THE Government, represented by the Ministry of Social Solidarity, and dozens of NGOs are slugging it out over a proposed bill, which, activists claim, would tighten the Government's grip on the NGOs' activities and sources of financing at home and abroad. The repeated statements made by Minister of Social Solidarity Ali Messilhi, have failed to persuade these people to calm down. His assistants and advisers have denied that the new billwill spell the demise of Egypt's NGOs. One of the Minister's senior aides says that the new bill will encourage NGOs to offer those in need more help. Aziza Youssef, Chairwoman of the Ministry's Central Department for NGOs, stresses that the amendments to Law 84/2002 come in response to suggestions from different NGOs. “It is the quality and the influence of NGOs that should matter ��" not their numbers,” she argues. Aziza denies thatmany NGOs have shut up shops, out of fear of the proposed bill, stressing that they have stopped operating because they are unable to achieve their targets. One controversial article in the amendments stipulates the creation of a general union for NGOs. Aziza explains that the proposed union would act as a link between the NGOs and the Ministry of Social Solidarity. The NGOs are unhappy about this, as the union alone would have the power to outline their strategies and goals. However, senior ministerial officials argue that the proposed union would “end the chaos” and help the NGOs perform coherently. Aziza's defence has done little to mollify the big NGOs. Bahie Eddin Hassan, the executive manager of the CairoCentre for Human Rights Studies, warns that the amendments would cynically end the independence of the NGOs by authorising the Government to tightly control their activities and budgets. feels that the NGOs would be no more fortunate than the trade unions, which have been brought to their knees by incessant official intervention. “The Government would maintain its outrageous authority, even if the general union were, according to the amendments, chaired by a former minister,” Hassan noted. How can the union have a chairman if it has yet to be founded? The proposed union has also been criticised by Negad e -Bouraie, an outspoken activist. According to him, an NGO, which didn't have the union's blessing, wouldn't be allowed to receive donations or even operate. Meanwhile, independent MP Moustafa Bakri has praised the amendments, which would allow the Government to investigate the financial sources of NGOs. The MP accuses different NGOs of receiving financial aid from foreign sources, on the condition that they pursue these sources' agendas.
