CAIRO - Will the Egyptian youth stop their political activity at this point of the revolution? Will it be an indispensable part of their life? Are there any boundaries that could hinder them from practising politics? Will they tackle politics in universities and clubs and by joining political parties or remain active on the Internet? Such questions have been posed to representatives of different political parties, resulting in varied answers. Opposition parties like Al-Wafd, Al-Tagammou, Al-Nasseri, Al-Ahrar, Al-Ghad as well as the Democratic Front Party supported by the Muslim Brotherhood, encourage the youth to be involved in politics; it should be part of their lives, whether at universities or elsewhere. This was further emphasised by Mahmoud Abbaza, the former leader of Al-Wafd Party. He said there were many reasons for the young people to join political parties. Firstly, the parties should broaden their networks and memberships with active young members, representing present and future. Secondly, he thought it was important to create a sense of national belonging in the young, which could be achieved by them joining political parties and gatherings in universities and clubs. "Young Egyptians have always been the main factor for any national movement, particularly in universities," said Osama el-Ghazali Harb, the head of the National Democratic Front Party. He added that Egypt was going through a time of major transformation towards a democratic, modern and civil State. Thus, there should be opportunity and space for political parties to interact with the youth, above all in universities. Moreover, he thought that joining and participating in political parties would eliminate passivity among young Egyptians and increase their participation and political awareness. On his part, Refa'at el-Saeed, the head of the Al-Tagammou Party, said that supporters and members of his party were everywhere, but it was difficult to connect with them due to previous restrictions imposed by the National Democratic Party, preventing political activities in universities. He said that such restrictions reduced political activities or even a national identity among young Egyptians. He attributed the weakness of political parties to these restrictions. El-Saeed said the only beneficiaries were the National Democratic Party and Islamic movements like the Muslim Brotherhood that thrive only in an atmosphere of secrecy. There are 24 political parties in Egypt. They all want to expand their membership numbers via the participation of university students. Many movements already have members in universities, as a prominent member of El-Ekhwan (Brotherhood), Abul-Eila Madi, claimed. However, it seems that Internet and Information Technology are gaining ground. Many people have created accounts on the social networking sites Facebook and Twitter, and others created their own private blogs and forums to practice politics without being for or against any of the existing parties. Young Egyptians were able to get along with political, economic, social and cultural life, expressing their bitter and blunt criticism of the Egyptian Government. Meanwhile, according to a poll of the governmental National Council for Youth in 2008, 96 per cent of the Egyptian youth refused to join any political party. The majority of young people see political parties as useless, in comparison to the democracy and freedom of expression they find on the Internet.
