The Wasat Party in Egypt: Promoting a Liberal Political Environment in Egypt

Beginning with Muhammad’s age from the start of 7th century Islam, Islamic culture and politics have gone a great many events and occurrences. Throughout all of its years, it has boasted both a rich culture and technological/intellectual advancements. The preservation of the Quran, developments in mathematics, and the continued emphasis on respect and charitable nature are just some examples of Islamic achievement. However, as with any growing civilization, Islam has evolved beyond what it originated as. The cultural and political life of Islamic civilization beginning in the 7th century to the end of the Abbasids of the 13th century underwent many changes such as the deteriorating view of women in society and the shift from elected caliphates to dynastical caliphate. But, one aspect that persisted were the religious beliefs and traditions followed by the Islamic people.

Larry Diamond's presentation explores the question of why there are no Arab democracies in the Middle East and North Africa. He shows us the relatively stagnant levels of democratic freedoms that have been the norm in the region for the past several decades. Diamond gives us a multitude of potential explanations for the absence of a sustainable democracy.

The Muslim Brotherhood played a major role in the January revolution and has boldly condemned the SCAF’s actions. The US, who has previously opposed the Muslim Brotherhood, has now tried to develop a friendship with the organization in anticipation of its power over Egypt.

Amongst the turbid and dysfunction that is the Middle East lies the nation of Egypt. Egypt, a major country of the Middle East, is habitually considered stereotypical of Middle Eastern civilization, but further research guides one to the conclusion that Egypt is far from a generic Middle Eastern country. Egypt has a strong tradition of nationalism that has been formed during its history, giving it a national unity that is often non-existent in other Middle Eastern nations (1). This, as well as other advantages that Egypt has gained during its past, has allowed it to rise above the problems plaguing the rest of the Middle East and to form basically its

Ideology is an intellectual framework that best structures society, and nationalism is the belief that people or nation have the right to self-determination. These concepts differ across cultures, and our concept is not always accepted in other parts of the world. Sistani used these concepts to appeal to the Iraqi people by arguing that there was no guarantee that the CPA elected constitutional committee will draft a constitution that upholds the Iraqi people’s interest and expresses their national identity whose backbone is sound Islamic religion and noble social values. His argument was for a homegrown, popularly elected constitutional committee that would draft a legitimate constitution that was uniquely Iraqi and served the best interest of the Iraqi people. In Arabic, “legitimacy” carries religious connotations; the notion that something is right because it is in accordance with divine precepts. What is considered as legitimate in Iraq does not run in concert to what western nations consider. The Iraqi ideology of religion playing a role in public life is a factor of why the population saw the fatwa as legitimate. The CPA should have immediately recognized that the American view of separation of church and state was different than the Iraqi view. Iraqis believe that Islam should play a role in public life. The knowledge and

The authorities and processes of government are limited by constitutional provisions, tradition, institutional practices and various groups. The different organized and unorganized counteracting groups serve as counterweights that limit government by tending to restrain it from acting harmfully and to constrain it to act beneficially to them. Free political parties are initiators and communicators. They make proposals and recommendations or accept them to broadcast to the public and call to the attention of government. Free political parties are free because they are not operated by the government or subjected to their control. When one political party is permitted, there is neither constitutionalism or democracy. An adversary system of political

Karissa Background Information- Info about the country and location prior to colonization Political Rule Timeline: 639-642 A.D Egypt conquered my Muslim Arab armies o Egypt becomes province of Islamic empire § Ruled by Caliphs or Muslim leaders § Caliphs rule Egypt until 1250 1250 Mamluks revolt and gained control of Egypt o Mamluks are slave soldiers from Mongolia, Turkey, Circassia § For 200 years different Mamluk groups compete for leadership § Create great art, literature and architecture 1517 Ottomans invade Egypt from Syria o Overthrow Mamluks § Making Egypt part of Ottoman Empire § Mamluks continue to fight Ottomans for power until mid-18th century 1798 Napoleon Bonaparte’s armies defeat Mamluks in the battle of the Pyramids

Sayyid Qutb was an Egyptian man who was born back in 1906, and lived in a small village called Mush in Egypt (“Is this the man,” 2001). When it came time for Qutb to go to school, he attended Dar al-’Ulum, which was a secondary college (“Is this the man,” 2001). He then obtained a job as a school inspector working for the Egyptian ministry of education (“Is this the man,” 2001). This was a man of many professions and influenced lives of the people. He was not someone find a profession and stick with a particular career for his entire life. He was a dedicated man who made it his mission to get his message out to the public. Qutb was very involved with the Muslim religion, and is most often referred to as “the father of modern Islamist fundamentalism” (“Is this the man,” 2001, n.p.).

Ancient Egypt is one of the first pristine states Before Egypt there were many ancient civilizations that were secondary states and not pristine. The secondary states only met some of the criteria needed, not all six. Egypt has been well documented in which it meets all the criteria needed to become a pristine state. The six criteria needed to become a pristine state was population pressure, intensification of agriculture, warfare, hereditary leader, storable grains, and impaction/circumscription. By becoming a pristine state in ancient times, it meant that Egypt would be a powerful civilization for many years.

A leader is defined as a person who rules, guides, or inspires others. A leader is a very important part of state formation in any society, but particularly in Egypt. Without a leader, a state does not grow and flourish as quickly or efficiently as states with leaders. Early Egyptian leaders allowed Egypt to become a notable state through their communication, ideas, innovation, and will. Showing how Egyptians rulers made a presence in the predynastic period, how they developed to be leaders, and how they impacted a state are important when considering Egyptian state formation.

The Brotherhood was fueled to solidify their political power when Mubarak’s regime fell in February of 2011. In addition, other Islamists began to enter into the political realm and establish their own distinct political organizations. Shortly after, the group establishes the Freedom and Justice Party in 2011 and, “proceeded to win approximately 47% of parliamentary seats in the 2011/12 elections” (al-Anani 2015, 530). As final elections drew closer, the Brotherhood’s platform began to change and become more ambiguous and hypocritical regarding their stance on topics. They made several revisions to the original platform; the most significant and contentious kept clerics from gaining a formal role in the political realm. The topic of

From Mubarak’s term lasting 29 years, elections in Egypt are pseudo-democratic. He and his party maintain their power by force but rationalize their rule with pseudo-democratic arguments. In the years 2005 and 2008, elections were held, but the party often nominated or approved only one candidate. In 80% of the contests, the NDP’s candidates ran unopposed. Moreover, the regime had cracked down hard on his opponents, so that it was difficult to register or campaign; this lack of opposition led to a low voter turnout which was estimated at only 3%. Nour experienced to evidence Mubarak’s political intimidation. He took part in the elections and strongly condemned Mubarak’s pseudo-democratic government; Mubarak created trumped-up charges against Nour so that his

Important: New resources forge new struggles.Give power to new people. Ideas transform our lives. Calashia Sypris, island. Rusty red rocks contains a material iron. Iron forms the core hot as the sun no magnetic field the fourth common mineral in the crust. Soldiers prepare to defend their kingdom. Husanius their leader of sparta. Sparta 3000 miles. In sparta at the age of 7 boys are trained as warriors at 18 they join the army. A black stone surrender, a white stone fight. Such as our love for liberty we will never surrender. The greeks lineup to face the enemies head on, there outnumbered. But now a new weapon decides the future of the western world. Spartan leader prepares to make a last stand. The greeks release a new weapon the phalanxes.

Egypt was formally incorporated into the Roman Empire in 30BC resulting in the loss of Egyptian independence. Egypt had experienced years of political upheaval owing to sibling rivalry and native unrest (Wilkinson, 2010), well before Rome was interested in seizing the country. This allowed for the weakening of the country, which consequentially made it easily conquered. However, Egypt’s loss of independence was ultimately prompted by the relationship between Cleopatra VII and Marc Anthony therefore making it the immediate catalyst (Jankowski, 2000).

The Muslim Brotherhood is the largest Islamist organization in Egypt. It was founded in the 1920s by Hassan Al-Banna. The movement was a model of political activism combined with Islamic charity work. At first, it only aimed to spread Islamic morals, but soon became involved in politics. While the Muslim Brotherhood claims that it supports democratic principles, it aims to create a state ruled by Al Shariaa. Al Shariaa is the Islamic law stated in the Quran. The Brotherhood's mostly used slogan is "Islam is the solution", and it is known worldwide. It officially opposes violence to achieve goals; however, some of the movement's members were involved in massacres, bombings and assassinations of