Tomorrow is Today

Egypt's newly organized liberal party, the Party of Tomorrow, has apparently been approved as a legal political entity. According to a recent posting by the liberal Egyptian blogger who writes under the name Big Pharoah, "The party's demand to be legalized was rejected three times before but this time it was accepted to become the third [Egyptian] party to be legalized in about 25 years." Big Pharoah adds that "Over 30% of the members are women and about 22% are Copts (Christian Egyptians). The remaining members are businessmen, lawyers, and blue collar workers."

As noted here during the summer, Hizb al-Ghad stands for "a free-market economy, respect for the rule of law, good governance, women's empowerment, freedom of expression and an open relationship with the West." Hizb al-Ghad is not about to sweep to power, but it's notable that two of the most important eastern Arab nations, Egypt and Iraq, now feature liberal political movements.