CAIRO - The young Egyptians who protested in their millions over the past three weeks didn't only end the former president's reign, but also many illusions and political theories that prevailed for a very long time. The old political map seemed no longer to fit or help anybody understand Egypt's political scene. Now there is a completely new situation to come to terms with. The long-outlawed Muslim Brotherhood presents a puzzling aspect that needs to be studied again. It is the oldest and maybe the most organised opposition group in Egypt, banned since 1954. Although the former regime insisted that the Brotherhood was behind the demonstrations, the young people's revolution was obviously much bigger and not based on the group. "Young Muslim Brothers went protesting without the blessing of the leadership; they even attacked it for the slow reaction that lagged behind the development of the situation," said Mohamed Habib, a former member of the Brotherhood Bureau. Habib told The Egyptian Gazette that the regime used to exaggerate status and importance of the Brotherhood, to get support from foreign countries, fearing that radical Islamists would take Egypt over. Some experts are now realising that the Brotherhood is quite different. Although it probably commands the loyalty of more Egyptians than any other organised social or political force, it is far from being the only source of organised political opposition. Just how many Parliament seats the Brotherhood could command in free and fair elections is not known. Habib says that if the Brotherhood were right now involved in fair elections, it would not get more than 25 per cent of votes. He thinks that there are new and more powerful groups in the Egyptian street, overtaking the old political parties. According to him, the young people who waged the revolution are the best to have the power, whether in a future Egyptian government or in the Brotherhood itself. Recently many experts and foreign politicians began to change their view about the banned organisation. However, some experts and politicians still warn about bad consequences if Islamists reached power in Egypt. The group sparked great controversy in the United States, where some saw it as a non-violent, Islamic social welfare organisation supportive of a democratic process, while others called it a radical extremist group hell-bent on creating a theocracy in Egypt. US President Barack Obama recently downplayed the prospect of the Muslim Brotherhood playing a major role in Egypt, saying it was just one faction that did not have majority support. Although Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said there was no room to compare current Egyptian developments with Iran's Islamic Revolution in 1979, he warned about Egypt holding elections too soon, saying the only group ready to run and win an election would be the Muslim Brotherhood. And this, in his view, would be a catastrophe for the whole region. The Brotherhood is now trying to distance itself from the image that the old regime drew. It has rejected declarations by al-Qaeda and Iran, encouraging it to launch an Islamic revolution. In response to reactions of groups affiliated to al-Qaeda concerning the protests in Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood's English website editor-in-chief Khaled Hamza strongly denounced the calls for jihad (holy war) issued on jihadist forums. Hamza confirmed the Brotherhood's firm stance against the use of violence to achieve legitimate popular demands, rejecting also any interference in Egypt's domestic affairs. The group equally rejected Iranian notions about the Egyptian revolution that described it as having been inspired by the Islamic revolution in Iran. At one time the Brotherhood declared it was not going to have a candidate for the coming presidential election in Egypt. Now it is keen to establish its political party as soon as the Constitution and law allow it. Habib sees that the proposed party can be a civil one and therefore include a variety of people, even Copts, while the Brotherhood itself can keep its role of preaching. Habib says that all Egyptians, including the Brotherhood, are waiting for specific amendments to the Constitution that will make Egypt a free parliamentarian country and guarantee that no single party will monopolise power. Some observers think that if the Brotherhood were allowed to form a political party, it would join a wide range of other Islamist parties in the region (like Morocco's Justice and Development Party, Jordan's Islamic Action Front and Yemen's Islah Party). Their participation has often helped make anaemic legislatures more significant, against all odds. "The Muslim Brotherhood is not seeking power," Mohammed Morsi, a member of the group's media office, said at a Cairo news conference. "We want to participate, not dominate. We will not have a presidential candidate; we want to participate and help; we are not seeking power." "We are not going to have a candidate in the upcoming presidential elections. It's time for solidarity; it's time for unity. In my opinion, we need a national consensus," said Essam el-Erian, a spokesman for the Brotherhood. He added that its leadership had decided to form a political party. Some experts say that if the Brotherhood succeeded in this, it would play a significant role in the politics of the country. Diaa Rashwan, an expert on Islamist groups, stated: “Egypt before Jan. 25 was completely different from post-Jan. 25 Egypt. Even the Muslim Brotherhood is in a state of shock; it has discovered that the developments in society aren't what it imagined.” “In the coming elections, we are expecting huge numbers of people to vote, basically a new generation. No one knows who will be elected, but I don't expect it to be the Muslim Brotherhood,” he said.
