As Egyptians head to the ballot boxes today to vote in parliamentary elections, and amid reports of a crackdown against leading opposition group the Muslim Brotherhood, Kate Goodin looks at the campaign trail debate in the Arab press, and particularly in Egypt, on the meaning of the controversial Brotherhood slogan "Islam is the Solution."
Controversy over the slogan opened up a broader discussion on the role of religion in society, the Muslim Brotherhood's history, and the right way to solve Egypt's problems.
Mahmoud Ghazlan, a Muslim Brotherhood leader, defends the slogan on the organization's website, explaining that "Islam is the solution" means that Islam is the basis for remedying human rights abuses in Egypt, and enumerates Islamic foundations for the principles of public freedoms and human rights, such as freedom of religion and freedom of expression.
Sami Al-Beheiry, however, takes the slogan as an insult to Egyptians' faith:
I would have understood the widespread of such slogan in a non-Muslim country, in order to invite its people to Islam. However, raising this slogan in a Muslim country means that whoever raised it does not consider this country Muslim.
Zine El Abidine Al-Rekabi explains in Al-Sharq Al-Awsat::?? ???? ?? ????? ??? ?????? ?? ??? ??? ?????? ????? ???? ??? ??????? ? ???? ?? ????? ?? ??? ?????? ?????? ?? ????? ?????? ?? ??????? ?? ??? ????? ??? ????????
There is an abysmal gap between the "Islam is the Solution" slogan and "practical solutions" that would actually be able to solve the world's problems, and Muslim's problems for that matter.
??? ???????? ??????? ?????: ?? ?????? ????? ??? ??? ???? (??????? ?? ????) ???? (???? ?????) ???? ??? ????? ?? ?????? ??????? ??????? ???????? ??? ???.
Amr al-Shobaki, writing in leading Egyptian independent paper Al-Masry Al-Youm, sees the motto as an example of the organization's stagnancy:
The Brotherhood has been using this motto since the 1987 elections and has failed to re-assess it since then. During this time, the political map of the world has changed, communism has collapsed, yet the Brotherhood--much like the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP)--have remained stationary, using the same old political discourse and offering nothing new.
Egyptian intellectual Sayed Al-Qimni argues on his blog that this slogan is un-Islamic and bad for the country:
The Prophet of Islam (PBUH) practiced politics and military strategies with worldly logic. This teaches Muslims a great lesson; achieving worldy purposes cannot be done except through worldly methods. [...]This slogan is against science, because if, in our religion, there was the single solution for all the problems of the world, then this means that Muslims would focus solely on Islam and not investigate solutions and achievements made by other nations.
???? ??? ??????? (?) ??????? ? ???????????? ????? ?????? ? ??????? ????? ???????? ???? ????? ?? ...... ?? ????? ??????? ???????? ?? ????? ??? ?????? ??????. ? ?? ???? ?? ????? , ???? ?? ??? ???? ?? ???? ??? ????? ?????? ????? ?? ????? ? ?? ???? ?????? , ????? ??? ?? ??? ???????? ????? ????? ?? ??????? ???? ? ??? ????? ?? ?????? ? ??????? ???? ?????? ????? ?
Bassem al-Khafagy, writing in the Egyptian paper Al-Wasat, criticises 'Islam is the solution' as a flawed idea poorly executed:
Some of those who say today that "Islam is the solution", merely use the slogan, but their political and humanistic practices do not indicate that they have chosen Islam as a solution for their own problems. I don't see how we can say something then do another thing completely, then mourn the fact that people do not believe us or sympathize with us.
Al-Khafagy summarizes Egyptian political thinking into four camps:??? ??? ??????? ????? ?? ?? "??????? ?? ????" .. ???????? ?????? ???? ???? ????????? ???????? ?? ????????? ?? ???? ???? ?? ??????? ??? ??????? ???? ????????? ??? ??? ???? ??? ???? ?? ?? ????? ????? ?? ?? ?????? ????? ?? ???????? ????
Some will raise the "Islam is the Solution" slogan, while others would say "Democracy is the Solution", and a third group would stress that "Stability is the Solution", but the majority would assert that "There is No Solution".
???? ????? ???? "??????? ?? ????" .. ?????? ??????? "??????????? ?? ????" .. ????? ????? "????????? ?? ????" .. ????? ???? ???? ????? ?? ?? ????? ???? "?? ???? ??"
Akram Al-Qassas criticizes the MB use of the slogan in the independent Egyptian newspaper Youm7:
The Muslim Brotherhood too has found the chance to stir controversy over their ambiguous slogan that says both nothing and everything. They know very well that religion is the one thing most Egyptians can agree upon. What they fail to acknowledge is that those standing for office are human beings - not angels and certainly not gods. Accordingly, it is humans - and not the faith - which stands to win or lose.
? : ????? ??????? ?? ?????? ?????? ???? ????? ??? ?????? ?????? ???? ?? ???? ???? ????? ?? ??? ??? ?????? ?? ????? ?? ???? ?? ???? ???? ????????? ????? ???????? ?? ????? ??????? ???? ?????? ??? ????? ??? ?? ???? ????? ??? ???? ?????? ???????? ?? ???? ??? ????.
Hassan Nifaa writes in Al-Masry Al-Youm, that while he disagrees with the slogan, the ban is simply an attempt to crack down on opposition:
The slogan "Islam is the solution" may not be the solution, but it isn't the problem either. The real problem is that President Mubarak refuses to entertain the idea of change of power, insisting on remaining in charge until his "last breath," after which the top job will be bequeathed to Mubarak Jr. When the ruling elite accept the idea of alternation of power on principle, it will be a whole lot easier to adjust the relationship between religion and state!
???? ???????? ?? ????? ?? ?? ???? ?? ????, ???? ??? ??????? ????. ??????? ???????? ???? ?? ??? ?????? ????? ???? ????? ?????? ?? ?????? ??????? ??? ????????? ?? ????? ??? ???? ???? ???? ??? ?????? ????? ?? ????. ???? ???? ?????? ??????? ???? ????? ?????? ?? ??? ?????? ???? ???? ??? ??? ??? ????? ?????? ??????? ???? ??????? ??? ????? ????????!
The views in this post are taken from diverse sources and should not be taken as the views of Meedan. You can add your view in two languages on news.Meedan.net
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