Fresh Cairo clashes over Morsy decree
By the CNN Wire Staff
November 28, 2012 -- Updated 2123 GMT (0523 HKT)
Egypt's nighttime protests carry on
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- NEW: At least 22 members of the constitutional council have quit, Morsy adviser says
- Clashes break out between police and protesters after a huge rally Tuesday night
- Muslim Brotherhood will hold nationwide rallies in support of Morsy on Saturday
- Egypt's Cabinet chief says there will be no retreat from a decree expanding Morsy's powers
Cairo (CNN) -- Fresh clashes broke out in Cairo
Wednesday near Tahrir Square, as riot police fired tear gas and charged
at Egyptian protesters angry about a move by President Mohamed Morsy to
extend his powers.
Dozens of police officers
-- backed by trucks firing tear gas -- advanced across Simon Boulevard
Square, arresting many young people, some of whom were beaten by
officers. Protesters continued to throw stones at police.
The latest clashes come
after huge numbers of protesters swarmed into the square Tuesday night
into Wednesday, hoping to revive a democratic groundswell that swept the
country's former strongman from power nearly two years ago.
Observers suggested the crowds were the biggest seen since former President
Hosni Mubarak was forced out early last year following days of street protests.
Egyptians protest president's powers
Watch: On the ground in Tahrir Square
Egyptian protesters clash with police
Demonstrators waved flags
and banners, chanted slogans and called on their first freely elected
leader to roll back last week's decree giving himself expanded
presidential powers -- or resign. The crowd included many different
Egyptian factions, including Western-style liberals, secularists,
moderates and women's rights activists.
"I'm here because this is our country -- all of us," one woman told CNN. "It's not just for our president."
But Morsy showed no signs of backing down.
Egypt's Cabinet chief,
Mohamed Refa'a al-Tahtawi, said there will be no retreat from the
constitutional decree, state-run EGYNews reported. He reportedly
stressed the president would not back down because his actions were
motivated by democratic aims.
Mahmoud Ghozlan, a spokesman for the
Muslim Brotherhood,
Morsy's political movement, said Wednesday that it would stage
nationwide protests Saturday in support of Morsy and his decree. The
Muslim Brotherhood called off a planned "million man" protest Monday
amid concerns over potential violence.
In a surprise move
Wednesday, the constituent assembly that has been drafting Egypt's new
constitution -- a source of controversy -- said it was on the verge of
concluding its work.
Sameh Ashour, head of
the lawyers' syndicate and a former member of the council, told CNN a
final draft of the constitution was expected to be completed Wednesday
night and put to a vote Thursday. But a number of the council members
had quit in protest of the move, officials said.
Ashour said only 55 of
the 100 original members of the assembly remained, and all of them were
from Islamist movements such as the Salafists or the Muslim Brotherhood.
"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."
But Essam El-Erian, a
senior Morsy aide, said only 22 members had quit, and the remaining ones
would take their concerns into consideration when voting Thursday.
But the move to swiftly ratify a new national charter drew a vehement reaction one of its 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."
And Aly Hassan, a
judicial analyst affiliated with the Ministry of Justice, said he was
surprised at the move, since Morsy's decree gave the constituent
assembly an extra two months to complete their work.
"This could be a way for him to get out of this debacle without reversing his decree and decisions," Hassan suggested.
Morsy's November 22
decree said that judges can't overturn his decisions or interfere with
the council. He also sacked the nation's top prosecutor.
Dr. H. A. Hellyer, a
non-resident fellow with the Brookings Institution think-tank, also
suggested that the Muslim Brotherhood's efforts swiftly to push through a
draft of the constitution could be an attempt to shift some of the
focus away from Morsy. 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.
"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 told CNN.
He believes the huge
numbers turning out spontaneously to protest on Tuesday -- a working day
-- reflect 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," he said.
The attempt to rush through a draft of the constitution may exacerbate the situation, Hellyer said.
However, 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.
Once approved, it would
be very difficult to protest against the referendum and its passage may
be interpreted by Morsy's supporters as a vote of public approval for
his presidency thus far, Hellyer added.
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.
There were no official
crowd estimates for Tuesday night's demonstrations, but the square was
packed as protesters clogged the roundabout and tents filled the grassy
area in the middle. The rally lasted into early Wednesday, with some
demonstrators singing and playing drums and guitars while others
listened to speeches.
CNN iReporter Ahmed
Raafat, who attended the protests in Cairo, said he saw hordes of people
chanting as they headed to Tahrir Square.
"The atmosphere last
night was great," he said. "There were people of all ages, men and
women, people of different backgrounds ... I saw people who had never
taken to the streets before."
Though the protest was
mostly peaceful, at least one demonstrator died in early clashes with
authorities ahead of Tuesday night's massive rally, the Ministry of
Health said. The opposition Popular Alliance Party said the protester
died after inhaling excessive amounts of tear gas, which police used in
numerous scuffles with rock-throwing demonstrators on the side streets
leading to the square.
Egypt a possible theocracy?
Morsy aide defends leader's decree
Egyptian judge on Morsy's edict
Dr. Khaled al-Khatib, a
Ministry of Health spokesman, said 290 people had been injured in Cairo
since the clashes between police and protesters broke out late last
week.
Another 120 people were
injured in violence Tuesday night in the Nile Delta city of Mahalla,
where anti-Morsy demosntrators stormed the local headquarters of the
Muslim Brotherhood, Interior Ministry spokesman Alla Mahmoud told CNN.
Police also used tear gas to break up the melees and made numerous
arrests, but the building was destroyed, Mahmoud said.
Ahmed al-Aguizi, a
spokesman for the Freedom and Justice Party -- the Brotherhood's
political arm -- said the anti-Morsy protesters carried knives, swords,
clubs and guns and battled Brotherhood supporters for four hours.
Earlier this week,
clashes in the northern city of Damanhour, where anti-Morsy protesters
attacked local offices of the Muslim Brotherhood, also injured 20
people, al-Khatib said.
Critics have called
Morsy's declaration last week an unprecedented power grab, and a Monday
night statement declaring the edict applied only to "sovereign matters"
did nothing to defuse their anger.
Morsy "did not give
himself judicial power" but did provide "immunity for his presidential
decisions," said Jihad Haddad, a senior adviser in the Freedom and
Justice Party. Haddad added that "the president himself (is) not immune
from judicial oversight," though it wasn't clear in what instances that
would come into practice, or if there was anything preventing Morsy from
issuing a new decree so this could not happen.
Morsy and his Muslim
Brotherhood supporters have defended the policy as necessary to support
the fragile Arab Spring revolution that pushed Mubarak from power and
led to the country's first free elections. On Tuesday, the Brotherhood's
official Twitter feed dismissed the protests as underwhelming and said
what it described as a low turnout indicated a "lack of support among
Egyptians."
In addition to outbursts
on the street against Morsy's decree, Egypt's judges have reacted. 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."
Al Zind said Wednesday
the Court of Cassation, the country's highest appeals court, had
suspended its work until Morsy's decree is rescinded. He also announced
that Sunday, the country's higher constitutional court would examine
what he called the unconstitutional edict and would consider cases
calling for the disbanding of the Shura Council, the upper house of
parliament.
Morsy insists he's
trying to protect Egypt's Arab Spring revolution, not accumulate
unchecked power. Haddad said his moves "cemented the process that would
create the institutions that would limit his power, define the
constitution and have parliamentary elections so that we can say this is
a democracy."
Polls show "an
overwhelming majority supporting President Morsy and his decisions,"
Haddad said Monday. But critics don't believe that.
Amr Hamzawy, a member of
the now-dissolved parliament, said action is needed to prevent more
"suffering" under a president with "sweeping powers," as Egypt had for
60 years under men like Mubarak, Anwar Sadat and Gamal Nasser.
"Morsy is the ...
president who has sweeping executive (power), sweeping legislative
(power) and ... puts himself above the judicial branch of government,"
said Hamzawy, founder of Egypt's Freedom Party. "That is a very
dangerous mix, which can only lead to a dictatorship."
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