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The Egyptian
people have spoken, and we have spoken emphatically. In two weeks of
peaceful demonstrations we have persistently demanded liberation and
democracy. It was groups of brave, sincere Egyptians who initiated this
moment of historical opportunity on January 25, and the Muslim
Brotherhood is committed to joining the national effort toward reform
and progress.

In more than eight
decades of activism, the Muslim Brotherhood has consistently promoted
an agenda of gradual reform. Our principles, clearly stated since the
inception of the movement in 1928, affirm an unequivocal position
against violence. For the past 30 years we have posed, peacefully, the
greatest challenge to the ruling National Democratic Party of Hosni
Mubarak, while advocating for the disenfranchised classes in resistance
to an oppressive regime.

We have repeatedly
tried to engage with the political system, yet these efforts have been
largely rejected based on the assertion that the Muslim Brotherhood is a
banned organisation, and has been since 1954. It is seldom mentioned,
however, that the Egyptian Administrative Court in June 1992 stated that
there was no legal basis for the group’s dissolution.

In the wake of the
people’s revolt, we have accepted invitations to participate in talks
on a peaceful transition. Along with other representatives of the
opposition, we recently took part in exploratory meetings with Vice
President Omar Suleiman. In these talks, we made clear that we will not
compromise or co-opt the public’s agenda. We come with no special agenda
of our own – our agenda is that of the Egyptian people, which has been
asserted since the beginning of this uprising.

We aim to achieve
reform and rights for all: not just for the Muslim Brotherhood, not just
for Muslims, but for all Egyptians. We do not intend to take a dominant
role in the forthcoming political transition. We are not putting
forward a candidate for the presidential elections scheduled for
September.

While we express
our openness to dialogue, we also re-assert the public’s demands, which
must be met before any serious negotiations leading to a new government.

As our nation
heads toward liberty, however, we disagree with the claims that the only
options in Egypt are a purely secular, liberal democracy or an
authoritarian theocracy. Secular liberal democracy of the American and
European variety, with its firm rejection of religion in public life, is
not the exclusive model for a legitimate democracy.

In Egypt, religion
continues to be an important part of our culture and heritage. Moving
forward, we envision the establishment of a democratic, civil state that
draws on universal measures of freedom and justice, which are central
Islamic values. We embrace democracy not as a foreign concept that must
be reconciled with tradition, but as a set of principles and objectives
that are inherently compatible with and reinforce Islamic tenets.

The tyranny of
autocratic rule must give way to immediate reform: the demonstration of a
serious commitment to change, the granting of freedoms to all and the
transition toward democracy. The Muslim Brotherhood stands firmly behind
the demands of the Egyptian people as a whole.

Steady, gradual
reform must begin now, and it must begin on the terms that have been
called for by millions of Egyptians over the past weeks. Change does not
happen overnight, but the call for change did – and it will lead us to a
new beginning rooted in justice and progress.

Essam El-Errian is a member of the guidance council of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt

© 2011 The New York Times