23 December 2012 By Osman Mirghani The insistence to go ahead with
the constitutional referendum in Egypt, despite the
fundamental objections and huge demonstrations, is
certainly adding more fuel to the fire of discord.
This is happening at a time when the country is in
dire need of stability in order to overcome the
serious dangers threatening it. In such circumstances,
Egypt requires genuine calming steps rather than
maneuvers to carry out partisan projects or plots. The
problem is that all the steps and decrees taken since
the initial constitutional declaration on the 21st
November 2012, which sparked the gravest crisis Egypt
has faced since the outbreak of the revolution,
suggest that the Brotherhood and their allies from
other Islamist groups are only interested in passing
the draft constitution regardless of the subsequent
harm and risks involved, in light of the widespread
opposition to the steps taken so far. It seems as if
they are only interested in partisan gains, rather
than the entire country with all its components and
different social categories. Many hoped that the new constitutional declaration
issued by President Mursi last Saturday would serve as
a real step towards defusing the crisis, rather than
igniting it. However, a reading of its contents caused
these hopes to be dashed, for the constitutional
declaration failed to bring in anything new and seemed
like another manuever to circumvent the protests,
distract the opposition and buy more time until the
referendum becomes a reality next Saturday. Although
the new constitutional declaration's very first
article stipulates the retraction of the previous
decree, issued on November 21st, practically speaking
it changes very little because it has preserved the
subsequent impact. What does it mean when a
declaration is cancelled and yet its subsequent impact
remains valid? Furthermore, Article IV of the new decree renders
all constitutional declarations, including the most
recent one, immune from any attempt to cancel them and
makes them incontestable before any judicial
authority. Likewise it stipulates that all previous
claims lodged against these decrees must be dismissed.
This article, with slight amendments, is basically
quoting Article II of the previous constitutional
declaration, and it has produced the same results. Mursi and the Brotherhood are trying to convince
the people that they have offered considerable
concessions to the protestors by cancelling the
initial constitutional declaration. However, the truth
of the matter is that they are only using this as a
cover; for they have formally cancelled the degree yet
maintained its content. This was clearly expressed by
Prime Minister Hisham Qandil, even before the new
declaration was issued, when he told the press last
Saturday that those who have met with Mursi have
agreed to form a committee to amend the constitutional
declaration but in a manner that maintains its
content. So we are talking about an amendment, not a
cancellation, of the previous constitutional
declaration. The Brotherhood do not want to offer
concessions to end the crisis, rather they are
maneuvering to put their project into action by any
means possible regardless of the price. They acted
likewise when they used the previous constitutional
declaration to grant immunity to the constituent
assembly, in an attempt to outdo the Supreme
Constitutional Court. Now the Brotherhood are using
the new decree to grant immunity to the forthcoming
referendum, in the face of opposition and protests, in
a bid to impose it as a reality. The widespread rhetoric that the referendum date
cannot be changed is hard to believe. Likewise, it is
worth pointing out that when Mursi issued his first
constitutional declaration on 21st November, granting
himself and his decrees immunity beyond his powers, he
seemed to ignore the constitutional oath he swore to
maintain and respect. The Brotherhood shouldn't ignite a serious crisis
in order to rapidly pass a constitution regardless of
the opposition on the street. Yet they have persisted
in imposing it, and now they are circumventing and
maneuvering to have it approved by a referendum. They
seem indifferent to the crisis that threatens the
country and the tense climate in which no free
referendum could be held. The Brotherhood are also
resorting to a policy of intimidation and the use of
force, as was made apparent by the military parades
staged by the group and other allied Islamist groups
following their assault on protestors staging a
demonstration in front of the presidential palace.
Finally, the Brotherhood are also proceeding with
their campaign against the judiciary and are besieging
the Supreme Constitutional Court, whilst
simultaneously escalating their war on the media in an
attempt to control it. They are seeking to "purify"
the media of those who oppose them, and thus they are
targeting the Egyptian Media Production City. To justify all that they are doing, Mohammed Badie,
the Brotherhood's General Guide, and his deputy
Khairat el-Shatar came out to promote the theory of a
foreign conspiracy, and to tell the people that there
are those attempting to rise up against legitimacy and
seize power. El-Shater even went beyond this and said
that the Brotherhood will not allow the revolution to
be seized again, accusing Mursi's opponents of seeking
to create chaos although they do not exceed 30,000
demonstrators! This rhetoric is fuelling emotions and
adding to the tension on the street. In the same
manner it is prolonging the crisis, particularly in
view of the Brotherhood's insistence to pass the
constitution regardless of consequences in the current
climate. The state constitution is not a political party
document, nor is it an interpretation of a certain
group's views at the expense of other components of
society. Rather, a constitution is the structure of
governance as well as its mechanisms, and it is the
guarantor of rights and freedoms and the umbrella
under which all social components operate. In order
for this to happen, priority must be given to the
concept of citizenship with the constitution
functioning as a unifying element, rather than a cause
for separation. Yet the Brotherhood and their allies
from other Islamic groups have failed to show that
they are dealing with the constitution in this manner.
If they were doing so then they would have given
priority to the country's interests over those of
their own group, and would have agreed to postpone the
referendum. These disagreements are tearing Egypt apart, along
with the insistence that the referendum must be
conducted on time and the failure to heed the strong
objections being expressed by sizeable categories of
the Egyptian people. If this continues the situation
will become even more complicated and Egypt will be
pushed towards further confrontations and an eventual
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