Meanwhile, President Mubarak, speaking to El-Esbou newspaper, said everyone should know that freedom is counterbalanced by a sense of responsibility.

The liberty of any citizen should end where others' liberties begin, the president told editor in chief Moustafa el-Bakri, noting that it would be wrong for some to exercise their rights and liberties, without duly heeding their obligations towards the others and the society al large.

The majority of Egyptian writers and media men are committed to the pursuance of the truth in their work, the president added.

Media men should bear the responsibilities of purging journalistic work of certain malign practices and excesses that violate the code of ethics of the profession and target the stability of the homeland.

The president urged all pressmen and writers to bear this responsibility and refrain from busying themselves with petty matters so that the freedom of the press might not reach a dead end.

At the same time, President Mubarak voiced unshakable belief in the freedom of the press which, he said, should not be affected by some breaches that run contrary to the ethics of journalism as a profession.

This belief has been affirmed day after day despite a growing incidence of breaches and mistakes, the president said adding that his faith in the freedom of the press was embodied in his protection of the press and his rejection of any outside or inside meddling in the work of journalists.

All pressmen and writers should be assured that there is no going back to era of confiscations or repression of liberties, Mubarak said.

There is a law which should be activated, and anyone violating the press code of ethics or threatening the country's safety should be punished, the president asserted.

Freedom of expression is guaranteed by laws and the constitution, he added.

The president went on to say that he was not against objective criticism as it helped decision-makers to get to know the negative aspects in the society.

A line should be drawn between objective criticism, that seeks to maintain the interests of the country, and destructive criticism which is meant to undermine the achievements of the society and destroy its values and constants, the president added.

On the other side, President Mubarak said since he assumed power in 1981 he has been keen on the freedom of the press.

The president said despite the fact that Egypt was facing a difficult stage at that time following the assassination of president Anwar Sadat and the terrorist crimes committed in various governorates, he believed that the people had the right to know all facts no matter what.

He said he had two options; either to draw a specific frame for the freedom of the press that should not be crossed in order to surmount that stage or to have a free press.

The president added he opted for giving the press the freedom, halting the policy of confiscating newspapers and stressing the right of the press to tell the truth to the people.

Also,President Mubarak expressed rejection of attempts to instigate chaos, adding he remained committed to the right of the press to play its role with full freedom, especially that the freedom of expression and of the press have gained more ground than at any time before since he came to office.

There is no going back on this freedom, he said.

Commenting on recent excesses, the president said it was not the first time for such excesses to surface, reiterating that men of the press should realise that freedom came with responsibility.

Mubarak once again reminded that individual freedom was indeed bounded by that of others, without any transgression.

He reiterated conviction that most of Egypt's writers and journalists heeded the truth in their work.

He said he does not discriminate between national, party or independent newspapers, adding he was keen on following up all these papers and on talking to their chief editors.

Editor in chief Bakri was appreciative of Mubarak's decision to rescind the controversial 1995 law No.93 - then dubbed the "law on assassinating the press" , and replacing the legislation with law No.96 of 1996, which gained vast approval by journalists.

President Mubarak made it clear that his major concern was to protect the freedom of the press, adding that as soon as it came to his knowledge that journalists were against that law, he met with the board of the journalists syndicate and listened to their demands which were immediately responded to.

In reply to a question on the right of the press to handle some rumours, the president fully sided with that right even if the rumour was about the president of the republic.

Mubarak, however, explained there was a big difference between authentic reporting concerning a piece of information and fabricating one.

The president added fabricated rumours aim at destabilising the country, a matter that would affect the conditions of the stock exchange and banks by causing jitters among investors.

The president said ignoring facts and persisting in publishing wrong information and sheer lies is a matter not in any way related to the freedom of the press.

It is, he said, just aimed at generating confusion and disturbing public order.

On the other side ,one young man from Upper Egypt has tried four times to enter Italy via Libya.

Each attempt, which ended in arrest and deportation, cost him LE11,000. "But he is sure to try a fifth time," wrote Mohamed el-Saadani in the daily Al-Ahram.

"What induces young Egyptians to keep risking illegal entry? They could drown at sea or be summarily deported from Europe, yet to pay for this adventure, they are prepared to hand over cash that would be sufficient to start up a small business.

"If it is not utter despair, what makes young Egyptians risk their lives? What tells them that there are no job prospects at home? "This is a serious issue that should not be underestimated.

The cases we hear about in the press are the tip of the iceberg.

"Press vs StateThe jailing of four chief editors of independent newspapers still draws comment in the Cairo press.

Meanwhile,Al-Masry Al-Youm quoted vice chairman of the Court of Cassation, Ahmed Mekky, who warned of the serious implications of the sentence not only for press freedom but also the image of the current regime, as saying that President Hosni Mubarak's greatest achievement in the last 26 years was the development of freedom of the press.

"However, the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) has itself become a threat to the Mubarak regime because it includes a coterie of profiteers," Mekky said.

Ahmed Bahgat of the daily Al-Akhbar agreed, saying some NDP members had abused their positions for personal gains.

"Others have exploited their legal immunity, resulting in scandals that have harmed the party's reputation.

"Still other members have used party influence to deal a blow to the press and democracy.

"However, the press will not suffer as much damage as the party.

In the business daily newspaper Al Alam Al Youm, Lamis el-Hadidi criticised those who insist on blaming the press for any fault.

"It is true that the press suffers the same illness as society, but the print media have made great gains regarding freedom of expression such that they can expose government errors.

"The press might make similar errors, but its mistakes are nothing compared to those of the State and the regime, which have wasted billions on failed national projects, violated human rights as hundreds languish behind bars without trial, forged elections, allowed corrupt management to ruin the public sector and plundered insurance funds to plug the budget deficit.

"The State will not restore credibility by jailing journalists, or closing newspapers.

Instead, we need the rule of law to apply to all parties, otherwise everything will fall apart.

"New invention by USAs for the recent report on religious freedoms by the US State Department, Mohamed Ali Ibrahim of the daily Al-Gomhuria described it as an invention by American Politicians to put pressure on developing countries and remind them of a divine presence, i.e.

the US on earth, to bring them to account prior to the real Day of Judgement.

"Washington has always had the aid weapon to practice 'economic terrorism' on those countries.

"Even so, the US has found that some countries such as Egypt are little concerned about aid.

Consequently, the US hope that threatening to sow the seeds of dissent among religious minorities will destabilise the countries that do not bow to the will of the US.

"The authors of the report claim that there are restrictions on religious practices by Christians, Qur'anists, Baha'is and - surprise, surprise - the Muslim Brothers.

"The report has nothing to do with the religious freedom.

Rather, it is a political tool for destabilising the country.

On Al-Akhbar's back page, Galal Deweidar said the Arabs had every right to express reservations on the autumn peace conference called for by US President George W. Bush if no clear agenda can be agreed upon.

"The Arabs fear that the conference would serve Israeli interests by pushing the Arab countries to normalise relations with Israel in return for promises that no one has the intention of keeping.

"This is what President Mubarak recently announced.

He also agreed with the stance of Saudi Arabia, whose foreign minister expressed doubts over participating in the conference without a clear agenda.

"For his part Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa said the Arabs are serious about peace.

"However, if the other party is not serious, it would be harmful for the Arabs to share in such fruitless efforts.

But, Gamal Badawi of the opposition daily Al-Wafd praised the Nazif government for admitting that 20 per cent of the population were 'poor', not 'of limited incomes'.

"In a recent economic conference, Minister of Economic Development Osman Mohamed Osman announced a five-year plan to reduce poverty in 1,000 villages and develop them.

"We do not underestimate such plan, but we should warn of the bureaucrats in rural areas that put their own needs above those of the poor.

Meanwhile, Mohamed Fouda of the daily evening newspaper Al-Messa wondered how an official can keep his post even after admitting to failure.

"Several government ministers recently admitted to having failed to control prices before Ramadan despite previous statements about controlling prices and supervising the markets.

"Minister of Social Security Ali Meselhi still talks about adequate supplies of subsidised bread.

He has even promised to set up a home bread delivery system.

Meanwhile, all parties are aware of the wheat crisis, and Meselhi himself said he knew about greedy traders who smuggle subsidised wheat into the black market.

"The strangest statement, however, came from Osman Mohamed Osman, Minister of Economic Development, who claimed his ministry had succeeded in reining in prices.

What planet has he been on recently.