Former UN nuclear watchdog head Mohamed ElBaradei has said he might run for Egypt's presidency, if the elections are democratic. His comments were met with heavy criticism in the pro-government press, which backs President Hosni Mubarak, Egypt's leader for the past 28 years. Polls are due in 2011, and some opposition parties have called on Mr ElBaradei to stand. Mr ElBaradei said he might run if there were "guarantees of fairness". The 67-year-old Egyptian ended his 12-year term as head of the International Atomic Energy Agency at the end of November.
President Mubarak has not yet said whether he will seek a sixth term. There has been speculation that his son, Gamal, is being groomed to succeed him. Opposition and civil society groups have long complained that the authorities have used emergency laws and the security forces to curb political freedoms.
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ElBaradei-mania keeps growing
If Mohamed ElBaradei is really planning on challenging President Hosni Mubarak in 2011, he’s pursuing an interesting campaign strategy. “I don’t want to be president of Egypt,” the former International Atomic Energy Agency chief said, in an interview published last week on the Foreign Policy Magazine website. “You can understand that after having this thankless job for 12 years, that I wanted to have some time to do other things, including spending time with my family.”
Nevertheless ElBaradei-mania appears to be running wild, and should peak later this month when he is supposed to visit Egypt. Supporters of an ElBaradei 2011 candidacy have made their presence felt on Youtube and Facebook—where a pro-ElBaradei group has more than 55,000 members. There’s even an unofficial campaign website: http://elbaradei2011.com
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Media campaign against ElBaradei the 'imported president'
The proponents of the regime claim that ElBaradei's experience isn't appropriate for as sensitive and complex a position as the presidency. But what was President Mubarak's experience when he came to power? What experience does Gamal Mubarak have, apart from his experience in banking and his partisan knowledge, strictly defined by his being a member of the presidential palace? And who among the candidates can rise to the level of a Nobel prize laureate who has 13 honorary degrees, a considerable legal background, and connections with the most important leaders and organizations in the world?
The situation degenerated even further, with questions being raised as to whether ElBaradei occupied the last position in his class at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, or the last but one position. But how could the Ministry of Foreign Affairs include someone as dim as two members of Egypt's most important delegations abroad, in New York and Geneva? And whose mistake is it, ElBaradei himself, or the one who dispatched him? And what papers qualified those pro-regime officials for national positions anyway?
The wild accusations took a new twist when it was said that foreign countries held sway over ElBaradei, and that he had taken a stand against his country to serve Western interests. They even said he belongs to the American Camp, and that he played a role in supporting the US decision to invade Iraq. Then the questions were: Who's the US's strategic ally, ElBaradei or the regime? Why did President Mubarak honor him by giving him the highest Egyptian reward if he's an agent? Is he an agent working for the US or for Iran? If he's in a tight corner for having worked at an international organization, then what about the President's son, who worked for a foreign bank?
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http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/opinion/media-campaign-against-elbaradei...