Egyptian, foreign media invited to cover first meeting of National Dialogue’s Board of Trustees

Amr Kandil , Monday 4 Jul 2022

Egyptian and foreign media representatives are invited to visit the National Training Academy (NTA) in Giza to cover the first meeting of the Board of Trustees of the country’s National Dialogue on Tuesday at 1pm, said Diaa Rashwan, the dialogue’s general coordinator and head of the Journalists’ Syndicate, on Monday.

Diaa Rashwan
Diaa Rashwan, general coordinator of the national political dialogue and head of the Journalists Syndicate. File photo/Al-Ahram

 

The media is welcome to cover the meeting and the presser that will follow without prior invitation letters; however, they are required to bring letters of accreditation from their syndicates or the media outlets they work for.

The meeting will be held in building No. 1 of the NTA’s headquarters that is located in El-Bostan Street in Giza’s Sheikh Zayed, next to Arkan Plaza.

This comes “in confirmation of the right of public opinion in being informed and [enjoying] immediate and transparent follow-up of the course of the dialogue,” Rashwan said.

The meeting of the newly formed 19-member Board of Trustees will mark the official beginning of the dialogue between political forces that was called for by the president in April.

During the meeting, the board will review details and schedule of the dialogue’s activities, make some decisions pertaining to them, and disclose the final schedule to the public.

This is to ensure public engagement in the dialogue through various direct and electronic means, he explained.

Rashwan also stressed that the public’s right to immediately and transparently obtain information about the updates of the dialogue will be guaranteed throughout the events and activities of the dialogue.

The coordination has previously affirmed that the country will hold its first sessions of the national dialogue in the first week of July.

In a press conference on Tuesday, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said the state launched the National Dialogue between all intellectuals, syndicates, and political forces, adding that only one faction is exempted from the dialogue, referring to the terrorist-designated Muslim Brotherhood.

Late in June, the administration of the National Dialogue announced a diverse Board of Trustees that includes parliamentarians, journalists, academics, and officials.

In remarks to the media, Rashwan said the dialogue’s board will be in charge of the coordination process of the multi-directional, multi-stage dialogue and will take final decisions on the dialogue’s preliminary results, which will be submitted to the president.

Furthermore, he has affirmed that the dialogue will be conducted within a framework of freedom of opinion and discussions by well-informed experts.

Invitations have been sent to hundreds of Egyptians inside and outside the country, Rashwan said last month, noting that the dialogue has not been rejected by any of the political forces.

Those willing to join the dialogue can submit their requests at the National Youth Conference’s website.

The dialogue’s administration is also receiving proposals and inquiries via WhatsApp at +201025521555 and +20109388883.

The National Dialogue comes amid steps taken by the country to advance its human rights as part of the National Strategy for Human Rights that was launched in September.

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