Egypt's Brotherhood proposes contentious reforms
Egypt's Brotherhood proposes contentious reforms
The Muslim Brotherhood is set to implement reforms to appease its younger members and ensure a wider distribution of authority.
2 min read
Youth protests last month failed to win the support of senior Brotherhood leaders [Getty]
Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood is currently reforming its internal structure, a leading member living in Turkey has told al-Araby al-Jadeed. The organisation is making improvements to appease its younger members who have criticised some of the group's leaders, especially its secretary-general, Mahmoud Hussain.
This is the result of "an internal consensus reached between different levels of the group from several countries including Egypt, Qatar, Sudan and Turkey", the source added, requesting anonymity.
Many of the organisation's youth were upset after Hussain recently said: "There is no entity called the Muslim Brotherhood Youth."
He was responding to statements recently released by the youth group calling for participation in the "Muslim Youth Uprising", an unsuccessful call for mass protests in Egypt at the end of November.
The restructuring aims to prevent power being held by one individual or small group, said the source.
"High-ranking leaders are resisting the changes, and asking for all reforms to be delayed until the group's leaders are released from prison," said another of the group's leaders, currently living in Sudan, who also spoke on condition of anonymity.
Political analyst Amgad al-Gabbas said the changes came too late.
"They should have been made straight after the coup against former President Mohamed Morsi," he said. "But the reforms have many positive aspects, and show the group's ability to restructure itself in a climate of repression when many of the group's members and leaders are in prison."
Some of the reforms are an attempt by the organisation's leaders to reconnect with younger members, said Gabbas.
This article is an edited translation from our Arabic edition.
This is the result of "an internal consensus reached between different levels of the group from several countries including Egypt, Qatar, Sudan and Turkey", the source added, requesting anonymity.
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High-ranking leaders are resisting the changes. - Anonymous Brotherhood leader living in Sudan |
Many of the organisation's youth were upset after Hussain recently said: "There is no entity called the Muslim Brotherhood Youth."
He was responding to statements recently released by the youth group calling for participation in the "Muslim Youth Uprising", an unsuccessful call for mass protests in Egypt at the end of November.
The restructuring aims to prevent power being held by one individual or small group, said the source.
"High-ranking leaders are resisting the changes, and asking for all reforms to be delayed until the group's leaders are released from prison," said another of the group's leaders, currently living in Sudan, who also spoke on condition of anonymity.
Political analyst Amgad al-Gabbas said the changes came too late.
"They should have been made straight after the coup against former President Mohamed Morsi," he said. "But the reforms have many positive aspects, and show the group's ability to restructure itself in a climate of repression when many of the group's members and leaders are in prison."
Some of the reforms are an attempt by the organisation's leaders to reconnect with younger members, said Gabbas.
This article is an edited translation from our Arabic edition.
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