Nubian coalitions refused to participate in a meeting scheduled for Tuesday with Prime Minister Kamal al-Ganzouri to discuss a draft law on establishing an authority for the construction of Nubia and the area south of the Aswan High Dam.
Dozens of Nubians gathered before the cabinet’s temporary headquarters in Nasr City to prevent the meeting from being held and to reject any decisions that resulted from it. Other protesters demonstrated at the same time at the Aswan Governorate building.
Protesters said that those invited for the meeting, including Aswan Governor Major General Mostafa al-Sayed, didn’t represent Nubians, Al-Ahram reported.
Privately owned Al-Fagr newspaper reported that Sayed had invited Nubians affiliated with the Mubarak regime, despite a warning to the cabinet not to invite anyone with ties to the former president's now-disbanded National Democratic Party.
Al-Tahrir, another privately owned paper, quoted Mounir Beshir, the head of an assembly that represents Nubians, as saying there are intentions to replace the popular figures with others whom most Nubians don’t approve of because of their affiliation to the regime.
State-run Al-Ahram newspaper on Wednesday said Ganzouri had postponed the talks to attend another meeting with several ministers over issues including cooperation between Egypt and Sudan.
Ganzouri asked MP Omar Saber, a Nubian leader, to select the Nubian representatives who will attend the meeting when it is rescheduled, Al-Ahram said.
