Egypt's current account gap narrows, but overall BoP records deficit    Egypt's PM reviews debt reduction strategy, eyes more private investment    Egypt hosts international neurosurgery conference to drive medical innovation    Egypt, India discuss expanding industrial, investment partnerships    World Bank proposes Egypt join new global health initiative    Egypt's EDA discusses Johnson & Johnson's plans to expand investment in local pharmaceutical sector    I won't trade my identity to please market: Douzi    Sisi sends letter to Nigerian president affirming strategic ties    Egypt welcomes 25-nation statement urging end to Gaza war    Egypt, Senegal sign pharma MoU to unify regulatory standards    Egyptian pound ticks down in early Tuesday trading    Famine kills more Gaza children as Israel tightens siege amid global outrage    Kuwait's Crown Prince, Egyptian minister discuss strengthening cooperation    Egyptian Drug Authority discusses plans for joint pharmaceutical plant in Zambia    Egypt's FM seeks deeper economic, security ties on five-nation West Africa tour    Two militants killed in foiled plot to revive 'Hasm' operations: Interior ministry    Egypt foils terrorist plot, kills two militants linked to Hasm group    Egypt, Somalia discuss closer environmental cooperation    Egypt exports 175K tons of food in one week    Giza Pyramids' interior lighting updated with new LED system    Egypt's EHA, Huawei discuss enhanced digital health    Foreign, housing ministers discuss Egypt's role in African development push    Korea Culture Week in Egypt to blend K-Pop with traditional arts    Egypt, Uruguay eager to expand trade across key sectors    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Three ancient rock-cut tombs discovered in Aswan    Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Egypt's Irrigation Minister urges scientific cooperation to tackle water scarcity    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    Egypt's Democratic Generation Party Evaluates 84 Candidates Ahead of Parliamentary Vote    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



PA to celebrate International Democracy Day on Tuesday
Published in Daily News Egypt on 13 - 09 - 2009

CAIRO: The Egyptian Parliament will commemorate International Democracy Day on Tuesday, the idea of which was proposed by current PA Speaker, Ahmed Fathi Sorour in 1997.
The day was officially adopted by the UN when a resolution was introduced by Qatar during an animated plenary debate on new or restored democracies.
The celebration hosted by Sorour, will be attended by Boutros Boutros Ghali, president of the National Council for Human Rights, and his vice-president, Ahmed Kamal Aboul Magd and Secretary General Ambassador Mokhles Kotb, as well as members of different political parties.
On Nov. 8 2007, the UN declared Sept. 15 the International Day of Democracy "which should be brought to the attention of all people for its celebration and observance, as they stated in a press release at the time.
"Democracy is a universal value based on the freely expressed will of people to determine their own political, economic, social and cultural systems, and their full participation in all aspects of life, said the release. "While democracies share common features, there is no single model of democracy and that democracy does not belong to any country or region.
It called on all its member states, organizations, non-governmental organizations and individuals to commemorate the day by raising public awareness and also to ensure that parliamentarians and civil society organizations are given appropriate opportunity to be involved. Pundits, however, find it hard to imagine that a country like Egypt, which has been internationally criticized for its lack of democracy, to celebrate this day. Earlier this year, a global study on democracy ranked Egypt one of the 43 least democratic countries in the world.
The study titled "Freedom in the World is conducted annually by Freedom House, a US-based NGO that aims to promote democracy and civil rights. Freedom House used three categories to measure democracy: "free, "partly free, and "not free.
Of the 193 countries sampled in the global survey, 22 percent fell into the "not free category, including Egypt.
Human rights and political activists attribute the lack of democracy in Egypt to a number of reasons including the suppression of freedom of expression, repression of opposition groups and the continuation and renewal of the emergency law, in place since 1981.
Regarding political elections, through which democracy is best demonstrated, political blogger Wael Abbas says, "People have no choice [in Egypt] during the elections because power is used to control the people through means such as the central security and shutting down polling stations.
Furthermore, activists also lament that concepts related to democracy, such as freedom of expression, are lacking in Egypt.
"We are one of the worst 10 countries to be an online journalist in . journalists, bloggers and activists in general face severe harassment as they are constantly faced with legal charges or their security is threatened, said rights activist Mina Zikry.


Clic here to read the story from its source.