Egyptian blogger Moonem Sallam has written a lengthy rebuttal to analyst Lorenzo Vidino’s piece titled “Five Myths About The Muslim Brotherhood” recently published in the Washington Post. We are posting Mr. Moonem’s response in its entirety without corrections:
1- The Muslim Brotherhood is a global organization
Yes it’s as the “Guidance Bureau” the highest authority in the organization is formed of 13 members 7 Egyptians & 6 from other countries · One of the two Vices of “the General Guide” is from the international organization the last known was the Syrian Hassan Hewady died on 13th of March 2009 · The different shape of the organization in every country doesn’t mean that they can’t be part of one big organization specially that the inner structure of every organization is the same. · For Jordan it seems that the writer doesn’t even read newspapers or else he would have known that the political party of the MB “Islamic Work Front” does not replace the main organization but it’s a branch of the Jordanian MB · If the writer has followed the election of the new Guide Mohamed Badei he would have know that he was facing opposition from the international organization of MB. · The only one who carry the title of “General guide” is the one in Egypt the others in the rest of the world carry the title “General Observer” · What about the funding they are getting from the four corners of the glob?
2-The Brotherhood will dominate the new Egypt.
The Poll of the Washington institute was carried in Cairo & Alexandria which doesn’t represent at all the Egyptian society in the country side & upper Egypt where exist a hire percentage of illiteracy, poverty & conservatively. · Inside Alexandria & Cairo who would accept to take part in a poll carried by an American institute? Unless he/she’s highly educated not to look at it as a branch of CIA & answering its questions is a kind of espionage. · Are the 343 persons really representing the 85 million Egyptians? · Part of Egyptian culture is that to give the other side the answer he would like to hear I bet if an institute with an Islamic name does the same pole with the same people he’ll get a complete different result. · Depending on the first stage of the 2005 election that was claimed as the only free stage of the three election stages, the MB got 80 seats the two others phases they got only 8 due to government interfere. Due to this result I expect that the MB will get 200 of the 508 if they keep their word not to get the majority. But we should be happy because beside MB there’s Al-Wassat Party, other independent Islamist & the head of families and tribes in Upper Egypt, the Delta & Bedouins. We should be talking of a religious – conservative coalition of 300-350 seats in the coming parliament if election is held in June 2011. 3-The Brotherhood seeks to impose a draconian version of sharia law · I don’t know where did the author find the second generation that “The second generation speaks of human rights and compares itself to Europe’s Christian Democrats – embracing democracy but keeping a religious identity” the second generation might endorse a more moderate interpret of sharia like accepting that a woman become a judge in family court dealing with divorce & inheriting following the Abou Hanifa School, but never they’ll accept that it become a president, never they’ll accept that a non Muslim become a president, never they’ll accept that Muslim convert to another religion without being punished, never they’ll accept the current banking system because simply they believe that it’s the law of Allah which if you don’t follow you are a infidel. · It’s not about old guard or new guard it’s about believes & sacred texts.·
4-The Muslim Brotherhood has close ties to al-Qaeda·
They don’t have close ties now but they still share the same ideas about violence it’s a matter of when & where that separates the two of them. · Al-Qaeda & MB have worked closely in Afghanistan against the Soviet Union & the teacher of Ben laden is the Palestinian MB Abdallah Azzam that inspires him till today. It’s not a matter of Sayed Qutb only. · The refusal of violence in MB is a tactic not a principle. They knew about some of the terrorist attacks in the seventh & they didn’t try to stop it, they still justify their terrorist actions in Egypt in the 40th & 50th of last century and refuse to condiment till today, they justify the killing of Sadat & call his killers “Martyrs” 5-Washington can’t work with the Brotherhood · They can work together for a while till the MB put the American administration in deep sleep till they got Egypt with the blessing of Mr. Obama after that everything will change. · American shouldn’t dream that they can make MB step down when they change their policy toward democracy, Israel & the U. S.A. using sanction or other methods as Iran will be present ready for help which they are already doing & Sudan will be the gate. · America shouldn’t count on the Shiite & Sunni different to take MB away from Iran as MB view of this matter is “we are all Muslim” & maybe u can find the attack of MB against Qaradawi when he warned of an Iranian plans to spread Shi’ism in Egypt.
5-Washington can’t work with the Brotherhood ·
They can work together for a while till the MB put the American administration in deep sleep till they got Egypt with the blessing of Mr. Obama after that everything will change. · American shouldn’t dream that they can make MB step down when they change their policy toward democracy, Israel & the U. S.A. using sanction or other methods as Iran will be present ready for help which they are already doing & Sudan will be the gate. · America shouldn’t count on the Shiite & Sunni different to take MB away from Iran as MB view of this matter is “we are all Muslim” & maybe u can find the attack of MB against Qaradawi when he warned of an Iranian plans to spread Shi’ism in Egypt.
An earlier post detailed our own response to Mr. Vidino’s assertion that the Global Muslim Brotherhood is s simply an “ideological movement” whose entities have “complete operational independence.” As that posted noted, Mr. Vidino’s piece was cited by the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood as a defense of their organization.