- Morsy adviser says a new constitution could be put to a vote in 15 days
- The rushed move toward a new constitution spurs a walkout among its drafters
- The Muslim Brotherhood plans Saturday rallies to support Morsy
Are you there? Share photos and video, but stay safe.
Cairo (CNN) -- Seismic shifts in governance, distrust among political factions and suspicions about power jockeying have characterized Egyptian politics for almost two years, when the uprising that deposed former autocratic President Hosni Mubarak started.
They continue Thursday morning with an expected decision on a final draft of a new constitution.
It is a blitz move announced just a day before the council charged with drafting Egypt's new constitution says it will take the vote, rushing to finish its work amid widespread protests against President Mohamed Morsy. The announcement triggered a walkout by some of the council's members.
Tuesday saw massive demonstrations against Morsy's decrees last week that extended his powers beyond the checks and balances of the courts until a new constitution is drafted. A day later, stone-throwing protesters clashed with dozens of police officers backed by trucks firing tear gas.
Sign of the times in Egypt Officers made arrests, beating some detainees.
If the council passes the draft, it will go before Egyptians for a popular vote within 15 days, said Essam El-Erian, a senior Morsy adviser. If it passes in that referendum, the president's controversial decrees would be lifted.
When Morsy issued the decrees, he also gave the council an extra two months to complete its work. The extension drew accusations that Morsy was giving himself time to continue cementing his authority with more decrees, essentially making himself more powerful than Mubarak ever was.
Protesters to Morsy: Roll back your decree or leave
The council's surprise announcement of a constitutional vote so soon is now being criticized as a move to take the heat off the president.
A judicial analyst affiliated with the Ministry of Justice said he was surprised at the move in light of Morsy having given the constituent assembly extra time to complete its work.
"This could be a way for him to get out of this debacle without reversing his decree and decisions," Aly Hassan suggested.
Some in the opposition see it as an attempt by Morsy's allies to hijack the constitution.
The walkout by a number of the council members now leaves it with a majority from Muslim movements.
Only 55 of the 100 original members of the assembly remained, and all of them were Islamists such as the Salafists or the Muslim Brotherhood, said Sameh Ashour, head of the lawyers' syndicate and a former member of the council.
Read more: Critics wonder if Morsy is Egypt's next strongman
"The Muslim Brotherhood are stealing the constitution," he said. "They are tailoring it according to their view after Coptic church representatives, civil movements, and revolutionary representatives withdrew."
El-Erian said only 22 members had quit, and the remaining ones would take their concerns into consideration when voting Thursday.
"Their brains and (all) their opinions are in the draft," he told CNN's "Amanpour." He denied the process was being rushed, saying the assembly had been at work for six months.
Morsy aide defends leader's decree Read more: Clinton not warned of Egyptian president's power grab
"All Egyptians are waiting for a new constitution reflecting the hopes of the people and dreams of Egyptians during the revolution and to end the suffering of Egyptians for more than 60 years under dictatorship and totalitarianism," he said.
But the move to swiftly ratify a new national charter drew a vehement reaction from one of the constitutional council's former members, Ayman Nour.
"This cannot happen," said Nour, a former presidential hopeful who quit the assembly earlier this year. "It would be the biggest treason in Egypt's history."
Read more: Edict divides Egypt, unifies opponents
Morsy and his backers described last week's decree as an attempt to preserve the fragile Arab Spring revolution that pushed Mubarak from power and led to the country's first free elections. But critics have called it an unprecedented power grab, and a Monday night statement declaring the edict applied only to "sovereign matters" did nothing to defuse their anger.
Egyptians packed Tahrir Square past midnight Tuesday in what observers said were the biggest protests since Mubarak's ouster in 2011, calling on Morsy to reverse his decree or resign. While that demonstration was largely peaceful, one man died from inhaling tear gas during a fight between demonstrators and police nearby, and more than 400 people were injured in protests across Cairo and around the country.
Brookings Institution analyst H. A. Hellyer said the sudden push could be an attempt to take some of the heat off of Morsy, Egypt's first freely elected leader. Hellyer, who is currently in Cairo, considers that Morsy has "put himself in a tricky position" by issuing the edict because it has made it very difficult for him to compromise.
Opinion: Don't blame Muslim Brotherhood for Morsy power grab
"I think his advisers are figuring out a way where he can climb down a little bit to defuse the situation without coming across as weak," he said.
Despite critics' concerns over its drafting, the constitution would likely pass in a referendum because many Egyptians crave stability after months of uncertainty, he said. Islamist groups may also cast the decision in a religious light. But Hellyer said the huge numbers that turned out Tuesday -- a workday -- show that significant numbers of Egyptians from all backgrounds are unhappy over the president's assumption of new powers.
"If the protesters can keep up the momentum for another couple of days, they hit Friday, a day off. If they can do something quite intense on Friday, then that may push the presidency in an awkward position," Hellyer said.
It is also unclear whether Morsy would then give up his additional powers immediately, or whether he will keep hold of them until a parliament is formed, he said.
Analysis: Morsy makes his move
The Muslim Brotherhood has attempted to rally support for Morsy during the row. It dismissed Tuesday's protests and plans nationwide protests Saturday in support of the president and his decree, spokesman Mahmoud Ghozlan said Wednesday. The Brotherhood called off a planned "million man" protest Monday amid concerns over potential violence.
Meanwhile, Egypt's judges have responded to the decrees by shutting down courts around the country. All but seven of Egypt's 34 courts and 90% of its prosecutors went on strike Monday in protest, said Judge Mohamed al Zind of the Egyptian Judge's Club. He described Morsy's edict as "the most vicious ... attack on the judicial authority's independence."
CNN's Reza Sayah and journalists Ian Lee and Mohamed Fadel Fahmy in Cairo, Michael Pearson and Ben Brumfield in Atlanta and Laura Smith-Spark in London contributed to this report.
Egyptians carry a giant national flag as tens of thousands take part in a mass rally against a decree by President Mohamed Morsy granting himself broad powers on Tuesday, November 27, in Cairo. Activists have been camping out in Tahrir Square since Friday to protest what they consider overreaching powers for the president. Clashes between police and pro testing youths erupted near Tahrir Square ahead of the demonstration. 
An Egyptian protester holds up a Quran and a figure of Christ on the cross during Tuesday's demonstration. 
Protesters continue to rally in Tahrir Square on Tuesday. 
An Egyptian protester attempts to throw back a tear gas canister on Tuesday during clashes with riot police in Omar Makram Street, off Tahrir Square. 
Activists in Cairo's Tahrir Square on Monday, November 26, carry the coffin of Gaber Salah, an activist who died overnight after he was critically injured in clashes in Cairo. Salah, a member of the April 6 movement known by his nickname "Jika," was injured last week during confrontations between police and protesters on Cairo's Mohammed Mahmud street. 
Thousands of activists attend the funeral of Gaber Salah on Monday. 
Protesters clash with Egyptian police at Simon Bolivar Square on Sunday, November 25, in Cairo. Egypt's powerful Muslim Brotherhood called nationwide demonstrations in support of Islamist President Mohamed Morsy in his showdown with the judges over the path to a new constitution. 
Egyptian protesters hurl stones at police at Tahrir Square on Sunday. 
Protesters gather at sit-in tents in Tahrir Square on Sunday. 
Egyptian President Mohamed Morsy waves to supporters in front of the presidential palace in Cairo on Friday, November 23. Thousands of ecstatic supporters gathered outside the presidential palace to defend their leader against accusations from rival protesters that he has become a dictator. 
Morsy supporters gather outside the presidential palace in Cairo on Friday. Morsy insisted that Egypt was on the path to "freedom and democracy," as protesters held rival rallies over sweeping powers he assumed that further polarized the country's political forces. 
Protesters demonstrating against Morsy run from tear gas fired by Egyptian riot police during clashes in Cairo's Tahrir Square on Friday. 
Egyptian protesters throw rocks toward riot police on Friday 
Egyptian supporters and opponents of Morsy clash in the coastal city of Alexandria on Friday. 
A man throws a rock during clashes in Alexandria on Friday. 
Thousands of demonstrators march through the streets of Cairo to protest against Morsy on Friday. 
Clashes rocked the coastal city of Alexandria on Friday. 
No comments:
Post a Comment