CAIRO: Eligible Egyptian voters who abstain from voting in the upcoming elections will be fined LE 500, head of the Supreme Electoral Commission (SEC), Councilor Abdel-Moez Ibrahim, said Monday in a conference. Mazen Hassan, professor of electoral systems at Cairo University, said this unnecessary step would penalize those who do not want to vote because they have little faith in any candidate to develop the country. While this system is used in several European countries to encourage a higher percentage of voters, "the [March] referendum saw a good turnout; I don't believe we need this measure," Hassan told Daily News Egypt. In March, around 18 million voters turned out for a public referendum held over constitutional amendments. Hassan added that some voters may fail to cast their ballots out of confusion since the distribution of constituencies and the new electoral system was altogether baffling. During ousted president Hosni Mubarak's regime, a fine was also set for registered voters who do not vote, but was never implemented, according to Hassan, who is also skeptical that the law will be enforced even now. Abdel Moez said each judge will have a list of voters' names at respective polling stations, and each voter will sign next to their name when casting a vote. The names of eligible voters who abstain from voting will then be submitted to the general prosecution. Both the closed party lists and individual candidates will have a maximum budget of LE 500,000 to campaign. No more than LE 250,000 will be set for campaigning by individual candidates in the run-offs, while there will be no run-offs for the closed party lists. The Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), the Muslim Brotherhood's political arm, and the leftist Al-Tagammu Party said the budget was reasonable. However, Mohamed Farag, assistant secretary general of Al- Tagammu, said campaign budgets will probably exceed the limit for most parties who have to compete with corrupt businessmen affiliated with the dissolved National Democratic Party. "These corrupt businessmen are used to paying bribes and buying votes, which is all under the table and can be concealed very well from authorities," Farag told DNE. Mazen voiced Farag's concern, saying that the campaign budget will probably be breached. "Specific methods to investigate these violations need to be set," he added. A political exclusion law is being reviewed by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) to prevent figures affiliated with the NDP from participating in political life. Adel-Moez said he knew nothing of this law and had only an advisory opinion on whether to issue it or not. While stressing the right of Egyptians abroad to vote, Abdel-Moez said it needs a lot of resources and was a "sovereign political" decision that he cannot make. Hassan agreed, saying that allowing Egyptians abroad to vote was a demanding process that would entail sending judges abroad to monitor polling stations. This is in addition to the problem of voters' constituencies, which is based on their place of residence in Egypt. "This process needs a lot of time to prepare and organize and we don't have that kind of time or resources," he said. Abdel-Moez stressed that religious slogans are banned in campaigning, as is the use of places of worship. Any violation of the sort will be reported to the general prosecution. Ahmed Abou Baraka, FJP leader, welcomed the decision and said the Brotherhood's traditional slogan "Islam is the solution" was in line with the Egyptian constitution. Article 2 states that Islam is the official religion and that Islamic jurisprudence is the principle source of legislation. Farag expects several religious and Salafi parties to violate this rule, basing their actions on Article 2 of the constitution. The National Council for Human Rights will be responsible for issuing permits for civil society organizations to enter polling stations and observe the election process. "We refuse the term monitoring, no one can monitor my country's elections," he said about international monitoring. International organizations will be allowed to follow up and “observe” the process, however. Asked how the integrity of these elections can be guaranteed with judicial supervision —when the 2010 parliamentary elections witnessed flagrant violations, also under judicial supervision; Abdel-Moez said it was the people who decided that the elections was rigged, not him.
