- Title: EGYPT-NUBIANS/POLITICS Egypt's Nubians voice concern over their future
- Date: 19th October 2015
- Summary: VARIOUS OF CHILDREN PLAYING IN STREET (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) NUBIAN SENIOR, ALY HASSAN ABDEL KADER, SAYING: "Among our most major problems is a lack of services; for instance, in the years immediately following the immigration, we used to have public buses that provided Nubian villages with transportation - today there are no means of transport except for taxis and private s
- Embargoed: 3rd November 2015 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Egypt
- Country: Egypt
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVACMO07JZUEB7YTTHCATDZX91Q0
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Aswan in Upper Egypt is a popular tourist destination, home to ancient Egyptian sites and the Nubian people.
For the Nubians their lifeline and livelihood has relied on the River Nile.
But since 1964 with the creation of the Aswan Dam, under the rule of then President Gamal Abdel Nasser, Nubians were displaced from their homes.
Their villages were flooded to make way for the dam, and the locals here were forced to relocate.
Decades later, many here are still calling for the right to return to their land of origin.
Now with Egyptians casting their votes in long-awaited Parliamentary elections, the first to be held in three years, Nubians are hoping that now will be the time for the government to do more to help the people here.
"The way I see it, nothing will change except by the hands of its children and people [Nubians]... to have people educated and their living standard upgraded. If there's a big economist or big capitalist, he will make change happen. If there's an influential politician, he will make change happen. But as long as the people are poor and are under a certain line, there will not be change in any of the villages or anything else,'' said Khaled Abdel Latif, head of Cairo-based Charity Concerned With Nubian Affairs.
Many Nubians accuse the government of ignoring their plight, not doing enough to stimulate the area economically, making many here feel isolated in society.
But not everyone feels this way, Abdullah Shefa, the mayor, has a different opinion.
"Nubians are very peaceful people, but they are still persistent to achieve their demands, and God willing, through legitimate means, we make our demands. In the constitution now, there's an article, stipulating that there are going to be developments in Nubia. I belong to the group that does not doubt that the state will answer to our demands. That's my personal take," he said.
Egypt's newest constitution, passed in 2014, says the state "should work on" resettling Nubians in their original homeland within 10 years but they say no serious steps have been taken.
Aly Hassan Abdel Kader, a Nubia resident, said the absence of infrastructure is among the many issues that the Nubians are facing.
"Among our most major problems is a lack of services; for instance, in the years immediately following the immigration, we used to have public buses that provided Nubian villages with transportation - today there are no means of transport except for taxis and private services,'' he said.
The government has tried in the past few years to placate the Nubians.
They had a representative on the committee that wrote the constitution and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has met with their leaders.
Nubians say the constitutional article about them does not actually oblige the state and that the government is not serious about letting them return to old Nubia.
Voting kicked off in Egypt on Sunday (October 18) and on Monday (October 19) Egyptians appeared to be shunning the ballot box for a second day highlighting growing disillusionment since the army seized power in 2013 and promised to restore democracy.
Younger Egyptians who make up the majority of the population were virtually absent, with many people dismissing it as a sham or expressing doubt that new lawmakers would change anything.
Coming a day after President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi urged Egyptians to cast their ballots, the low turnout suggested the former general, who once enjoyed cult-like adulation, was losing some of his appeal.
In 2013, then-army chief Sisi overthrew Egypt's first freely-elected president, the Muslim Brotherhood's Mohamed Mursi, and promised a "roadmap to democracy".
He then launched the fiercest crackdown on dissent in Egypt's modern history, jailing thousands of Mursi's supporters as well as activists at the forefront of the 2011 revolt.
Last year's presidential election was extended for a third day in order to boost turnout, with pro-government media pushing Egyptians to show up. Sisi won 97 percent of votes.
This time, even Egypt's largely loyalist press focused on the lack of interest in the polls. Analysts say Sisi may try to spin the apathy to his favour by arguing that Egyptians place far more faith in the presidency. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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