CAIRO: There are few women in Egypt who have been as active as Dalia Ziada in the past decade. A stalwart figure in the human rights community and civil society, 29-year-old Ziada has fought for her country, in the streets, online and in public forums. Now, she is taking her battle to a new height: parliamentary elections. With voting to begin in less than two weeks, Ziada sat down with Bikyamasr.com to discuss the issues surrounding Egypt's first election in the post-Hosni Mubarak era. The young leader of Egypt's Justice Party hopes to deliver to the people what she feels they all fought for over the past few decades. How did you decide to go from a leading activist to a candidate for Parliament? You know, it was a very tough decision. I have been working in civil society for so long and I was very much for the idea that we have to separate politics from civil society. So, after the revolution, I thought it was a duty for everyone who was working in the public field to participate now, especially the young people, to prove that yes we can do it. It's not only the former regime or the Muslim Brotherhood, there are other alternatives. The goal is to have new faces, new ideas and make this country. And we aren't going to use the same old dirty political games that have been used before. I hope we can change this. Why now and this election? The upcoming parliament will be primarily concerned with creating a constitution. As a human rights activist I want to guarantee that a minimum of human rights is secure in this constitution. And the best way to make sure this will happen is by having me there. How did people react to your candidacy? It was different. Some people actually renounced it because I am a woman, partly because my position on the [election] list is an advanced one, unlike other women. They are starting from number 5 and on. I am the second on the list in my district. What kind of people were antagonistic towards you because you are a woman? Mostly Islamists. Were there others? Some people attacked me for my former relationships with American organizations and working for the American Islamic Congress. They didn't understand that my background as a civil society activist or human rights activist working for an American organization that has for so long worked to advance democracy, human rights would support my role as a politician. So there is some sort of misunderstanding, especially some people, unfortunately, attempted to promote this image that the US is trying to dominate the scene by trying to put people like me in power. So, what does a vote for Dalia Ziada and the Justice Party mean? It means they are voting for someone who will emphasize the Egyptian identity with all its contradictions. We are not emphasizing a religious trend, we are not emphasizing a certain political trend, but we are reflecting the Egyptian identity that is engraved in our hearts. They will also be choosing the people who understand what they need and what they want. For example, in our message, we are focusing on three main issues related to what people need. Our top priority is security without violating human rights. You know, the police say that if you human rights then don't ask us about security; if you want security, don't ask about human rights. We want to put an end to this through legal procedures and the constitution. The second is to create a valid economic environment where everyone will be equal, not because the government will spend money on them, but because we will allow fair competition. This means fair access to opportunities for everyone. So if you are a hardworker you can make it. We want to open these opportunities to everyone as much as possible. Through this effort, we will encourage legal regulations, innovation and women and young people to adopt open-market economic ideas. We want people to be able to compete inside and outside Egypt. The third point has to do with corruption. We want to establish institutionalism, which means that everyone will be monitoring the work of the other. We're all in the same boat so we all have to monitor the actions of others. So civil society will be monitoring the action of the government, while the government will be monitoring the military, the police and so on. This way we can guarantee that corruption will not happen and be much, much less. And how do you deliver that message to the people? We are working on two levels. Electronic advertisement through the usual, Facebook and Twitter and we have a committee working on that. Also through press, local press and local TV stations. We are making ads and songs that include these ideas that we are distributing everywhere. Also, through public meetings with people. We have a knocking on doors campaign that is different and innovative. You don't just go to the people and speak to them. We provide them with a service, telling them how to vote, what to expect when they go. They begin to trust you and we tell them that we can be your candidate. So, it's similar to the “Get out the Vote” campaigns in the US? Yes, exactly. But, we are also doing public forums in the street and coffee shops. We just sit with people and speak with them and have them engage in what we do. And how have people responded to these public forums? Amazing. In my district, we are very lucky we are running in downtown (Cairo). This area witnessed the revolution. Even those who did not leave their houses and go to the streets, they have seen it and they know what it means to bring someone from the revolution into this. All of us [on the list] are young people. We look like them. We are not much different from the people we are speaking to. They have seen us fighting in the square for freedom, so they trust us. And now they are willing to help us build the future. People want new blood. What is your impression of the Islamist parties and how do you combat their popularity? We are doing this by being so honest in what we are offering. We don't speak to the people about religion. We do not give them fake promises we know very well we cannot deliver, like we will bring you heaven if you follow us. No one on Earth can do that. So we speak to them about what interests them and their own problems. I believe the Egyptian vote will make a big surprise in the coming elections. People are not so naïve that they will vote for anyone who says I speak for God. No, people are waiting for the person who will make their life better. Continuing on the Islamists, why is it that these parties have the most number of female candidates? As we have seen before, they have brought women candidates, but every time they did so before, especially the Muslim Brotherhood, we must ask are these candidates real candidates or faces to beautify Or as flowers … Yes, and now they change the flower to a husband's face. They don't even respect a woman they are putting on their list and you want people to respect her and vote for her? It's nonsense. What do you think the role of women will be in a post-election Egypt, considering the Islamists are looking to get around 30 percent of the vote? What's happening is an important sign; women in leadership positions in these groups are treated in such a way. So what about the public women? What will happen to them if such groups take the lead? In Egypt, I don't think it can easily turn into another Saudi Arabia or Iran. People are religious, that's true, but when it comes to attacking individual rights, they will not allow this to happen. Never. So I don't think women will accept to be treated as a second-class citizen. What about the implementation of Sharia (Islamic) law? The Justice Party has no problem with Sharia law, but we want a civil state. Sharia should be there as a moral guide. When you make civil laws, it helps to say okay this is moral or immoral, but it cannot be the only thing that is applied. We are a very diverse country. And not only diverse in religion, but also diverse in culture. In rural areas they think that differently than in urban areas. Even in urban areas there are differences. So people are very, very diverse. It's impossible to say here is the divine law and we want to apply it on you. For me personally, it does not make sense that we have been fighting against autocracy and now we bring in theocracy. Both are dictatorships. And do you think the elections will be free and fair? I hope so. Many people say it won't be fair because the military is controlling so much, but I am sure it will be fair for one reason: there are many people who are willing to participate. The larger the number of people willing to participate, the less violence there will be and less the possibility of having unfair elections. Just be there, be represented. BM
