Nubian writer Haggag Oddoul represents the Nubians in the Egyptian 50-member constitution-drafting committee. This is the second time that a Nubian is participating in a constitutional committee. The first was Manal al-Taibbi, who sat in the in the Constituent Assembly, which was also tasked with drafting the Constitution in 2012.
Oddoul was nominated to participate in the 50-member committee formed to introduce amendments to the suspended 2012 Constitution.
Nubian writer Haggag Oddoul represents the Nubians in the Egyptian 50-member constitution-drafting committee. This is the second time that a Nubian is participating in a constitutional committee. The first was Manal al-Taibbi, who sat in the in the Constituent Assembly, which was also tasked with drafting the Constitution in 2012.
Oddoul was nominated to participate in the 50-member committee formed to introduce amendments to the suspended 2012 Constitution.
Haggag Oddoul, is a writer and novelist. He was born in Alexandria in 1944 and began writing at the age of 40. He was awarded the Egyptian State Prize for Short Stories in 1990 for his story ‘Layali al-Misk al-Atiqa’ (Nights of Musk). In December 2005, he won the Sawaris Foundation Egyptian culture award for novels and short stories. He is the writer of the ‘al-Sahwa al-Nubiya’ (The Nubian Awakening) book and his most famous novels are ‘Maatuq al-Khayr’ and ‘Khawand Hamra’. He worked on the Aswan High Dam project for five years, from 1963 to 1967.
Haggag Oddoul, you were chosen to represent the Nubian people in the 50-member constitutional committee, yet you initially refused? Why did you later accept?
Allow me to say that selecting me today to represent the Nubians, and previously selecting Manal al-Taibbi is a victory for the Nubian cause. I have been chosen based on the nominations made by Nubian institutions and commissions. In the beginning, I refused to participate because I was busy writing my novel and I thought that I completed my mission when the Nubians met with Dr. Isam Sharaf, the former prime minister, after the January Revolution, and were able to make the Egyptian government acknowledge the Nubian people’s right of return. I changed my mind and decided to participate because of the conflicts that have emerged among the Nubians in the recent days and in order to preserve the Nubian unity.
What is the message being sent by choosing a Nubian representative to participate in the 50-member committee assigned to draft the Egyptian Constitution?
The Egyptian state is now fully aware of the fact that there is a Nubian cause and that this cause should be resolved. This is why Dr. Manal al-Taibbi was chosen to participate in the Constituent Assembly as a representative of the Nubians. In the new committee, I was chosen for the same purpose. Among the 50-member committee, there is no other person to represent the Nubians and this is why I felt obliged to participate and to concentrate on the rights of the Nubians.
What are some of the Nubians’ demands?
Our demands, which we want to be included in the Constitution, are the right of return and the right to create a high commission for the reconstruction of Nubia. We also want the Egyptian Constitution to acknowledge that Egypt is a multicultural society, which also includes the Nubian culture. Moreover, we want the Egyptian President to apologize to the Nubians and acknowledge that that their displacement, that took place four times, was a crime committed against them. Egyptian Nubians were forcibly displaced starting 1902 when the old Aswan Dam was built and with it the water levels rose and led to the drowning of 10 Nubian villages. In 1912, the second displacement took place when the height of the dam was increased and again water levels rose and led to the drowning of eight villages. The third displacement took place in 1932 when again the height of the dam was increased and with it water levels increased and led to the drowning of 28 villages and their agricultural lands. The last displacement was in 1964 during the construction of the High Dam. It was then that all the Nubian country was drowned—42 villages and their people were displaced and they are now living under very difficult conditions.
How are you intending to communicate with the Nubians to explore their views on the proposed constitutional amendments?
Although the Nubians wanted to be represented by more than one person in the 50-member committee, but being represented by only one person will not hinder them from achieving their goals and having their demands stipulated in the new Constitution. I want to hold several meetings with the Nubians in the various provinces to get to know their proposals on the constitutional amendments, and make these proposals known to the 50-members committee. We have already held two meetings until now with Nubian committees in Alexandria and Cairo, and I asked the organizers of these meetings to invite nine Nubian members from Alexandria, Suez, Cairo and the displacement villages in Aswan, three law and constitution experts and two to communicate with the Egyptian media because I do not want any decision to be taken by one side.
Are your interests limited to articles that deal with the Nubian issues?
Of course I am a Nubian Egyptian and this is why I was chosen to be a member of the 50-member committee. I will first participate in the drafting of Egypt’s Constitution and then that of Nubia. The allegiance of the Nubian people is first to Egypt and then to Nubia, the country of their origin. We will write, with our own hands, the best Constitution for Egypt, a Constitution of which the new generations will be proud. I will discuss, with other members of the committee, each article of the Constitution, which we have been dreaming about for a long time – a Constitution that represents Egypt and Nubia and all the Egyptian components. The time of the single ruler and leader has come to an end. Today, we are living in an era of collective work, gathering all the Egyptian people regardless of their sects and origins.
Some fear that the representation of minorities will only be a formality in the 50-member committee. What do you have to say about these fears?
I believe that the situation has changed now, and there is a glimmer of hope that the situation will be better than ever before. I will work hard with the team in order to achieve the aspirations of the Nubian people. If the committee refuses to have the Nubian peoples’ rights stipulated in the Constitution, the Nubians should gather and agree to organize protests or to withdraw their representative.
It is said that you hold US nationality and that you are demanding the secession of Nubia from Egypt or internationalization. Is this true?
These are intentional attempts to tarnish my reputation. I am from Alexandria and I only went one time to the US and I stayed there for two weeks. Throughout my long life, I never talked about the secession of Nubia. I wrote an article entitled: ‘al-Nuba, Integrated not Separated,’ in which I stressed that Nubia connects Egypt and Sudan and that there is a cultural integration between Egypt and the Nile Basin countries. I consider that the negligence of Nubia is a threat to Egypt’s water security. Nubia is a very important soft power of the Egyptian water security. Regarding internationalization, it carries many interpretations but it does not mean at all that I am calling for foreign countries’ intervention in the internal Egyptian affairs. I called for applying the UN human rights conventions, which Egypt has ratified. In the law, it is well-known that when a country ratifies international conventions, they become internal laws for the country.
What are the most important demands of the Nubian people?
There should be texts in the Constitution, which stress the multicultural identity of Egypt and that the Nubian language is the second language after the Arabic language. Those who ridicule multiculturalism should be criminalized, like those who make fun of the Nubians and Bedouins and all those who use hateful language should also be criminalized. I’ll be keen to ensure that the Constitution will be drafted in a way that befits the status of Egypt, and that it serves as a bridge to the future of Egypt as a superpower. We will work on the introduction of the individual candidacy system in the parliamentary elections because it is the most appropriate system for the Nubian community, as it guarantees the Nubian people’s representation in the parliament. We will also support the abolition of the workers and peasants’ 50% share because the purpose of introducing this percentage was to weaken the society. I also consider that Article II of the suspended Constitution is enough and I will be against any attempt to give this constitutional article any special interpretation.
What did the 2012 Muslim Brotherhood Constitution offer the Nubian people?
In the past years, we were expecting the governments, especially after the revolution, to give more attention to the Nubians. However, we were very frustrated during the period of the former Constituent Assembly. When Manal al-Taibbi, a human rights activist, was chosen to participate in the assembly, we felt that this was a promising step. However, al-Taibbi found out that the general environment in the assembly is corrupt and useless and for that reason she didn’t stay for a long time despite her good performance.
What are the main features of the new Constitution?
Our Constitution is hoped to be the first step towards a future where Egypt becomes a superpower in the region. As for Nubia, its position and its importance should become clear to all members of the committee. There is another important issue and that is, I am an intellect and I will always be supportive to all artists and intellectuals such as Muhammad Salmawi, Sayed Hijab, Masaad Abu Fajr and all other artists. Our role as a group is to stress the freedom of intellectuals and to ensure that there are no red lines that restrict their creativity.
