CAIRO: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke about Egypt's transition to democratic rule in an interview with Egypt's Al-Hayat television last Saturday. She expressed hope that Egypt's new leadership will protect the rights and dignity of all Egyptian regardless of political or religious ties. Clinton referred to issues of sectarianism in Egypt several times throughout the interview. “You want an Egypt where people are free to be liberal, fundamentalists, conservative, progressive, whatever their particular views are, but showing respect for the state, for the institutions of the state, and the rights of the people. And that's what I see you searching for and moving toward,” Clinton said. Overall, Clinton seemed optimistic about Egypt's future, despite recent statements from the United States State Department in which the US criticized Egypt's interim government, the Supreme Council for Armed Forces (SCAF), for reactivating emergency law and for impeding freedoms of assembly and expression. When Al-Hayat asked Clinton whether the United States would support an elected Islamic government, she stated foremost that the US would support a government that respected the rights of all Egyptians, regardless of political or religious affiliation. “We hope that anyone who runs for election, and certainly anyone who's elected and joins the parliament, joins the government, will be committed to making Egypt work and be open to all Egyptians no matter who you might be,” she explained. “We will be willing to and open to working with a government that has representatives who are committed to non-violence, who are committed to human rights, who are committed to the democracy that I think was hoped for in Tahrir Square,” she added. The SCAF announced that they were considering several progressive activist demands on Saturday, following a meeting between military council officials and various political parties. They announced that they would consider amending election procedures. According to the new system, elections are based fully on a proportional party list vote. Activists and political parties believe that this system is the most fair and transparent. The military rulers also reported that they would halt Egypt's controversial emergency law during elections, and swore that they would end military trials for civilians. The also reported that they will consider implementing a ban that would prevent former National Democratic Party (NDP) officials of the ousted Hosni Mubarak regime from running as candidates in elections for the next ten years. If materialized, these concessions could indicate marked progress towards transparent democratic rule in Egypt. BM
