CAIRO: Members of 15 Egyptian political parties and Sufi movements held a conference yesterday to establish “The Egyptian Block.” This political group intends to align parliamentary, electoral and political coordination among all political powers. The conference was held in the headquarters of the Press Syndicate. The social entities and political movements decided collectively to run for parliamentary seats as a single block under the principle of “Egyptian Moderation.” Parties include: The Egyptian Democratic and Social Party, Free Egyptian Party, Egypt Freedom Party, The Awareness, The People Coalition, al-Tagammu Party, The Egyptian Communist Party, The Sufi Liberation Party, The National Association for Change, The National Council and the Independent Syndicate of Farmers and Laborers. There were two representatives of al-Wafd party who both expressed the party's support of “The Egyptian Block.” Deputy Egyptian Prime Minister Ali el-Selmy apologized for his absence at the conference. El-Selmy was holding an emergency cabinet meeting. Egyptian journalist and leader of the National Association for Change Hamdy Qandeel announced the name of the movement in a statement. “All political powers agreed to run for parliamentary elections under the name of ‘The Egyptian Block,'” the statement read. “The Block is not against any other coalition and all groups and individuals are welcome to join,” Qandeel added. “The Egyptian Block aims to settle principles of a civil state based on the constitution, law, and the right of citizenship,” head of the al-Gabha party Osama Ghazali Harb said. “Political systems depend on democratic principles to fill gaps among all political powers,” Harb added. Harb highlighted the necessity of issuing a charter representing the values and principles of the January 25 Revolution. “The Block was not created to compete with any other political coalition or because we fear the domination a political movement,” said political scientist and founder of Amr Hamzawy. “There are reasons behind the formation of the Block, including the unification of parties before elections as well as the defense of democracy and law,” he added. “The Block was created to prevent any faction or trend from pretending to represent the majority of Egyptian voices,” said Mohammad Abu al-Ghar, the founder of the Egyptian Democratic Party. General Coordinator of The National Association for Change Abdel Gelil criticized the Muslim Brotherhood's rejection of the supra-constitutional principles. Brotherhood representatives did participate in the Association that chose the committee charged with the preparation of a new constitution. National Council spokesman Mamdouh Hamzah called on the ruling military council to launch a charter of constitutional principles on a public referendum. The National Council is conducting empirical studies on the elections in Egypt. The results of these studies will be submitted to the ruling military council.
