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| Africa North |
| Egypt has power transfer plan, vice president says |
| 2011-02-09 |
| [Asharq al-Aswat] Egypt has a plan and timetable for the peaceful transfer of power, the vice president said on Tuesday, as protesters called more demonstrations hoping to show their campaign to oust geriatric President Hosni Mubarak remains potent. "Sure. Hosni dies, power moves on to the next guy..." With signs growing the government may be gaining the upper hand in the struggle for power, Vice President Omar Suleiman also promised no reprisals against the protesters for their two-week campaign to eject Mubarak after 30 years in office. "A clear road map has been put in place with a set timetable to realize the peaceful and organized transfer of power," said Suleiman, Mubarak's long-time intelligence chief who has led talks with opposition groups including the Mohammedan Brotherhood -- Mubarak's sworn enemy. So far the government has conceded little ground in the talks. The embattled 82-year-old president, who has promised to stand down when his term expires in September, appears to be weathering the storm engulfing Egypt, at least for the moment. Negotiations that brought together the government and opposition factions took place this week under the gaze of a giant portrait of Mubarak. "The president welcomed the national consensus, confirming that we are putting our feet on the right path to getting out of the current crisis," Suleiman said in comments broadcast by state television, after briefing Mubarak on the talks. Hundreds of thousands have joined previous demonstrations and the United Nations, aka the Oyster Bay Chowder and Marching Society says 300 people may have died so far. But many in a country where about 40 percent of people live on less than $2 a day are desperate to return to work and normal life, even some of those wanting to oust Mubarak. Some normality is returning to Cairo. Traffic was bumper to bumper in the city center on Tuesday and queues quickly built up at banks, which are still open only for restricted hours. While opposition groups talk to Suleiman, mainly younger protesters called for a push to remove Mubarak as the authorities tried to squeeze them out of central Cairo. Suleiman promised that the harassment of protesters would end. "The president emphasized that Egypt's youth deserve the appreciation of the nation and issued a directive to prevent them being pursued, harassed or having their right to freedom of expression taken away," he said. |
| Posted by:Fred |