Egypt tells US institute to halt activities

An Egyptian reads a newspaper in Cairo. Egypt has asked the International Republican Institute (IRI) -- an American NGO which promotes democracy -- to suspend its activities in the country due to interference in Cairo's internal affairs.(AFP/File/Mohammed Al-Sihiti)

Jun 5, 2006

Yahoo News

CAIRO (AFP) - Egypt has asked an American NGO which promotes democracy to suspend its activities in the country due to interference in Cairo's internal affairs.

A foreign ministry spokesman said Monday that Egypt has called on the International Republican Institute (IRI) to halt operations in Egypt until it has received the necessary permits.

The move came after a newspaper interview with Gina London, the Cairo head of the IRI, critical of the slow pace of reform in Egypt.

"Talking of the role of the institute in speeding up what she called 'change' is a blatant interference in Egypt's internal affairs," the ministry spokesman told reporters.

The Egyptian daily Nahdet Masr on Saturday published an interview with London in which she spoke about the institute's work on democracy and the push for reform in Egypt.

Reformists in Egypt were "unable (to achieve reforms) for the past 25 years", she was quoted as saying.