Clinton hails Egypt vote but warns it’s ‘just the beginning’
FINLAND: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday
congratulated Egypt's newly elected Islamist president, but cautioned
that the election was just a first step towards true democracy.
“We have congratulated President (Mohamed) Morsi and the Egyptian
people for continuing on their path to democratic transition,” Clinton
told reporters in Helsinki.
President-elect Morsi, of the once-banned Muslim Brotherhood, is in
the process of forming a government after he was proclaimed Egypt's
first democratically elected president on Sunday, a year and a half
after street protests toppled veteran strongman and US ally Hosni
Mubarak.
“We have heard some very positive statements so far,” Clinton said,
hailing among other things Morsi's pledge to honour international
obligations, “which would, in our view, cover the peace treaty with
Israel,” signed in 1979.
However, Clinton cautioned, “one election does not a democracy make.”
The historic vote was “just the beginning of hard work, and hard work
requires pluralism, respecting the rights of minorities, an independent
judiciary and independent media,” she said.
“We expect President Morsi to demonstrate a commitment to inclusivity
that is manifested by representatives of the women of Egypt, of the
Coptic Christian community, of the secular, non-religious community and
young people,” she added. AFP |