New Wafd Party
Encyclopedia
The New Wafd Party is a nationalist liberal
party
in Egypt
.
It is the extension of one of the oldest and historically most active political parties in Egypt, Wafd Party
, which was dismantled after the 1952 Revolution
. The New Wafd was re-established in 1983. It follows almost the exact party line of the former aristocratic party during Egypt's Liberal Experiment
in the 1920s.
In Egypt's last legislative and presidential
elections
in November and December 2005, the party won 6 out of 454 seats in the People's Assembly
, and its presidential
candidate, Numan Gumaa
, received 2.9 per cent of the total votes cast for president.
El-Sayyid el-Badawi
is the party chairman after winning Al-Wafd's internal election in 28 May 2010 against Mahmoud Abaza, who was the party chairman after succeeding Numan Gumaa
in 2006.
Following the 2011 Revolution
the party joined the National Democratic Alliance for Egypt
electoral bloc, which is dominated by the Muslim Brotherhood
's Freedom and Justice Party (Egypt)
. As the date neared for fielding candidate lists, the Wafd left the National Democratic Alliance for Egypt
.
The party also calls for abolishing the emergency law
, solving the unemployment and housing problems, upgrading the health services and developing the education system.
The New Wafd has tried to place itself at the ideological 'centre' between the main historic traditions in Egypt of Arab socialism and private capitalism. It has been critical of the government's encouragement of foreign private investment and advocated a more balanced approach to the relationship between private and public sectors.
Political reforms
Economic reforms
Social reforms:
Foreign policy:
dismissed prominent party leader and vice chairman Monir Fakhri Abdel Nour
following the poor performance the party showed during the elections.
Abdel Nour was also the leader of the opposition bloc in the outgoing parliament before losing his seat in the first stage of elections. Abdel Nour told the media before his dismissal, that the only way the party could improve would be by "changing its leadership". He also continued that there was much support within the party for such a change.
After a poor showing in the 2005 Egyptian Presidential elections, the Wafd Party split into to camps, with one group demanding that Numan Gumaa
leave his post as chairman. That demand became even more pronounced after the party also did poorly in the parliamentary elections.
Later in December 2005, the party's higher political board reverted Gumaa's decisions on firing Abdel Nour as well as other members. The higher board also elections for its membership and amended its internal by-laws and rules, especially those that give the party's chairman vast authorities in an aim to trim the chairman's political powers, all of which Gumaa has agreed to support.
On January 18, 2006 the supreme committee for the party ousted its chairman Numan Gomaa from the party and from the presidency of the board of al-Wafd newspaper. The committee attributed its decision to Gomaa's tyrannical behaviour and abuse of authority.
It also appointed his deputy Mahmoud Abaza as an interim Chairman for a period of 60 days after which the General Assembly of the party would be invited for an emergency meeting to choose a new chairman.
However, Gomaa contended that this decision contradicted to the party's statute and that he was the legitimate chairman who can be dismissed only by a decision of the party's General Assembly. He responded by filing a complaint to Egypt's Prosecutor General who ruled that Gomaa should be allowed access to party's headquarters. Abaza filed an urgent lawsuit asking that the Prosecutor General’s ruling be overturned.
The party's newspaper, Al-Wafd, was suspended for thirteen days (from January 27 until February 8, 2006) after Gomaa asked Al Ahram publishing house to stop printing the paper and fired its editor and some journalists, complaining of their allegiance to Abaza's group.
On February 10, 2006, the party's General Assembly agreed to dismiss Gomaa from Wafd presidency and appointed Mustafa al-Taweel (a member of al-Wafd supreme committee) as an interim president till the next elections on July 2006. Gomaa argued the decision was due to an earlier ruling by Giza's court of first instance to stop the General Assembly meeting.
On April 1, Gumaa and his supporters occupied the party's headquarters to reclaim control and opened fire on supporters of the rival faction who responded by throwing stones. Twenty three people were injured and fire broke out in the building but was brought under control. Egyptian authorities arrested Gumaa and some of his supporters.
announced that he was withdrawing his name from the nominations for party presidency to allow El-Sayyed El-Badawi, a member of the party's supreme authority and the party's former secretary-general, to run instead in the party elections scheduled by the end of the month.
In a rare occurrence in Egyptian partisan life, the elections were conducted in a transparent, peaceful manner and characterized by integrity. At its end, it was announced that El-Sayyed El-Badawi would be the new party chairman, with the outgoing president standing beside him.
Since his election, El-Badawi has met with many prominent figures in Egyptian life, ranging from politicians, current members of parliament, Muslim and Coptic religious figures and even actors, actresses and football players.
To many observers, the Wafd merged as a much stronger party after this election, which would be counted that would once again attract liberals who were losing grip in the current political map to Islamists and other extremists.
forced President Hosni Mubarak to announce that he would step down in the coming elections, the government invited opposition parties to participate in dialogue. The party's secretary-general accepted on condition that protesters would not be attacked.
Representatives of the Al-Wafd Party joined anti-Mubarak protesters in Tahrir Square and vowed not to have a dialogue with government officials until President Mubarak relinquished his office.
On 13 June 2011, the Wafd Party announced its alliance (the National Democratic Alliance for Egypt
) with the Freedom and Justice Party
, the political wing of the Islamist
Muslim Brotherhood
, to present a joint list of candidates for the 2011 parliamentary election
. Executive members of Wafd have criticized the cooperation of the secular party with the Islamists. As the date neared for fielding candidate lists, the Wafd left the National Democratic Alliance for Egypt
.
in July 2011, Wafd Party vice chairman Ahmed Ezz el-Arab dismissed the Holocaust as a "lie", and the Diary of Anne Frank
as a "forgery". Moreover, he claimed that the September 11 attacks were in reality perpetrated by Mossad
, the CIA and America's "military-industrial complex", and that Osama bin Laden
was an "American agent".
National liberalism
National liberalism is a variant of liberalism, combining nationalism with some liberal policies, especially regarding economic liberalism. The roots of it are to be found in the 19th century, when conservative liberalism was the ideology of the political classes in most European countries, then...
party
Political Parties
Political Parties: A Sociological Study of the Oligarchical Tendencies of Modern Democracy is a book by sociologist Robert Michels, published in 1911 , and first introducing the concept of iron law of oligarchy...
in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
.
It is the extension of one of the oldest and historically most active political parties in Egypt, Wafd Party
Wafd Party
The Wafd Party was a nationalist liberal political party in Egypt. It was said to be Egypt's most popular and influential political party for a period in the 1920s and 30s...
, which was dismantled after the 1952 Revolution
1952 Revolution
The Egyptian Revolution of 1952 , also known as the 23 July Revolution, began on 23 July 1952, with a military coup d'état by the Free Officers Movement, a group of army officers led by Muhammad Naguib and Gamal Abdel Nasser. The revolution was initially aimed at overthrowing King Farouk...
. The New Wafd was re-established in 1983. It follows almost the exact party line of the former aristocratic party during Egypt's Liberal Experiment
Egypt's Liberal Experiment
Egypt's "Liberal Experiment" took place between 1924 and 1936.The Wafd Party saw independence and constitutional government linked. While the British did not agree with full independence, they certainly liked the idea of European-style constitutional government. The country's first elections for...
in the 1920s.
In Egypt's last legislative and presidential
Egyptian presidential election, 2005
The Egyptian presidential election of 2005, held on September 7, 2005, was the first allegedly contested presidential election in Egypt's history. Hosni Mubarak, the former President of Egypt, won a fifth consecutive six-year term in office, with official results showing he won 88.6% of the vote...
elections
Elections in Egypt
Egypt elects on national level a head of state – a president – and a bicameral legislature.The President of the Republic is elected for a six-year term by popular vote. This election mechanism has been in place since a May 2005 amendment to the Egyptian Constitution...
in November and December 2005, the party won 6 out of 454 seats in the People's Assembly
People's Assembly of Egypt
The People's Assembly is the lower house of Egypt's bicameral parliament. In spite of its lower status, however, it plays a more important role in drafting legislation and day-to-day legislative duties than the Shura Council, the upper house....
, and its presidential
Egyptian presidential election, 2005
The Egyptian presidential election of 2005, held on September 7, 2005, was the first allegedly contested presidential election in Egypt's history. Hosni Mubarak, the former President of Egypt, won a fifth consecutive six-year term in office, with official results showing he won 88.6% of the vote...
candidate, Numan Gumaa
Numan Gumaa
Numan Gumaa an attorney in Cairo and is the former chairman of the liberal New Wafd Party. He was nominated in 2005 for presidential election and came in third place.- Sources :* [RED]numan...
, received 2.9 per cent of the total votes cast for president.
El-Sayyid el-Badawi
El-Sayyid el-Badawi
El-Sayyid el-Badawi Shehata is an Egyptian businessman and the President of Al-Wafd Party. He graduated from the Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Alexandria in 1973. He is the head of the Board of Directors of Al-Hayah Egyptian television network.- References :...
is the party chairman after winning Al-Wafd's internal election in 28 May 2010 against Mahmoud Abaza, who was the party chairman after succeeding Numan Gumaa
Numan Gumaa
Numan Gumaa an attorney in Cairo and is the former chairman of the liberal New Wafd Party. He was nominated in 2005 for presidential election and came in third place.- Sources :* [RED]numan...
in 2006.
Following the 2011 Revolution
2011 Egyptian revolution
The 2011 Egyptian revolution took place following a popular uprising that began on Tuesday, 25 January 2011 and is still continuing as of November 2011. The uprising was mainly a campaign of non-violent civil resistance, which featured a series of demonstrations, marches, acts of civil...
the party joined the National Democratic Alliance for Egypt
National Democratic Alliance for Egypt
National Democratic Alliance for Egypt, or Democratic Alliance is a coalition of political parties in Egypt formed in the wake of the 2011 Revolution...
electoral bloc, which is dominated by the Muslim Brotherhood
Muslim Brotherhood
The Society of the Muslim Brothers is the world's oldest and one of the largest Islamist parties, and is the largest political opposition organization in many Arab states. It was founded in 1928 in Egypt by the Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna and by the late 1940s had an...
's Freedom and Justice Party (Egypt)
Freedom and Justice Party (Egypt)
The Freedom and Justice Party , is an Islamist political party in Egypt. The party is nominally independent but has strong links to the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt, the largest and best organized political group in Egypt...
. As the date neared for fielding candidate lists, the Wafd left the National Democratic Alliance for Egypt
National Democratic Alliance for Egypt
National Democratic Alliance for Egypt, or Democratic Alliance is a coalition of political parties in Egypt formed in the wake of the 2011 Revolution...
.
Goals
The party presses for introducing political, economic and social reforms, promoting democracy, ensuring basic freedoms and human rights and maintaining national unity.The party also calls for abolishing the emergency law
Emergency law in Egypt
Emergency law in Egypt was first enacted in 1958, as Law No. 162 of 1958 and has remained in effect since 1967, except for an 18-month break in 1980...
, solving the unemployment and housing problems, upgrading the health services and developing the education system.
The New Wafd has tried to place itself at the ideological 'centre' between the main historic traditions in Egypt of Arab socialism and private capitalism. It has been critical of the government's encouragement of foreign private investment and advocated a more balanced approach to the relationship between private and public sectors.
Party platform
The party platform calls for the following:Political reforms
- Democracy based on the multi-party system.
- Maintaining national unity.
- Protecting political freedoms and human rightsHuman rightsHuman rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
. - Independence of the judiciary.
- Abolishing the emergency laws.
Economic reforms
- Stabilizing economic legislation and rationalizing public consumption.
- Developing the public sector.
- Keeping a strong private sector.
- Developing the production sector.
- The opening of foreign banks in Egypt.
- Price stabilization.
Social reforms:
- Modernizing agriculture.
- Upgrading health services.
- Raising the efficiency of laborers and introducing new laws to protect labor rights.
Foreign policy:
- The party seeks a just and durable peace in the Middle East:
- believes Israel has breached the Camp David Accords.
- focuses on solving the Palestinian question.
- Advocates Arab unity.
- Seeks to highlight and deepen Arab and Islamic relations.
- Underlines the need for Egyptian-Sudanese integration.
- Seeks to develop Egyptian-African relations.
- Promotes neutrality and non-alignment.
1984
In 1984, Wafd formed an alliance with the Muslim Brotherhood ahead of parliamentary elections, but the results were disappointing as it won only 15% of the vote.2006 turmoil
Early in December 2005, the party appeared in crisis following the parliamentary elections, when party chairman Numan GumaaNuman Gumaa
Numan Gumaa an attorney in Cairo and is the former chairman of the liberal New Wafd Party. He was nominated in 2005 for presidential election and came in third place.- Sources :* [RED]numan...
dismissed prominent party leader and vice chairman Monir Fakhri Abdel Nour
Monir Fakhri Abdel Nour
Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour is an Egyptian politician. He is the Secretary-General of the Wafd Party and has been Minister of Tourism since 22 February 2011.- See also :*Cabinet of Egypt*List of Egyptians...
following the poor performance the party showed during the elections.
Abdel Nour was also the leader of the opposition bloc in the outgoing parliament before losing his seat in the first stage of elections. Abdel Nour told the media before his dismissal, that the only way the party could improve would be by "changing its leadership". He also continued that there was much support within the party for such a change.
After a poor showing in the 2005 Egyptian Presidential elections, the Wafd Party split into to camps, with one group demanding that Numan Gumaa
Numan Gumaa
Numan Gumaa an attorney in Cairo and is the former chairman of the liberal New Wafd Party. He was nominated in 2005 for presidential election and came in third place.- Sources :* [RED]numan...
leave his post as chairman. That demand became even more pronounced after the party also did poorly in the parliamentary elections.
Later in December 2005, the party's higher political board reverted Gumaa's decisions on firing Abdel Nour as well as other members. The higher board also elections for its membership and amended its internal by-laws and rules, especially those that give the party's chairman vast authorities in an aim to trim the chairman's political powers, all of which Gumaa has agreed to support.
On January 18, 2006 the supreme committee for the party ousted its chairman Numan Gomaa from the party and from the presidency of the board of al-Wafd newspaper. The committee attributed its decision to Gomaa's tyrannical behaviour and abuse of authority.
It also appointed his deputy Mahmoud Abaza as an interim Chairman for a period of 60 days after which the General Assembly of the party would be invited for an emergency meeting to choose a new chairman.
However, Gomaa contended that this decision contradicted to the party's statute and that he was the legitimate chairman who can be dismissed only by a decision of the party's General Assembly. He responded by filing a complaint to Egypt's Prosecutor General who ruled that Gomaa should be allowed access to party's headquarters. Abaza filed an urgent lawsuit asking that the Prosecutor General’s ruling be overturned.
The party's newspaper, Al-Wafd, was suspended for thirteen days (from January 27 until February 8, 2006) after Gomaa asked Al Ahram publishing house to stop printing the paper and fired its editor and some journalists, complaining of their allegiance to Abaza's group.
On February 10, 2006, the party's General Assembly agreed to dismiss Gomaa from Wafd presidency and appointed Mustafa al-Taweel (a member of al-Wafd supreme committee) as an interim president till the next elections on July 2006. Gomaa argued the decision was due to an earlier ruling by Giza's court of first instance to stop the General Assembly meeting.
On April 1, Gumaa and his supporters occupied the party's headquarters to reclaim control and opened fire on supporters of the rival faction who responded by throwing stones. Twenty three people were injured and fire broke out in the building but was brought under control. Egyptian authorities arrested Gumaa and some of his supporters.
2010 Party Elections
In May 2010, the party's deputy chairman, Fouad Badrawi, the grandson of Wafd's late leader Fouad SerageddinFouad Serageddin
Fouad Serageddin , was a leader of Egypt's Wafd Party.A cigar perpetually hanging from his lips, the "Pasha", as Fouad Serageddin liked to be called, continued to refer to Egypt's 1952 Revolution as the "coup d'état" which aborted a programme of reform he had helped to mastermind as Wafd...
announced that he was withdrawing his name from the nominations for party presidency to allow El-Sayyed El-Badawi, a member of the party's supreme authority and the party's former secretary-general, to run instead in the party elections scheduled by the end of the month.
In a rare occurrence in Egyptian partisan life, the elections were conducted in a transparent, peaceful manner and characterized by integrity. At its end, it was announced that El-Sayyed El-Badawi would be the new party chairman, with the outgoing president standing beside him.
Since his election, El-Badawi has met with many prominent figures in Egyptian life, ranging from politicians, current members of parliament, Muslim and Coptic religious figures and even actors, actresses and football players.
To many observers, the Wafd merged as a much stronger party after this election, which would be counted that would once again attract liberals who were losing grip in the current political map to Islamists and other extremists.
Role after 2011 Revolution
After the 2011 Egyptian revolution2011 Egyptian revolution
The 2011 Egyptian revolution took place following a popular uprising that began on Tuesday, 25 January 2011 and is still continuing as of November 2011. The uprising was mainly a campaign of non-violent civil resistance, which featured a series of demonstrations, marches, acts of civil...
forced President Hosni Mubarak to announce that he would step down in the coming elections, the government invited opposition parties to participate in dialogue. The party's secretary-general accepted on condition that protesters would not be attacked.
Representatives of the Al-Wafd Party joined anti-Mubarak protesters in Tahrir Square and vowed not to have a dialogue with government officials until President Mubarak relinquished his office.
On 13 June 2011, the Wafd Party announced its alliance (the National Democratic Alliance for Egypt
National Democratic Alliance for Egypt
National Democratic Alliance for Egypt, or Democratic Alliance is a coalition of political parties in Egypt formed in the wake of the 2011 Revolution...
) with the Freedom and Justice Party
Freedom and Justice Party (Egypt)
The Freedom and Justice Party , is an Islamist political party in Egypt. The party is nominally independent but has strong links to the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt, the largest and best organized political group in Egypt...
, the political wing of the Islamist
Islamism
Islamism also , lit., "Political Islam" is set of ideologies holding that Islam is not only a religion but also a political system. Islamism is a controversial term, and definitions of it sometimes vary...
Muslim Brotherhood
Muslim Brotherhood
The Society of the Muslim Brothers is the world's oldest and one of the largest Islamist parties, and is the largest political opposition organization in many Arab states. It was founded in 1928 in Egypt by the Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna and by the late 1940s had an...
, to present a joint list of candidates for the 2011 parliamentary election
Egyptian parliamentary election, 2011
An early parliamentary election is currently being held in Egypt from November 2011 onwards, following the revolution which ousted President Hosni Mubarak, after which the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces dissolved the parliament of Egypt...
. Executive members of Wafd have criticized the cooperation of the secular party with the Islamists. As the date neared for fielding candidate lists, the Wafd left the National Democratic Alliance for Egypt
National Democratic Alliance for Egypt
National Democratic Alliance for Egypt, or Democratic Alliance is a coalition of political parties in Egypt formed in the wake of the 2011 Revolution...
.
Controversy
In in an interview with The Washington TimesThe Washington Times
The Washington Times is a daily broadsheet newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. It was founded in 1982 by Unification Church founder Sun Myung Moon, and until 2010 was owned by News World Communications, an international media conglomerate associated with the...
in July 2011, Wafd Party vice chairman Ahmed Ezz el-Arab dismissed the Holocaust as a "lie", and the Diary of Anne Frank
Anne Frank
Annelies Marie "Anne" Frank is one of the most renowned and most discussed Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Acknowledged for the quality of her writing, her diary has become one of the world's most widely read books, and has been the basis for several plays and films.Born in the city of Frankfurt...
as a "forgery". Moreover, he claimed that the September 11 attacks were in reality perpetrated by Mossad
Mossad
The Mossad , short for HaMossad leModi'in uleTafkidim Meyuchadim , is the national intelligence agency of Israel....
, the CIA and America's "military-industrial complex", and that Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...
was an "American agent".
Prominent party figures
- Numan GumaaNuman GumaaNuman Gumaa an attorney in Cairo and is the former chairman of the liberal New Wafd Party. He was nominated in 2005 for presidential election and came in third place.- Sources :* [RED]numan...
- Former Chairman and 2005 presidential candidate. - Monir Fakhri Abdel NourMonir Fakhri Abdel NourMounir Fakhry Abdel Nour is an Egyptian politician. He is the Secretary-General of the Wafd Party and has been Minister of Tourism since 22 February 2011.- See also :*Cabinet of Egypt*List of Egyptians...
- Longtime serving Coptic Parliament member, politician and current Party Vice Chairman.