14 March 2011 By Osman Mirghani Ever since revolutions erupted
in Tunisia and Egypt, with this storm then extending
to other countries, questions have continued unabated,
regarding the Muslim Brotherhood and their role in the
forthcoming stage. Analysis has fluctuated between
warnings of the Muslim Brotherhood's increasing role,
and possible attempts to hijack the revolution, whilst
others have sought to herald a new era, in which the
organization displays an understanding for the lessons
of the past, and today advocates the peaceful and
democratic exchange of power, and the need for an
active civil society. The debate surrounding the
Muslim Brotherhood's participation in politics has
been problematical and controversial for a long time.
Several of the organization's slogans and practices
have caused many to view it as a movement seeking to
topple existing regimes, or seize upon them in a bid
to achieve their goal of unilateral rule, and the
establishment of a theocratic state. Hence, even when
the Muslim Brotherhood speaks of democracy, such
rhetoric sounds suspicious, because many feel they do
not believe in the peaceful exchange of power. Of course, some would counter such an argument by
saying that Islamist movements are actually the
victims here - even when they attempted to work
legitimately they were still deprived from obtaining
power by democratic means, as was the case with
Algeria in the early 1990s. However, such an argument
does not seem to take into account the fact that
several members of the [Algerian] Islamic Salvation
Front's leadership had issued controversial statements
[at the time], which brought their belief in democracy
into question, hence fueling fear and giving reason
for the military to invalidate the election results,
and end the political pluralism experiment.
Furthermore, in the months before the Algerian
election, Islamists in Sudan had seized upon a
democratically elected government by staging a
military coup, and went on to impose a governing model
dependent upon a tight security grip, and a policy of
oppression. These actions gained much support from
other Islamist groups in the region. On that day,
Islamists failed the democracy test, affirming the
view that they did not believe in democracy, or the
peaceful exchange of power, and that even if they
feigned support for democracy as a tactic to obtain
power, they would certainly not leave this position
via democratic means. There have been many incidents since that period
which have fuelled unrest in the region, and triggered
confrontations between governments and Islamist
movements, and they cannot all be recounted here. Yet
what is most important is that this problematical
relationship is coming to the fore once again today;
from Egypt and Tunisia, to Gaza and Libya. The most
significant test will be in Egypt, for what happens
there in the days to come will have a great impact
upon the region. Numerous Islamist movements in the
region have emerged from the Egyptian Muslim
Brotherhood, which also generated a number of
extremist movements. Thus today, all eyes are focused
on them, to see how they will act with regards to the
Egyptian revolution, and promises for democracy. If
members of the Muslim Brotherhood are able to prove
they mean what they say – that they support a civil
state, without marginalizing Copts or women, and aim
to establish a democracy that entails the peaceful
exchange of power - then they may become the Arab
version of the Turkish model. This would convince many
of the possibility of dealing with Islamist movements
that conform to legitimate political activity. Indeed,
this may help put an end to the cycle of exclusion,
and the banning of Islamist movements. It may [also]
reduce the emergence of armed extremist groups, and
combat the current climate which is conducive to
terrorism. Finally, it would put an end to accusations
made by Israeli and Western groups that Islam and
democracy are incompatible. During the revolution in Egypt, many sought to
counter it by brandishing the Muslim Brotherhood
scarecrow, arguing that regime change would present
power to the Islamist organization on a silver
platter. Initially, the Obama administration was
extremely hesitant in providing support for the
Egyptian revolution, for reports had always referred
to the Muslim Brotherhood as the most organized
alternative political force, compared to other eroded
political parties, whose numbers had shrunk
significantly, and who were no longer influential.
Even after Mubarak stepped down, many continued to
warn that the Muslim Brotherhood may override and
hijack the revolution, or that the regime would
exploit them as a means of circumventing the unrest,
by making a deal and then later excluding the
Brotherhood [when the revolution was over]. Without doubt, the Muslim Brotherhood needs to
restore the trust of other parties, which regard it
with fear and suspicion, believing it to be an
organization with a conspiring mentality that seeks to
exclude its opponents. There has been much speculation
and analysis that the Muslim Brotherhood, having
backed Mohammed ElBaradei prior to the revolution, and
having exploited his movement and his popularity
amongst the Egyptian youth, would abandon him
immediately after the revolution, and exclude him from
their negotiations with the government. This is
because they regard him as a strong potential
candidate for the presidency, and they fear that his
political manifesto may contradict theirs in many
aspects, or so some believe. It is worth noting that
the Muslim Brotherhood has indeed begun to surmount
other forces which participated in the revolution, and
this was made clear when Sheikh al-Qaradawi's guards
prevented youth activist Wael Ghonim from mounting the
platform to deliver a speech in Tahrir Square,
following the "Friday of Victory" prayers. Egypt is undergoing an extremely sensitive and
significant stage in its democratic transition. All
decisions made by political parties, including those
of the Muslim Brotherhood, will shape the new state in
Egypt. Will it be a new Egypt, or an old one with new
faces? Will it be a democratic Egypt, or an Egypt
where political wrangling returns us to dictatorship
or theocracy? A considerable challenge is facing the
Muslim Brotherhood, but perhaps they will realize the
historic moment, and the magnitude of the test facing
them. They will either prove to be a political force
that believes in democracy and the peaceful exchange
of power, or they will fail the test and act with a
conspiring mentality to exclude other parties, and
plan for the day in which they can rule the country
single-handedly. If this were to happen, it would
represent substantial evidence that Islamist movements
do not believe in the peaceful exchange of power, and
that they regard democracy as nothing more than a
vehicle to attain power, after which they would
unilaterally establish a theocratic or autocratic
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