Anti-Copenhagen conference in Cairo
Regional, Politics, 7/6/1999

High-ranking Egyptian writers, intellectuals, leaders of political parties, artists and pressmen gathered on Monday morning at the Shepherd hotel in Cairo for a conference during which they expressed their opposition to normalizing relations with Israel.

They strongly condemned the Copenhagen group's conference, which "claimed work for the sake of peace and for normalization with the enemy."

The participants in the conference denounced Israeli aggressions against Lebanon, the Palestinian people and the people of the Golan. The anti-nomralization conference also called for boycotting normalization advocates, asserting that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak's policy is but a continuation of the policy pursued by former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders who have perpetuated aggression and usurpation of Arab rights and lands, building settlements and increasing military power at the expense of the Arab rights, and Arab national security.

The participants, who are of diverse vocational trends, vocational trade unionists and writers stressed the need to unite Arab stances to meet the ambitions of the Arab peoples in refusing to bargaining over the rights of the Arab people.

They highlighted Egypt's positive stand in refusing to take part in the normalization conference. The participants also called for setting up an anti-Copenhagen group society to resist normalization, which is categorically rejected by the Arab streets.

The conference was attended by former Egyptian Defense Minister Muhammad Fawzi; former ministers Muhammad Faeq and Sami Sharaf; the heads of the physicians and pharmacists unions; the chairman of the opposition Labor Party, Ibrahim Shukri; the secretary general of the Higher Council for Islamic affairs, Abdul Sabour Marzouk; the leaders of the oppositional-Tajamu, al-Wafd and Nasserite parties; and Islamic and Christian men of religion.

Among the Egyptian intellectuals, the conference was attended by Mahmoud Amin al-Alem, Yahya al-Jamal, Jaber Asfour, Hasanin Haikal, Salah Fadel and actors and actresses Nour al-Sharif, Raghda, Suheir al-Murshidi and Hamdi Ahmad.

The conference received backing messages from Khaled Jamal Abdul Nasser and Tareq al-Beshri, who could not attend, and from representatives of Jordanian parties.

Moreover, hundreds of reporters and university teachers took part in the conference. They also voiced total opposition to normalization with Israel until just and comprehensive peace is achieved on all tracks, the occupied Arab are restored to the June 4 1967 borders, and the rights of the Palestinian people and Jerusalem are restored.

Previous Stories:
  Conference of Egyptian national forces who oppose normalization with Israel to meet on Monday   (7/3/1999)
  Cairo international conference for peace to start on Monday   (7/3/1999)
  Arab ambassadors in Cairo refuse normalization   (7/2/1999)

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