CAIRO, Egypt — President Hosni Mubarak said on Monday that Egypt will not bow to foreign pressure in an apparent response to recent criticism from the United States about allegations that his government has increased human rights abuses.
In a nationwide speech, Mubarak also promised that his government would continue its decade-long efforts to bring "peace, security and stability" to the troubled Middle East.
Washington recently has escalated its criticism of Mubarak, a long time U.S. ally and a key catalyst in Arab-Israeli peace efforts. Earlier this month, the White House voiced displeasure with recent decisions in Egypt to crack down on dissenting voices within the media and to close a human rights group, saying it is "deeply concerned" about the moves.
Mubarak did not mention the United States by name, but Egyptian state-owned media have recently been lambasting the Bush administration for its criticism of Mubarak.
"We extend a hand of friendship and cooperation with all, but no one can impose on us what we don't accept and which does not comply with our position toward Egyptian and regional issues," Mubarak said in his speech to a meeting of Egyptian students in Alexandria.
We "will not accept pressure or interference in our internal affairs," he said.
Last month in an unusual public statement of discontent with Mubarak's government, the White House said the latest crackdown "appears to contradict the Egyptian government's stated commitment to expand democratic rights." The statement came as U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was having dinner in New York with Egypt's foreign minister.
In recent months, President George W. Bush has also met with two key critics of Mubarak — human rights activist Saad Eddin Ibrahim and the head of the Egyptian Organisation of Human Rights, Hesham Qassem — a move the Egyptian government considered as unfriendly.
There also has been rising tension between Mubarak's government and those who question its leadership. Authorities have imprisoned hundreds of members of Egypt's most powerful opposition group, the Muslim Brotherhood, in recent months.
Last month, an Egyptian court sentenced the editors of four outspoken tabloids to a year in prison for defaming Mubarak and his ruling party after they criticised senior officials in the government. One of the editors also appeared in court Monday in a separate case on charges of allegedly spreading rumours that the 79-year-old Mubarak was in poor health.
The government has also targeted organisations unrelated to the transfer of power. Authorities closed the Association for Human Rights Legal Aid, which had been involved in the first lawsuit against a state security officer for torture. Egyptian officials said the group had received funding without the necessary permission, but fellow human rights groups said the closure was related to the torture case, which ended with the officer's acquittal on September 5.
New York-based Human Rights Watch has urged the Egyptian government to rescind its decision to close down one of the country's leading human rights organisations for receiving foreign aid.
AHRLA, which reports on human rights violations and provides legal assistance to victims, was ordered to close down for violating a law that bans non-governmental organisations from receiving foreign funding without prior government permission.
The renowned U.S. think tank Freedom House has also harshly criticised Egypt for widespread violations. The regime, it says, "routinely violates its citizens civil and political rights, including freedoms of assembly and association, as well as the right to participate in the political process as a candidate or elector".
Some analysts say the government's moves have been driven by uncertainty over who will become president after Mubarak, who has ruled Egypt for more than a quarter century but has no designated successor.
Others say the recent friction has also been caused by Mubarak's reluctance to support a Bush proposal for a Mideast peace conference next month. Mubarak and his foreign minister, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, have been criticising the conference as lacking an agenda and "an endgame".
On Sunday, the Washington Post reported that Mubarak has been showing defiance toward U.S. sponsored peace efforts. In a column, the paper said Mubarak's defiance points to "his entrenched immobility on peace with Israel, as well as on political change and on deepening social problems at home."
"Under Anwar Sadat, Egypt was a catalyst for peace and regional change. Now, Egypt says it will come to the U.S.-sponsored conference in November in a completely passive mode," the paper said. — Sapa-AP
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