Survey finds support for talks between government and Muslim Brothers

Five months after the removal of President Mohamed Morsi, 46 percent of Egyptians polled in a new survey say they approve of reconciliation talks between the government and the now-banned Muslim Brotherhood.

The Egyptian Center for Public Opinion Research, also known as Baseera, carried out the survey on October 30 and 31 and polled 1,964 people across the country.

A much lower percentage, 19 percent, approved of a return of the Muslim Brotherhood to the political scene, while 35 percent of the respondents said that the Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party should be allowed to take part in upcoming parliamentary elections.

Baseera issued the results of a second survey on Monday, revealing that only one in five Egyptians consider the performance of the current, interim government satisfactory. Sixty percent said they expect conditions to improve in the coming year.

Five months after its appointment, only 20 percent of Egyptians polled viewed the performance of the Cabinet as good, compared to 24 percent last month.

Twenty-seven percent of respondents rated the performance of the Cabinet as average, 19 percent said it was bad, and 34 percent said they were not sure.

Rating his performance, only 18 percent of those surveyed viewed Prime Minister Hazem el-Beblawi's perfomance as good, 25 percent said his performance was average, while 19 percent disapproved of his performance and 38 percent said they were not sure.

Following the removal of Morsi, the Interior Ministry launched a crackdown on members of the Muslim Brotherhood. Most of their leaders were arrested and charged with inciting violence and belonging to a banned group.

In September, a court banned the Muslim Brotherhood, as well as all institutions funded by or linked to the Islamist group. The ruling also included NGOs run by the Brotherhood or its members, and ordered all their assets and those of its members confiscated by the state until criminal charges are settled.

In November, the State Council’s Commissioner Authority recommended that the Freedom and Justice Party be dissolved. The Administrative Court is still reviewing the case.

The Muslim Brotherhood operated without legal status for 70 years and became a strong political power before the Freedom and Justice Party was established in June 2011.

According to the survey, 42 percent of Egyptians approve of the participation of parties with religious affiliations in the upcoming parliamentary elections. The draft constitution, to be voted on in a January referendum, bans parties that are based on religious beliefs.

The Muslim Brotherhood has been shut out of the political scene since July and has been blamed for several terrorist attacks over the past six months. Its supporters have organized regular street protests against the removal of Morsi and the current government. Other Islamist parties, however, including the Nour Party, are strongly represented on the political scene and are expected to participate in upcoming elections.

The Interior Ministry announced Monday that it has arrested 19 Muslim Brotherhood members on suspicion of involvement in attacking and inciting attacks on police stations.

Also on Monday, the Brotherhood-affiliated Alliance to Support Legitimacy and Reject the Coup called for protests against the government on Tuesday.