National Union (Egypt)
NATIONAL UNION (EGYPT)
founded in 1956 to succeed the liberation rally.
The National Union was the second of Egypt's official mobilization bodies, to be followed in its turn by the Arab Socialist Union. The National Union was an indirect outgrowth of the Tripartite Aggression of 1956, when Egypt was invaded by the colluding forces of the British, the French, and the Israelis. The Free Officers regime sought to consolidate the internal political front by creating a more effective mobilization vehicle for the solidification of patriotic sentiment behind the military regime.
The National Union structured a network of quasi-governmental intermediary organizations, such as a youth movement and women's organizations, that aimed to absorb and canalize popular energies in the service of regime goals. Though officially labeled a political party, the National Union, like its predecessors and successor, proved merely a bureaucratic extension of the authoritarian regime, failing to provide effective means of mass political participation.
see also arab socialist union; free officers, egypt; liberation rally.
raymond william baker