Ayman Nour
Encyclopedia
Ayman Abd El Aziz Nour is an Egyptian
Egyptians
Egyptians are nation an ethnic group made up of Mediterranean North Africans, the indigenous people of Egypt.Egyptian identity is closely tied to geography. The population of Egypt is concentrated in the lower Nile Valley, the small strip of cultivable land stretching from the First Cataract to...

 politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

, a former member of the Egyptian Parliament
People's Assembly of Egypt
The People's Assembly is the lower house of Egypt's bicameral parliament. In spite of its lower status, however, it plays a more important role in drafting legislation and day-to-day legislative duties than the Shura Council, the upper house....

 and chairman of the El Ghad
Tomorrow Party
The el-Ghad Party is an active political party in Egypt that was granted license in October 2004. El-Ghad is a centrist liberal secular political party pressing for widening the scope of political participation and for a peaceful rotation of power....

 party.

He was imprisoned in January 2005 by the government of President
President of Egypt
The President of the Arab Republic of Egypt is the head of state of Egypt.Under the Constitution of Egypt, the president is also the supreme commander of the armed forces and head of the executive branch of the Egyptian government....

 Hosni Mubarak
Hosni Mubarak
Muhammad Hosni Sayyid Mubarak is a former Egyptian politician and military commander. He served as the fourth President of Egypt from 1981 to 2011....

. Nour was released on health grounds on February 18, 2009. Following the fall of Mubarak in the 2011 Revolution, Nour stated his intention to run for the vacant presidency.

In February 2011, Nour spoke of the 1979 Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty and stated that "Camp David
Camp David Accords
The Camp David Accords were signed by Egyptian President Anwar El Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin on September 17, 1978, following thirteen days of secret negotiations at Camp David. The two framework agreements were signed at the White House, and were witnessed by United States...

 is over" and that the agreement should be revised because "it is an old treaty and its terms must correspond with Egypt's interests."

Background

Nour was born in the city of Mansoura in 1964. His father was a lawyer and a former Member of Parliament and his mother established and supervised a number of charity projects in Mansoura. He had been married to Gamila Ismail who also served as the vice president to the El-Ghad Party.

Formation of El Ghad

The El Ghad party was formally recognized by the Egyptian government on October 27, 2004. Following its creation, Nour was elected president of the party at its first convention a few days later. His prominence as an independent MP made him the star of the party and one of the driving forces behind its organization. Nour fought hard to get the party recognized; its application was rejected three times before official status was finally granted.

The party was created to represent a liberal democrat
Liberal Democrat
Liberal Democrat can refer to:* Liberal Democrats, a UK political party* Liberal Democrats , an Italian political party* Liberal Democratic Party , a Japanese political party* Liberal Democrats , a Sudanese political party...

ic perspective, with a strong interest in human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...

 issues. Nour used the party as a platform to call for constitutional reform, limiting the president's powers and opening presidential elections to multiple candidates.

Arrest and imprisonment

Nour was stripped of his parliamentary immunity
Parliamentary immunity
Parliamentary immunity, also known as legislative immunity, is a system in which members of the parliament or legislature are granted partial immunity from prosecution. Before prosecuting, it is necessary that the immunity be removed, usually by a superior court of justice or by the parliament itself...

 and arrested on January 29, 2005. He was charged with forging PAs (Powers of Attorney) to secure the formation of the el-Ghad party. Nour vehemently denied the charges (from prison).

The arrest, occurring in an election year, was widely criticized by governments around the world as a step backwards for Egyptian democracy. Few seem to regard the charges as legitimate. Nour remained active despite his imprisonment, using the opportunity to write critical articles and make his case and cause better known.

In February 2005, Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice is an American political scientist and diplomat. She served as the 66th United States Secretary of State, and was the second person to hold that office in the administration of President George W. Bush...

 abruptly postponed a visit to Egypt, reflecting U.S. displeasure at the jailing of Nour, who was reported to have been brutally interrogated. That same month, the government announced the following month that it would open elections to multiple candidates.

In March 2005, following a strong intervention in Cairo by a group of Members of the European Parliament led by Vice-President Edward McMillan-Scott (UK, Conservative), Nour was freed and began a campaign for the Egyptian presidency.

Nour was the first runner-up in the 2005 presidential election
Egyptian presidential election, 2005
The Egyptian presidential election of 2005, held on September 7, 2005, was the first allegedly contested presidential election in Egypt's history. Hosni Mubarak, the former President of Egypt, won a fifth consecutive six-year term in office, with official results showing he won 88.6% of the vote...

 with 7% of the vote according to government figures and estimated at 13% by independent observers, although no independent observers were allowed to monitor the elections.

On December 24, 2005 he was sentenced to five years in jail. Though diabetic, Nour engaged in a two-weeks long hunger strike to protest his trial.

Nour's verdict and sentencing made global headlines and were the first item of news on most international news broadcasts, including the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

.

On the day of Nour's guilty verdict and sentencing, the White House Press Secretary
White House Press Secretary
The White House Press Secretary is a senior White House official whose primary responsibility is to act as spokesperson for the government administration....

 released the following statement denouncing the government's action:
The United States is deeply troubled by the conviction today of Egyptian politician Ayman Nour by an Egyptian court. The conviction of Mr. Nour, the runner-up in Egypt's 2005 presidential elections, calls into question Egypt's commitment to democracy, freedom, and the rule of law. We are also disturbed by reports that Mr. Nour's health has seriously declined due to the hunger strike on which he has embarked in protest of the conditions of his trial and detention.
The United States calls upon the Egyptian government to act under the laws of Egypt in the spirit of its professed desire for increased political openness and dialogue within Egyptian society, and out of humanitarian concern, to release Mr. Nour from detention.


In February 2006, Rice visited Hosni Mubarak
Hosni Mubarak
Muhammad Hosni Sayyid Mubarak is a former Egyptian politician and military commander. He served as the fourth President of Egypt from 1981 to 2011....

 yet never spoke Nour's name publicly. When asked about him at a news conference, she referred to his situation as one of Egypt's setbacks. Days later, Mubarak told a government newspaper that Rice "didn't bring up difficult issues or ask to change anything." From prison, Nour stated "I pay the price when [Rice] speaks [of me], and I pay the price when she doesn't," Nour said. "But what's happening to me now is a message to everybody."

In June 2007 President Bush, speaking at a conference of dissidents in the Czech Republic, revisited the issue of Ayman Nour, saying:
There are many dissidents who couldn't join us because they are being unjustly imprisoned or held under house arrest. I look forward to the day when a conference like this one include Alexander Kozulin of Belarus, Aung San Suu Kyi of Burma, Oscar Elias Biscet of Cuba, Father Nguyen Van Ly of Vietnam, Ayman Nour of Egypt. (Applause.) The daughter of one of these political prisoners is in this room. I would like to say to her, and all the families: I thank you for your courage. I pray for your comfort and strength. And I call for the immediate and unconditional release of your loved ones.
...
I have asked Secretary Rice to send a directive to every U.S. ambassador in an un-free nation: Seek out and meet with activists for democracy. Seek out those who demand human rights.


Nour was released on health grounds on 18 February 2009. He was injured in the Egyptian protests of January 28 2011, where he received a stone in the head. He is being currently treated in a hospital in Agouza
Agouza
Agouza is a small district of Giza, on the shore of the Nile river. It is on the west bank of the Nile, lies between 6th October Bridge and 15th May Bridge, north of Dokki and south of Mohandesin districts. Although it lies very near to Mohandesin, but it is less affluent than it.It embraces the...

.

Party leadership

Soon after, some members of the Tomorrow Party removed Nour from the presidency (a move which is supported by the Egyptian government and Nour's political opponents), but Nour is still the official president of "El Ghad Party". Today, the Council of the State is looking into the case filed by the divided party, taking into consideration that Nour is still officially the president and the other members were expelled from the party three days before their actions (which included claiming that they are the leaders of "El Ghad Party" and issuing a party newspaper opposing the law of press production and also entering the parliament elections under the "El Ghad" name despite the fact that they were expelled).

In November 2007, Gamila Ismail, wife of Ayman Nour, announced her resignation from her position as deputy chairman of the party without giving much more detail.

Current life

Nour currently resides in Egypt. He was recently attacked after another attempt for running for presidency.

See also

  • Asmaa Mahfouz
    Asmaa Mahfouz
    Asmaa Mahfouz is an Egyptian activist and one of the founders of the April 6 Youth Movement. She has been credited by journalist Mona Eltahawy and others with helping to spark mass uprising through her video blog posted one week before the start of the 2011 Egyptian revolution...

  • Kefaya
  • Tomorrow Party
    Tomorrow Party
    The el-Ghad Party is an active political party in Egypt that was granted license in October 2004. El-Ghad is a centrist liberal secular political party pressing for widening the scope of political participation and for a peaceful rotation of power....

  • Saad Eddin Ibrahim
  • Nonviolent resistance
    Nonviolent resistance
    Nonviolent resistance is the practice of achieving goals through symbolic protests, civil disobedience, economic or political noncooperation, and other methods, without using violence. It is largely synonymous with civil resistance...

  • 2011 Egyptian protests

External links

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