CAIRO: The Muslim Brotherhood group and its Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) announced Thursday that they will not participate in mass protests on Friday dubbed "Reclaiming the Revolution." "Members of our party will be allowed to participate individually in the protests if they want to, but we won't be represented as a party," FJP deputy head Essam El-Erian told Daily News Egypt. Rashad Bayoumi, deputy leader of the MB group, told DNE that the group will not officially participate either. El-Erian said that the party has sufficed with the list of demands agreed on with the Democratic Alliance on Wednesday night, adding that these were the same demands raised by other parties calling for mass protests. The demands include amending the People's Assembly and Shoura Council laws, a specific timeline for SCAF to hand over power to civilians, putting an end to military trials, activating the treachery act and giving Egyptians abroad the right to vote. The Alliance threatened to boycott the upcoming parliamentary elections, slated for Nov. 28, if the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces refused to meet their demands by Sunday. "We will decide our next move on Sunday, depending on SCAF's reaction," El-Erian said. One of their priority demands was allowing candidates belonging to political parties to run in the individual candidates system and not restrict their participation to the party list system, and enforcing an exclusion law to prevent remnants of the fallen regime from political participation for 10 years. The Supreme Council of Sufi Orders joined the Brotherhood in boycotting the protests, saying that street action obstructed traffic flow and took its toll on tourism and the economy. "They also allow [thugs] to infiltrate peaceful protesters and cause chaos and destruction," Abdel Hady El-Qasaby, chairman of the Sufi Council told DNE. "There are many ways political powers can raise their demands to the military council without resorting to mass protests," he added. On the other hand, over 35 political powers decided to participate in the mass protests, deeming it a "necessity." "This protest is a message to SCAF for mishandling the transitional period and attempting to produce a regime similar to the previous one, as if we never had a revolution," Khaled Adel Hamid, member of the Coalition of the Youth of the Revolution and Freedom and Justice Movement said. Abdel Hamid went as far as condemning the Brotherhood's decision to boycott the protests. "Our revolution isn't only about the elections, there are other things we have to focus on and demand," he said The Egyptian Bloc, which consists of 15 liberal and leftist political parties and groups including The Free Egyptians and Al-Tagammu Party, announced Thursday that it would participate in the mass protest, alongside the April 6 Youth Movement, Kefaya, the Coalition of the Youth of the Revolution and other political powers. Several members of the Democratic Alliance decided to join the protests as well like Al-Wafd, Al-Wasat, Al-Ghad, Al-Asala, formerly known as Al-Fadila and Al-Karama parties.
