The al-Wasat Party ( ar-at, حزب الوسط, Hizb al-Wasat), translated in English as the Center Party, is a moderate
Islamist political party in
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...
.
The party withdrew from the
Anti-Coup Alliance
The Anti-Coup Alliance (also known as the National Alliance Supporting Legitimacy) is a coalition in Egypt formed to reverse the ouster of former president Mohamed Morsi. The coalition is made up of approximately 40 Islamist parties and groups.
...
on 28 August 2014. A court case was brought forth to dissolve the party, though the Alexandria Urgent Matters Court ruled on 26 November 2014 that it lacked jurisdiction.
Foundation
The party was founded by
Abou Elela Mady in 1996,
which Mady accused of having "narrow political horizons." The creation of al-Wasat was criticized by the Brotherhood, which said Mady was trying to split the movement.
It was also not well received by the Egyptian government, which brought its founders before a
military court
A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...
on the charge of setting up a party as an Islamist front.
Al-Wasat tried to gain an official license four times between 1996 and 2009, but its application was rejected each time by the political parties committee, which was chaired by a leading member of the ruling
National Democratic Party.
Political parties formed on the basis of religion have been banned by the
Egyptian constitution
The Constitution of the Arab Republic of Egypt is the fundamental law of Egypt.
The Egyptian Constitution of 2014 was passed in a referendum in January 2014. The constitution took effect after the results were announced on 18 January 2014. A ...
since an amendment to Article 5 was
approved in 2007. The leader of the party,
Abou Elela Mady, as well as deputy head Essam Sultan, have been detained following the
2013 Egyptian coup d'état
The 2013 Egyptian coup d'etat took place on 3 July 2013. Egyptian army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi led a coalition to remove the democratically elected
President of Egypt, Mohamed Morsi, from power and suspended the Egyptian constitu ...
.
Recognition
Al-Wasat was granted official recognition on 19 February 2011 after a court in
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the Capital city, capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, List of ...
approved its establishment. The court's ruling was handed down in the wake of the
Egyptian Revolution of 2011, and made al-Wasat the first new party to gain official status after the
resignation
Resignation is the formal act of leaving or quitting one's office or position. A resignation can occur when a person holding a position gained by election or appointment steps down, but leaving a position upon the expiration of a term, or choos ...
of
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
* President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
Hosni Mubarak
Muhammad Hosni El Sayed Mubarak, (; 4 May 1928 – 25 February 2020) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the fourth president of Egypt from 1981 to 2011.
Before he entered politics, Mubarak was a career officer in ...
. Its newly acquired official status allowed al-Wasat to compete in the
next parliamentary election, and made it the first legal party in Egypt with an Islamic background.
Ideology
The party asserts that its aim is to promote a tolerant version of
Islam with
liberal tendencies. Its founder Mady highlights as proof of this openness the fact that two
Copts and three women are among the party's 24 top members.
According to the
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, al-Wasat "seeks to interpret Islamic sharia principles in a manner consistent with the values of a liberal democratic system. Although al-Wasat advocates a political system that is firmly anchored in Islamic law, it also views sharia principles as flexible and wholly compatible with the principles of pluralism and equal citizenship rights."
The party's manifesto accepts the right of a Christian to become head of state in a Muslim-majority country.
Its founder Mady likens its ideology to that of the Turkish
Justice and Development Party (AKP).
See also
*
List of political parties in Egypt
By its constitution, Egypt has a multi-party system. However, in practice the National Democratic Party was the long-time ruling party and dominated the Egyptian political arena up until the Egyptian Revolution of 2011, which ousted NDP presid ...
References
Further reading
*
*
External links
*https://twitter.com/Alwasatpartyeg
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wasat Party, Al
1996 establishments in Egypt
2013 Egyptian coup d'état
Centrist parties in Egypt
Egyptian revolution of 2011
Islamic political parties in Egypt
Organisations of the Egyptian Crisis (2011–2014)
Political parties established in 1996
Political parties in Egypt