Batel campaign demands Egypt to withdraw from Renaissance Dam agreement

The popular “Batel” campaign called on the Egyptian authorities to immediately withdraw from the Declaration of Principles agreement, which Cairo signed with Addis Ababa and Khartoum in 2015.

This came in a statement issued by the campaign after Ethiopia announced on Wednesday that it had begun filling the dam’s reservoir, then retracted the decision.

The Ethiopian announcement was made days after the end of a triple negotiation round that stumbled, like many other negotiation attempts over the last decade.

The statement indicated that the campaign: “Invites all political forces inside and outside Egypt to overcome any differences and unify their stance against ceding the right in the Nile’s water.”

READ: Reports of filling Nile dam false, Ethiopia tells Sudan

According to the statement, the campaign: “Demands Egypt’s immediate withdrawal from the Declaration of Principles agreement with Ethiopia, and conduct a popular referendum instead to voice the decision of the Egyptian people.”

The statement called on: “All the sovereign state institutions to have a say in this catastrophe that is about to befall Egypt and the future of its population.”

The Batel campaign announced that in the event that the Egyptian authorities refuse to hold a popular referendum on the agreement that was signed “unilaterally without consulting with anyone,” it will organise this referendum via its electronic platform to “let the world hear the voice of Egyptians.”

The statement concluded: “We hope that all political forces will come out with a unified position to present to the people without further delays. Let Egypt’s present and future be an ultimate goal for us all.”