First Lebanon, and now Egypt:

All nations which aspire to a genuine democracy must have at the forefront free and fair elections. They must, of their choosing, elect representatives who will be of the people and for the people. Any country lacking a genuine ballot box can only pretend to be democratic. In the Middle East, pretenses are now being pushed aside for the real thing. We have seen unprecedented elections in Iraq and Palestine and nationwide municipal elections in the Kingdom. Now Egypt is also to be added to the list of countries participating in democracy in the Middle East.

President Hosni Mubarak’s call for the constitution to be changed in order to allow challengers on the ballot will mean that, for the first time in Egyptian history, more than one candidate can run in a presidential election.

Calling an ballot with only one candidate an 'election' seems a misnomer to me. However, I see this change as another step forward. It is not a huge step, since the candidates must be from a recognized party and the government maintains control over that recognition. However, Rome was not built in a day. A step forward is always the prerequisite for the next step.

It is refreshing to see the flow of positive developments in the Middle East.