CAIRO: Opposition forces, including Kefaya, are planning on staging protests during US President Barack Obama's upcoming visit to Egypt on June 4. Obama is set to address the Muslim world from Egypt next June, the White House announced last Friday. Activists as well as public figures started holding meetings to prepare for these protests, Abdel Halim Qandil, coordinator of Kefaya, told Daily News Egypt. Qandil said that he is in touch with different opposition forces to organize a major protest in one of Cairo's public squares. "Obama's choice of Egypt to address the Muslim world is a form of reward to the Egyptian regime that serves American interests in the region, especially with regards to the Palestinian conflict, Qandil said. He explained that Obama's visit to Egypt proves that the American administration is giving priority to the idea of stability - achieved by following the same policies that support authoritarian regimes - rather than to human rights and democracy in the region. "This visit bursts some of the opposition forces' bubbles, who were depending on the US for political reform, Qandil said, "Obama might be a new president to the Americans, but the American policy remains the same in the Middle East, when it comes to serving its own interests and supporting Israel. George Ishaq, co-founder of Kefaya, told Daily News Egypt that this visit will define Obama's stance on democracy and political reform in the Middle East. "But it is clear that the American president will follow in the footsteps of his predecessors who continued to support authoritarian regimes to ensure that American interests are served, and democracy and human rights in the region will take a backseat to stability, he said.
