CAIRO - Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, the country's most organised political group, slammed as 'unacceptable interference' in local affairs remarks by US Republican Congressman Eric Cantor that he is 'worried' about a Brotherhood takeover here. "It is the people of any country who have the right to elect their representatives, regardless of their political leanings. Cantor's remarks are an interference in Egypt's political affairs," said Saad el-Katatni, the Secretary-General of the Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party. He added that Cantor's remarks reflect the kind of democracy that the US wants to establish in the Middle East. "They seek democracy that serves their interests and those of their ally, Israel," el-Katatni added. Speaking to Israel's Jerusalem Post, Cantor expressed his concern that anti-Western forces may win the majority in the first post-Mubarak Parliament, focusing on the Brotherhood. “Obviously the force of the Muslim Brotherhood is of great concern,” he said. “It's an organisation which seems to be very much inclined to doing all kinds of things that would threaten US interests, Israeli interests and the interests of freedom overall.” Meanwhile, the US Administration's declaration that it intends to appoint an envoy to the Middle East to advocate the rights of religious minorities is also stirring controversy in Egypt. Rafiq Habib, Vice-President of the Freedom and Justice Party, called this position “nothing more than the continued policy of US interference in the affairs of other countries in the region”. After toppling president Hosni Mubarak, he said, Egyptians would, not stand for “meddling in their affairs”. Even Coptic Orthodox officials are rejecting the move from Washington that is ostensibly in their interest. “We seek God's protection and nobody else's,” said Bishop Morcos of Shubra al-Kheima. The envoy is meant to be a voice for religious minorities in the Near East and South and Central Asia, an area stretching from Morocco to Afghanistan. He will hold the rank of ambassador and should be a recognised expert in the region, the proposal's backers say.
