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Egypt votes on constitution, despite fears

by
21 December 2012

ap

Forceful: Dr Clarke was striking the west door of St Patrick's Cathedral, when the top of his wooden crosier snapped off at the first knock. He held the broken pieces together, and proceeded into the cathedral

Forceful: Dr Clarke was striking the west door of St Patrick's Cathedral, when the top of his wooden crosier snapped off at the first knock. He held...

EGYPTIANS go to the polls tomorrow for the second round of voting in the referendum on the country's draft constitution, with every sign that it will be approved. The indications after the first day of polling last Saturday were that about 57 per cent of voters had backed the new document.

The final result is likely to provide further evidence of polarisation: just over half of all Egyptians will support the constitution, and just under half will reject it.

The President-Bishop in Jerusalem and the Middle East, the Most Revd Mouneer Anis, in a statement last Friday, described his country as "groaning and divided".

The main opposition grouping, the National Salvation Front, complained of election-rigging last Saturday. It alleged that at one polling station in Cairo, Christian women were not allowed to enter to cast their votes. But, in general, the fractured opposition, which most Copts support, is not as well organised as the Muslim Brotherhood and the Salafists, and seems out of touch with the millions of Egyptians living in rural areas.

The opposition, however, notched up a victory of sorts on Monday, when pressure from judges forced the resignation of the public prosecutor, Talaat Ibrahim, who had recently been appointed by President Morsi to replace Abdel Maguid Mahmoud. The sacking of Mr Mahmoud had been seen as a move by the President and the Muslim Brotherhood to remove any threat from a judiciary associated with the Mubarak era, and therefore opposed to Islamist rule. After Mr Mahmoud had been removed, judges went on strike in protest, leaving an insufficient number to oversee voting on a single day, which necessitated a two-stage referendum.

The US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, had earlier added her voice to those calling for the writing of a new draft constitution to replace one drawn up by an assembly dominated by Islamists.

Large and often-violent demonstrations for and against President Morsi have been continuing, despite his announcement earlier this month - under public pressure - that he had rescinded the decree granting him far-reaching powers that could not be challenged, even by the judiciary. But, at the same time, he repeated his determination that the referendum on the draft constitution would take place as planned, prompting a fresh torrent of criticism from his opponents.

The current draft and its progress are being criticised for several reasons that are unrelated to the content of the final document. First, most of the secular and Christian representatives on the Constituent Assembly withdrew in protest at the way in which Islamists were seen to be pushing their own agenda. This meant that the draft was finally approved by a body that was far from representing the interests of all Egyptians.

Second, the opportunity was missed to draw up a completely new constitution in the wake of the popular revolution that swept away the old dictatorial regime. Instead, hasty changes were made to an earlier document. Third, the speed with which the draft was approved, and the matter of days between this and the referendum, have prevented a national debate before the voting.

As for the content, Bishop Anis says that there were several places where statements were imprecise and open to differen interpretations. People were afraid that this could "allow certain Islamic groups to restrict people's freedom", he said.

 

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