CAIRO (Agencies)
Egypt's main opposition movement said on Monday it will boycott Tuesday's municipal elections after it was allowed to field only 20 candidates for the thousands of seats up for grabs, while calm returned in the Nile Delta after a day of strike action over soaring prices.
"We are boycotting," Muslim Brotherhood number two Mohammed Habib told AFP. "We call on the Egyptian people to boycott the municipal elections because of the executive's disregard for justice."
Elsewhere in Egypt on Monday, calm returned to the industrial city of Mahalla the day after dozens were hurt in clashes between demonstrators and security forces, both sides told AFP.
"Everything has returned to normal," a security official told AFP, requesting anonymity. "The workers are back at their jobs and all the schools are open except two that were burnt yesterday," the official said.
On Sunday, around 2,000 workers and residents in Mahalla, in the Nile Delta, took to the streets to demand an end to price hikes and soaring inflation. Two schools were set ablaze and tires burned along the city's railway.
Egyptian police fired tear gas and arrested dozens after plans for a strike at the city's textile factory were scrapped under pressure from security forces.
The security official said that a heavy security presence remained deployed around the city in case of trouble, with workers' leaders saying further demonstrations were possible on Monday or Tuesday.
"It's possible they will demonstrate once more against price rises but also against the dominance of the (ruling) National Democratic Party in municipal elections," due to take place on Tuesday, said workers' leader Mustafa Fuda.
Workers at the Misr Spinning and Weaving company in Mahalla had planned a strike on Sunday to demand higher pay, but security pressure and internal divisions prevented it from taking place.
Around the country, plans for a general strike -- inspired by the Mahalla action -- fizzled out after the government made good on its warning to take firm action against protesters. |
