Mubarak to address internal problems

Mubarak to address internal problems

CAIRO (Reuter): Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak will choose a group of 25 people to organize a long-delayed "national dialogue" on issues including the conflict between the security forces and Moslem militants.

Information Minister Safwat Sharif told reporters yesterday that the president would send out invitations to the 25 after he returns from a trip to Japan and China.

Last month the government said the dialogue would start in the second half of April but Mubarak is not expected back from his Asian tour until April 22 at the earliest.

The 25 will include party and trade union leaders, intellectuals and opinion-makers, he said.

The government has repeatedly ruled out inviting Islamist groups, even to the full conference, and Islamist leaders have dismissed the dialog as an attempt to mobilize members of the secular opposition against them.

More than 350 people have been killed in political violence in Egypt since March 1992, when Moslem militant groups began a violent campaign to overthrow the government.

Sharif said the dialog could discuss all "national political, economic and social issues".

The role of the ruling National Democratic Party would be to provide the statistics and information the other participants needed, not to impose its views, he added.

"So that it can make a good start, it has been decided to form a small committee to be called the committee to prepare the national dialog," Sharif said. "It will have 25 members chosen by President Mubarak."

He gave no indication when the dialog might start.