November 1st, 2010 by Anna

After making threats to boycott the upcoming parliamentary elections in Egypt, the Wafd Party announced yesterday that it will participate. Last week, the government refused to air Wafd’s television ads, prompting threats of an election boycott by the group. The party’s leader Sayyed al-Badawi said yesterday that the Information Ministry has agreed to permit advertisements for the party to air on state television, but warned that the upcoming elections are the regime’s “last chance” to demonstrate its commitment to free and fair elections. Al Masry Al Youm writes that “[d]espite the threats, it seems doubtful the Wafd ever truly considered boycotting the upcoming vote.” Meanwhile, the High Elections Commission has begun licensing Egyptian civil society organizations as monitors for the election. The commission says that monitor groups must be impartial and will be allowed to report violations if substantiated with evidence.

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Posted in Civil Society, Egypt, Elections, Political Parties |