CAIRO: The Egyptian Coalition for Monitoring Elections (ECME) said Monday that it would boycott the parliamentary elections if its representatives do not receive their monitoring permits and if they are not allowed to enter the polling stations. “The Supreme Electoral Commission (SEC) is violating our right in monitoring the elections by only allowing us to follow the elections rather than [monitor them], and [the SEC is] denying us access to polling stations,” said Hafez Abu Saeda, head of the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights, in a press conference organized to announce report results regarding the campaign phase of the parliamentary election process. “We have applied for 1,113 permits for our staff, and we haven't received any of them yet, despite the [SEC's] statements,” Abu Saeda added. The ECME is demanding that they be allowed to access polling stations without the head of electoral committees' additional permission. The ECME also desires judicial rulings for the 400 parliamentary candidate applicants whose applications were denied — despite having previously acquired favorable court rulings that would allow them to run in the elections — after they were prevented from presenting their paperwork. Preliminary monitoring reports said that the Ministry of Interior dominated the candidacy application process, which involved government interference in the submission of applications of those who were allowed to apply. Most notably, the report cited that many former National Democratic Party (NDP) candidates who split from the party were among those who faced the most difficulty, as they were not permitted to apply as independent candidates. “What we have monitored [to date] indicates dangerous trends and serious violations that undermine the fairness of the elections,” Abu Saeda stated. The reports also found that different municipalities had different application procedures and required different paperwork be submitted, which the ECME considered a violation of election laws. The reports further stated that most candidates' campaigns exceeded the maximum budget for publicity — LE 200,000 — which was set by the SEC in an attempt to regulate candidates' campaign expenditures. The ECME added that ministers running in the elections should not take advantage of government assistance. As an example, the ECME cited an electoral convention that Minister of Social Solidarity Ali Moselhi held prior to the elections in which he distributed cows and home appliances, exceeding the publicity budget defined by the SEC. Gradually rising levels of violence are also expected to reach their peak on the day of elections, according to the reports. At press time, there have been four deaths and 30 injuries related to the upcoming elections. By the end of the 2000 elections, there were a total of 29 election-related deaths, followed by 42 total election-related deaths at the end of the 2005 elections, according to the report. “The SEC is helpless, with no authority or executive power … in [initiating] court rulings or in controlling candidates' [campaign] expenditures,” Abu Saeda said. According to Abu Saeda, the SEC said it will abide by “undisputed” court rulings; however, people who are not involved in the election process whatsoever were allegedly paid to challenge any court rulings that would allow previously banned candidates from running for election. The ECME's monitoring reports of the media showed that the NDP received the highest media coverage — both positive and negative — from the Dream TV satellite channel's “Al Taba'a Al Oula” TV show, which was deemed by the report to also be the most critical media outlet of the NDP. Reports noted the emergence of “selective impartiality” as a phenomenon that prevailed among media networks during this campaign period, using subtle messages to attack certain candidates and parties. “Unfortunately the media didn't commit to giving various contestants equal coverage, [nor] did it create awareness of the role of MPs [as it perpetuated] a stereotype [that MPs are] service men only,” said Ahmed Sameeh, head of Al Andalus Institute for Tolerance and Anti-violence Studies, the institute which prepared the report. The ECME, composed of 123 organizations, additionally demanded that authorities release the 250 people who are currently being detained for election-related activities. “We are appealing to President [Hosni] Mubarak to keep his promise of fair elections,” Abu Saeda said.
