beheira claimed that they were excluded in favor of others who came out of the Electoral College. 3. Prevent entering the headquarter to look at results of the Electoral College ECWR received a complaint from one of the National Democratic Party's female candidates in Assuit who has been excluded from nomination in the elections. She said that she was prevented from entering the secretariat of the NDP in Cairo when she went there to know the number of votes that she gained; this happened after she went to the secretariat of the party in Assuit and was informed that ballot boxes had been moved into Cairo. 4. Changing the nomination category ECWR received a complaint from one of the National Democratic Party's female candidates in Kafr El Shekh for labor seat within the quota system. She said that the party chose her for the professional seat, though she submitted her documents for the labor seat. Thus, it became necessary for her to change the category of her nomination, though the party has affirmed to her before that she will be nominated as labor candidate in Assuit. The Egyptian Center for Women's Rights is still following the election process and is receiving complaints from women in all the Egyptian governorates. BM/ECWR
