Al Noor Party Statement

Last evening, Al Noor Party (which is the Salafi political party) released an interesting statement:

"Due to the state of severe divisiveness and polarization that Egypt is going through currently; a condition that contradicts the nature of the Egyptian people who fascinated the world with a revolution that peacefully tumbled the throne of oppression, and due to the sharp tone of discourse that exceeded any limits of constructive dialogue and outreach to inflammatory, charging and infuriating rhetoric on both sides of the government and opposition, we warn of a nearing clash between the sons of the same homeland that would leave all at loss. An-Noor Party states the following;

One;

An-Noor Party, due to such inflammatory conditions, will not participate in the announced June 21st demonstrations mainly to avoid any acts of violence, as participation will lead to more polarization and vice versa.

Two;

We reiterate the right of the Egyptian people to express their opinions and objections using peaceful means as mandated by the Egyptian Constitution. This right, however, does not mean that some can demand the fall of the Constitution itself, or the leaping over legitimacy in order to cease power through what is called a proposed presidential council or another. The Egyptian Constitution cannot be amended except by the mechanisms stated in the constitution itself. Any attempts to transgress against that or tamper with the Constitution will absolutely not be accepted. The constitutional articles regarding the identity of the Egyptian people and Islamic law are outside the realm of alteration and are untouchable.

Three;

The principle of peaceful succession of power should be founded and practiced through free elections and not through riots or the gathering of signatures; otherwise these unconstitutional practices would be a followed custom with every new president, and certainly will lead to chaos.

The Egyptian opposition, however, has a peaceful and constitutional opportunity to change the balance of power and reform the ruling system through the next parliamentary elections. This will introduce a prime minister who represents the majority of the Parliament, and who will enjoy true executive powers that, in some cases, will exceed that of the elected president.

Four;

A- Noor Party invites the presidential institution to immediately respond to the demands of the people, some of which are:

1- Forming a new neutral transitional cabinet with members of exceptional executive qualifications, or a national coalition cabinet that represents all political powers which should be able to counter the daily problems and alleviate the suffering of the struggling Egyptian people.
2- Inviting all political powers to participate in determining the nearest possible date for the parliamentary elections, while setting well defined parameters to secure the integrity of its processes.
3- Working towards ending the political conflicts and diffusing the crisis between the branches of government, especially with the judicial branch.
4- Reconsidering all appointments during the reign of President Mohammed Morsi, where selection of appointees should be based on qualifications and experience, rather than loyalty and trust.
Five;

We completely refuse to categorize the current political conflict as a conflict between an Islamic and un-Islamic camp, or that anyone who opposes the policies of the current ruling system is automatically anti-Islam or anti-the Islamic project. No one can deny that the Egyptian people collectively accept Islamic law and demand it; the same could be said about the majority of the current policy’s opponents.

Six;

An-Noor Party warns all political parties and individuals of being drawn into a corner of violence. Every sincere patriot should work towards avoiding such ending. Every speech maker who seeks to further inflame the conflict should learn that this only benefits the enemies of his own nation, so all be warned that we could reach a condition of chaotic violence that has already happened in our region.

Finally, An Noor Party will not waste any effort to protect the safety of the nation, avoid violence, and bring all parties together. We will relentlessly continue to reach out to all powers of the Egyptian political spectrum in order to prevent the country from falling into a dangerous slippery slope that will only benefit the enemies of Egypt.

Our strength is in our unity.

May Allah protect Egypt from any harm."