Army Regime Tightens Its Control In Egypt

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27366, 3 June 1954, Page 6

Army Regime Tightens Its Control In Egypt

(From a Reuter Corespondent)

CAIRO. Egypt’s military regime is strengthening, step by step, its already firm hold on the country. While the recent replacement of President Naguib by Lieutenant-Colonel Abdel Nasser as Prime Minister was not unexpected, it does mark another step in the triumph of those who favour a continuation of the military regime over those who support the President in desiring an early return to democratic processes. Although General Naguib retains the post of President, he has lost all effective power and become a figurehead while the Revolution Command Council has further strengthehd its grip on the government. This latest act in the military “retum-to-democracy” struggle was preceded by a number of other moves aimed at strengthening the military regime’s grip on the country. Among these was a reshuffle of the Cabinet to include two more members of the military junta, after the resignation of several civilian ministers. Earlier came the “civil handcuffing” of certain former nolitical Cabmet Ministers and the abolition of the Press Syndicate Council. The Revolution Command Council decided that members of the Wafdist, Constitutional-Liberal, and Saadist Parties who held ministerial posts in the period from February 6, 1942 (the day Mustapha Nahas, Wafd leader, became war-time Prime Minister at the insistence of the British Government), and July 23, 1952 £Jhe day of Egypt’s military coup), are to be deprived of the right to hold public office or to exercise their political rights for a period of 10 years. They are also banned for a similar period from membership of executive councils of trade unions and other organisations. The leaders of the three parties are Mustapha Nahas, Ibrahim Abdelhady (Saadists) and Dr. Mohammed Hussein Heikal (ConstitutionalLiberals). Former Leaders Other well-known names in the Jist are Fuad Serag-El-Din, Wafdist Minister who was sentenced by the Revolution Tribunal to 15 years’ imprisonment, Aly Zaki el Orabi, a former President of the Senate, Mohammed Salah el Din, a former Wafdist Foreign Minister, and Abdel Razzak el-Sanhouri who has to relinquish his post as President of the State Council, Egypt’s highest judicial body. Major Salah Salem, Minister of National Guidance, in announcing this decision said that the Revolution Command Council had concluded that these three political parties “had been highly instrumental in corrupting the political life of the country and had failed to take appropriate action to resist oppression.” Ministers who belonged to these parties, Major Salah Salem said, “must, therefore, bear responsibility for the serious acts committed against the country’s interests.” The 10-year ban on them, he said, would be long enough “to allow all traces of corruption to be wiped out and the foundations to be laid for a

clean and honest life.” These measures against former politicians are in line with the Revolution Command Council’s declared policy of cleaningup government and political life. The announcement of the decision to clean up the press, which was closely identified with the old political life, was accompanied by a number of disclos&res about payments of large sums from secret funds, to newspapers and journalists. s Majoi* Salah Salem made public a list of 23 journalists who, he sajd. had cashed sums from secret funds against signed documents. Chief among these were Hussein Abdul Fath, formerly the Wafd mouthpiece. Mustafa el Kashashy, secretary-general of the press syndicate. Edgar Gallad, Frenchlanguage newspaper proprietor and Karim Tabet, former press councillor, to ex-King Farouk, who is now serving a life sentence. He also gave the names of newspapers and weeklies—many of which have since ceased publication—which received sums from secret funds. “Al Assass,” formerly organ of the Saadist Party, had, he said, received £48,000, while the weekly “Al Sa wady” had received £25,250 and another weekly “Rose El Yussef,” owned by a woman of that name, had cashed £19,281.

Heavy Censorship The Egyptian press is at present heavily censored, and even those newspapers which were indicated by Major Salah Salem had to publish the charges against themselves and their owners. Major Salah Salem announced the dissolution of the Council of the Press Syndicate which includes both newspaper owners and working journalists, and its replacement by a special committee “until the purge of the press is complete.” He also said that the present press law would be revised. Major Salah Salem added: “The political parties flooded their newspapers and their men with money, making use of secret funds. All parties agreed on this. Every past regime shut its eyes to the acts of previous regimes for fear that they would all be shown up and lose these huge funds which were used to buy journalists’ pens and consciences to misguide the people. “Some journalists used the press as a weapon to threaten, blackmail and extort money from persons and companies. Others exploited this honourable profession as a bourse for commercial deals and relied on the government to double their own fortunes at the expense of the people. When press censorship was abolished (for a few days recently) these hired pens which at one time pretended to support the revolution, started to defend the past corrupt political regimes, and to cast doubt on every reform accomplished by the revolution. They went to extremes in spreading false rumours and lies against revolution leaders. The measures now taken by the revolution to purge the press and reorganise it on a democratic and sound trade union basis an echo of what honest journalists want.”