Workers Democratic Party
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The Workers National Democratic Party (WDP) ( ar, حزب العمال الديمقراطي) is a workers' 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 Mediter ...
formed shortly after the
Egyptian Revolution of 2011 The 2011 Egyptian revolution, also known as the 25 January revolution ( ar, ثورة ٢٥ يناير; ), began on 25 January 2011 and spread across Egypt. The date was set by various youth groups to coincide with the annual Egyptian "Police ho ...
. It is backed by the
Federation of Egyptian Trade Unions The Egyptian Federation of Independent Trade Unions (EFITU, also referred to as the Egyptian Independent Trade Union Federation) was the first independent national trade union center to be founded following the 2011 Egyptian Revolution. Previousl ...
and forms part of the Coalition of Socialist Forces. The party name is sometimes translated in English as Democratic Workers Party, Democratic Labour Party or Labour Democratic Party.


History

The party was initiated by the
leftist Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
front Hashd and the
Revolutionary Socialists The Revolutionary Socialists ( ar, الاشتراكيون الثوريون; ) (RS) are a Trotskyist organisation in Egypt originating in the tradition of 'Socialism from Below'. Leading RS members include sociologist Sameh Naguib. The organisatio ...
(RS) in response to the country's growing
strike Strike may refer to: People * Strike (surname) Physical confrontation or removal *Strike (attack), attack with an inanimate object or a part of the human body intended to cause harm *Airstrike, military strike by air forces on either a suspected ...
movement which preceded the revolution. WDP spokesperson
Kamal Khalil Kamal Khalil ( ar, كمال خليل, ) is an Egyptian engineer and labour activist. He is a leading member of the Revolutionary Socialists, a representative of the Workers Democratic Party and the founder and director of the Center for Sociali ...
says "Most leftist attempts to form a party include
intellectual An intellectual is a person who engages in critical thinking, research, and reflection about the reality of society, and who proposes solutions for the normative problems of society. Coming from the world of culture, either as a creator or a ...
s as major players and a number of
worker The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual labour, manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via wage, waged or salary, salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also "Designation ...
s as members... This party aims at having workers as the main players and leaders of the party joined by a number of intellectuals."


Politics

Although the RS have been instrumental in the formation of the party, the WDP does not present itself as a revolutionary party. Party officials claim
socialist revolution Revolutionary socialism is a political philosophy, doctrine, and tradition within socialism that stresses the idea that a social revolution is necessary to bring about structural changes in society. More specifically, it is the view that revoluti ...
"is not feasible in the current political environment", citing the Egyptian
working class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...
' "lack of political experience and the underdevelopment of the
labour movement The labour movement or labor movement consists of two main wings: the trade union movement (British English) or labor union movement (American English) on the one hand, and the political labour movement on the other. * The trade union movement ...
". They instead advocate the re-
nationalization Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately-owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to pri ...
of industry and more genuine worker democracy. Although not a self-proclaimed revolutionary party, the WDP cites revolutionary language and theory. For example, on
May Day May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on 1 May, around halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice. Festivities may also be held the night before, known as May Eve. T ...
, 2011 - the first May Day after Mubarak - the party chanted "A workers' revolution against the capitalist government" while marching to
Tahrir Square Tahrir Square ( ar, ميدان التحرير ', , English language, English: Liberation Square), also known as "Martyr Square", is a major public town square in downtown Cairo, Egypt. The square has been the location and focus for political dem ...
. The same day,
Hossam el-Hamalawy Hossam el-Hamalawy ( arz, حسام الحملاوى, ; AKA 3arabawy , ; born 14 July 1977) is an Egyptian journalist, blogger, photographer and socialist activist. He is a member of the Revolutionary Socialists and the Center for Socialist Studi ...
, a representative of the party, called for "a complete halt to the
neoliberal Neoliberalism (also neo-liberalism) is a term used to signify the late 20th century political reappearance of 19th-century ideas associated with free-market capitalism after it fell into decline following the Second World War. A prominent fa ...
program." And
Ahmed Ezzat Ahmad ( ar, أحمد, ʾAḥmad) is an Arabic male given name common in most parts of the Muslim world. Other spellings of the name include Ahmed and Ahmet. Etymology The word derives from the root (ḥ-m-d), from the Arabic (), from the ve ...
, one of the founders of the WDP has admitted "
Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 19 ...
's ''
What is to be Done ''What Is to Be Done? Burning Questions of Our Movement'' is a political pamphlet written by Russian revolutionary Vladimir Lenin (credited as N. Lenin) in 1901 and published in 1902. Lenin said that the article represented "a skeleton plan t ...
'' and '' April Notes'' helped shape our strategy, as did
Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 p ...
's theories". Ezzat has also labeled the
Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ( ar, جماعة الإخوان المسلمين'' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan ...
"
counter-revolutionaries A counter-revolutionary or an anti-revolutionary is anyone who opposes or resists a revolution, particularly one who acts after a revolution in order to try to overturn it or reverse its course, in full or in part. The adjective "counter-revoluti ...
". On 10 May 2011, the WDP agreed to enter into a "socialist front" with four other Egyptian leftist groups called the Coalition of Socialist Forces. The new grouping includes the
Revolutionary Socialists The Revolutionary Socialists ( ar, الاشتراكيون الثوريون; ) (RS) are a Trotskyist organisation in Egypt originating in the tradition of 'Socialism from Below'. Leading RS members include sociologist Sameh Naguib. The organisatio ...
, the
Egyptian Communist Party The Egyptian Communist Party ( ar, الحزب الشيوعي المصري) (ECP) is a communist party in Egypt. History and profile The modern Egyptian Communist Party was formed in 1975 by a number of members of the former Egyptian Communist P ...
, The Socialist Party of Egypt and the
Popular Democratic Alliance Party The Socialist People's Alliance Party ( ar, حزب التحالف الشعبي الإشتراكي ''Hizb Al-Tahalof Al-Shaeby Al-Ishtiraky'', SPAP) is a leftist party in Egypt formed shortly after the Egyptian Revolution of 2011. Its membership co ...
.


Demands

The party's most important principles are "the respect of all Egyptians' religious beliefs and bringing an end to discrimination on the basis of
religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...
,
color Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associ ...
or
sex Sex is the trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing animal or plant produces male or female gametes. Male plants and animals produce smaller mobile gametes (spermatozoa, sperm, pollen), while females produce larger ones ( ova, of ...
." The re-nationalization of industry is one of the WDP's key demands but unlike under
Gamal Abdel Nasser Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein, . (15 January 1918 – 28 September 1970) was an Egyptian politician who served as the second president of Egypt from 1954 until his death in 1970. Nasser led the Egyptian revolution of 1952 and introduced far-re ...
, where the heads of state-owned factories were appointed by the
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 ful ...
, the WDP calls on workers of these factories to appoint their own managers. The WDP stands for abolishing
privatization Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...
and
monopoly A monopoly (from Greek language, Greek el, μόνος, mónos, single, alone, label=none and el, πωλεῖν, pōleîn, to sell, label=none), as described by Irving Fisher, is a market with the "absence of competition", creating a situati ...
policies, and redirecting development plans to benefit "underserved social classes". The party is also coordinating with other forces to establish a higher
minimum wage A minimum wage is the lowest remuneration that employers can legally pay their employees—the price floor below which employees may not sell their labor. Most countries had introduced minimum wage legislation by the end of the 20th century. Bec ...
for Egyptian workers, the establishment of
trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...
s independent of the
state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...
, and to improve working conditions in all workplaces. They are also calling for "combating administrative corruption and reevaluating Egypt’s economic ties to
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
". Their slogan is "the workers must be united".


Legality

Under the current Political Parties Law, the WDP may not acquire official recognition, due to the law banning parties forming on a
class Class or The Class may refer to: Common uses not otherwise categorized * Class (biology), a taxonomic rank * Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects * Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used differentl ...
basis. Also, party leaders are required to raise at least to publish the names of at least 5,000 founders in two widely circulated
dailies In filmmaking, dailies are the raw, unedited footage shot during the making of a motion picture. The term comes from when movies were all shot on film because usually at the end of each day, the footage was developed, synced to sound, and pri ...
. The WDP sees this as the
Supreme Council of the Armed Forces The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF; ar, المجلس الأعلى للقوات المسلحة, ', also Higher Council of the Armed Forces) is a statutory body of between 20 and 25 senior Egyptian military officers and is headed by Fi ...
way of discriminating against the poor and labour movement: "This shows that the old mentality is still there and that the government is siding with businessmen rather than workers." The WDP is expected to defy the legislation and launch their party as soon as they recruit at least 10,000 workers and 10,000 farmers.


See also

*
Workers' council A workers' council or labor council is a form of political and economic organization in which a workplace or municipality is governed by a council made up of workers or their elected delegates. The workers within each council decide on what thei ...
*
Vanguard party Vanguardism in the context of Leninist revolutionary struggle, relates to a strategy whereby the most class-conscious and politically "advanced" sections of the proletariat or working class, described as the revolutionary vanguard, form organi ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Workers Democratic Party 2011 establishments in Egypt 2011 riots Anti-Zionism in Egypt Anti-Zionist political parties Organisations of the Egyptian Crisis (2011–2014) Political parties established in 2011 Political parties in Egypt Revolutionary Socialists (Egypt) Socialist parties in Egypt