[Some Egyptian don’t believe in reading, just believe in
repeating others quotes; yes ElBaradei used the holocaust
card to try to provoke a negative reaction from the west against Egyptian
process, for me any one try to use the exterior to settle local issue is a traitor,
and for me ElBaradei has lost any claim of belonging.
Here is the paper exact word from their site,
not translated or invented by someone, Mohamed S. Kamel]
ElBaradei Speaks Out against Morsi:
'Not Even the Pharaohs Had
So Much Authority'
SPIEGEL: Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi granted himself
broad new powers last week. Is this a coup?
ElBaradei: He grabbed full power for himself. Not even the
pharaohs had so much authority, to say nothing of his predecessor Hosni
Mubarak. This is a catastrophe -- it a mockery of the revolution that brought
him to power and an act that leads one to fear the worst.
SPIEGEL: You are widely considered to be diplomatic and
balanced. Why is your reaction now so dramatic? One of the leaders of the
Muslim Brotherhood said that the new powers would only be in effect until a new
constitution is passed.
ElBaradei: We have to look at it in the context of almost two
years of transition. We have no functioning parliament and months ago Morsi
assumed legislative functions. Now he's decided that there should be no
opposition to the laws that he makes and that he is authorized to pass any
national security measure. It is difficult to be more absolutist than that. And
the constitutional convention -- what a sad gathering; it threatens to send us
back to the darkest period of the Middle Ages.
SPIEGEL: Almost all of the liberal and Christian members of
the constitutional commission have withdrawn. Why is that?
ElBaradei: Because we all fear that the Muslim Brotherhood
will pass a document with Islamist undertones that marginalizes the rights of
women and religious minorities. Who sits in this group? One person,
who wants to ban music, because it's allegedly against Sharia law;
another, who denies the Holocaust; another, who openly condemns democracy.
SPIEGEL: You believe that Egypt is on the path to becoming
a dictatorship once again. But Morsi was legally elected and the Muslim
Brotherhood has a majority.
ElBaradei: The Muslim Brotherhood received their votes under
dubious circumstances. The country is fractured. If the moderate forces no
longer have a voice, a civil war threatens to erupt in Egypt. I fear that. And
I fear that this incompetent government will ruin the economy.
SPIEGEL: Has the Arab Spring already failed in Egypt?
ElBaradei: I don't believe that. I fight against that. In
April I founded the Constitution Party. With the Social Democrats and all
liberal powers we will combine against the Islamists. We still have a chance
and we should not waste the awakening; that would be a tragedy. Young people
want more personal freedom and better jobs. They want a clear word from the
West against Morsi. If Americans and Europeans really believe in the values that
they are always preaching then they must help us and pressure Morsi.
SPIEGEL: Would you support freezing US aid to Egypt?
ElBaradei: I cannot imagine that someone with democratic
principles could support such a regime for the long term.* We do not want to
repeat the barbarism of the French Revolution.
*
Correction: An earlier version of this interview indicated that Mr. ElBaradei
would be speaking with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the coming
days. That is incorrect. We apologize for the error.
Interview
conducted by Erich Follath
http://www.shorouknews.com/columns/view.aspx?cdate=30112012&id=f0d6158f-a286-449c-aa80-271bf8b448e8
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