al-Wasat party
| حزب الوسط الجديد al-Wasat party |
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| Party leader | Abou Elela Mady |
| founding | 1996 Admission: February 19, 2011 |
| Alignment | moderately Islamic , centrist |
| Colours) | dark red |
| Parliament seats | 9 out of 270 in the Shura Council |
| Number of members | 5,088 |
| Website | www.alwasatparty.com |
The al-Wasat party ( Arabic حزب الوسط الجديد, DMG Ḥizb al-Wasaṭ al-Ǧadīd , which means party of the new center ) is a moderate Islamic political party in Egypt . For the name, see Wasat (Islam) .
history
The party was founded in 1996 by Abou Elela Mady as a split from the Muslim Brotherhood , which Madi accused of "limited political horizons". The brotherhood criticized the formation of the party and accused Madi of trying to split the movement. The party was also not recognized by the Egyptian government and Madi was brought before the military court on charges that he had created an Islamist party. From 1996 to 2009, the al-Wasat party tried four times to obtain an official license, but the application was rejected each time by the Political Party Committee. Since 2007, when Article 5 of the Egyptian Constitution was amended, parties that were founded on the basis of religion have been banned.
recognition
After the revolution in Egypt in 2011 , al-Wasat received official recognition from a court in Cairo on February 19 of the same year. The al-Wasat party was the first party to receive official status after the resignation of Husni Mubarak , which enables the party to compete in the next Egyptian parliamentary elections in September. At the same time, al-Wasat is the first legal party in Egypt with an Islamic background. A little later, however, the Islamist Freedom and Justice Party , which is closely linked to the influential Muslim Brotherhood, also gained official recognition, which is considered the favorite for the upcoming elections.
ideology
The party's goal is a tolerant version of Islam with liberal leanings. As a sign of this openness, Madi, two Copts and three women are among the 24 top members of the party. According to the Carnegie Foundation for International Peace , al-Wasat is trying to reconcile the principles of Islamic Sharia law with the values of a liberal, democratic system. But the party program also accepts, for example, the rights of a Christian who is at the head of a predominantly Muslim country.
Madi compares her ideology with that of the Turkish AKP party .
Web links
- Official website of the al-Wasat party
- Augustus Richard Norton: Thwarted Politics: The Case of Egypt's Hizb al-Wasat . In: Robert Hefner (Ed.): Remaking Muslim Politics: Pluralism, Contestation, and Democratization . Princeton University Press, 2005, pp. 133-60 (accessed February 20, 2011).
- Carrie Rosefsky Wickham: The Path to Moderation: Strategy and Learning in the Formation of Egypt's Wasat Party . In: Comparative Politics . 36, No. 2, January 2004, pp. 205-228.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Shaimaa el-Karanshawi: Egypt court approves moderate Islamic party . In: Almasry Alyoum . February 19, 2011. Retrieved February 20, 2011.
- ^ A b c Mikhail, Sarah: New party shows deep political change in new Egypt . February 19, 2011. Retrieved February 19, 2011.
- ^ Constitutional Amendments of 2007 ( PDF ) Cabinet of Egypt. Archived from the original on December 17, 2010. Retrieved February 19, 2011.
- ^ Political Party Monitor Egypt 2011. Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung , November 27, 2011, accessed on May 20, 2012 .
- ^ Egypt court approves country's first Islamic party (reprint). February 19, 2011. Retrieved February 19, 2011.
- ^ Egypt licenses first moderate Islamic party . In: The Jerusalem Post . February 19, 2011. Retrieved February 20, 2011.
- ↑ Maamoun Youssef: After years of trying, moderate Islamic party gets official recognition in post-Mubarak Egypt. In: Winnipeg Free Press. The Associated Press, February 19, 2011, accessed March 1, 2015 .