Protests called as Egypt draft charter pushed through

Protesters vow to take to the streets after an assembly charged with crafting Egypt's new constitution gives its final approval after 21 hours of haggling. FULL STORY

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• Constitution approval is divisive  
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• Making sense of political crisis  

  Egyptian draft constitution passes; protesters vow return to the streets

  By the CNN Wire Staff

  November 30, 2012 -- Updated 1124 GMT (1924 HKT)
  

  Egyptian council approves constitution

  STORY HIGHLIGHTS

  • NEW: Hundreds gather in Tahrir Square's tent city for Friday prayers
  • The president could order a referendum on the constitution in about 2 weeks
  • Assembly passes all 234 articles of a new draft constitution
  • Article 65 guarantees all Egyptians social security
  Are you there? Share photos and video, but stay safe.
  Cairo (CNN) -- As the sun rose over Cairo on Friday, an assembly charged with crafting Egypt's new constitution gave its final approval after 21 hours of haggling and the passage of all 234 articles.
  
  The draft will be printed later in the day and presented to President Mohamed Morsy on Saturday, said Houssam al-Ghiryani, who heads the assembly.
  But that doesn't mean Egypt's crisis is over.
  The constitution, which would replace one scrapped in last year's revolution that led to Hosni Mubarak's ouster, needs to be approved by citizens, many of whom are angry at the government.
  Hundreds of protesters gathered Friday around noon at Tahrir Square, where they held prayers after listening to a cleric brand Islamist President Mohamed Morsy a "pharaoh" over what many feel was an overbearing power grab by the head of state last week.
  Egyptians protest president's powers
  Egypt's crisis over within 15 days?
  Making sense of Egypt's political crisis
  Sign of the times in Egypt
  Since then, throngs have taken to the streets to demonstrate against him and the constitutional group led by Muslim Brotherhood members.
  Protests have been large, boisterous and occasionally violent, picking up steam after the president issued an edict last week that included making his decisions since taking office in June immune from judicial oversight.
  The tent city pitched on the roundabout has spread across the traffic circle. As has become customary in recent weeks, food vendors sent up stands in the middle of the street. Protest leaders trod the boards of a sound stage, belting out chants over microphones to the crowd.
  The hasty nature of the call to approve the draft constitution added to Egyptian's discontent.
  The snap vote prompted several walkouts, reducing the number of originally 100 assembly delegates. Those who resigned were replaced by members of the Brotherhood and allied Salafist Nour Party. Eighty-five members approved the draft.
  The the rest of the constitutional assembly members took the departing members into consideration when discussing the various articles, said Essam El-Erian, a senior presidential adviser.
  Critics call the maneuvering a case of the Muslim Brotherhood trying to hijack the constitution less than two years after Mubarak's ouster. Others interpret the vote as a way to quickly defuse anger about the president's recent decree granting himself expanded presidential powers.
  Protesters to Morsy: Roll back your decree or leave
  Morsy has appeared on state TV to promise Egyptians that his decrees would only apply to "sovereign" matters and go out of effect as soon as a new constitution is ratified in a public referendum.
  He justified targeting the judiciary with an edict, accusing some judges of working to thwart gains made in the Arab spring uprising.
  The assembly convened Thursday and continued through the night and well into Friday morning as members voted on each article separately, discussed objections by dissenters and undertook some alterations.
  At the end of 21 hours, the assembly's head, Hossam al-Ghiriyani, asked the members if they agree to the 234 articles. After a show of hands, he said, "Agreement by consensus. May God bless you." The room broke into applause, and everyone stood for the playing of the national anthem.
  Opinion: A new Egypt must learn political compromise
  Expert opinions on the new constitution ranged from angst to elation.
  "The draft constitution will end the state of political division, because it will cancel the constitutional decrees that the president issued," said Dawood Basil, expert in constitutional law from Cairo University. "I feel overwhelming joy after hearing the final wording of the articles."
  "All Egyptians -- of all background -- were taken into account when efforts were made to put together this draft," said Ramadan Battikh, professor of constitutional law at Ain Shams University.
  Critics say the constitution could lead to excessive restrictions on certain rights, moving Egypt closer to Sharia law.
  "As far as rights are concerned, the 1971 constitution was much better," said Dr. Mustapha Kamel Sayed, a Cairo University professor, referring to the old constitution still in place under Mubarak.
  Heba Morayef, the Egypt director for Human Rights Watch, said "there aren't really any protections for women," for instance.
  The preamble includes language pertaining to women, stating that they are equal to men but also accentuating their roles as mothers.
  "There is no dignity for a nation which does not honor women; women and men are equal, for they are the fort of motherhood, half of the society and partners in all the gains and national responsibilities," it reads.
  Citing the family as "the foundation of society," it guarantees free maternal health care and promises to reconcile "a woman's duties toward her family" and her job.
  Other provisions distinctly protect individuals' civil rights, particularly in how they are treated by security forces and the judicial system.
  They include wording to prevent arbitrary arrest and detention, and ensure due process by the courts, a sensitive topic in Egypt, as Mubarak and his loyalists are blamed for jailing and harshly mistreating innocents before and during last year's uprising.
  Anyone jailed cannot be interrogated without their attorney present, and if they don't have one, the judicial system must appoint one.
  Phone conversations, electronic correspondence and other communication cannot be tapped without a warrant.
  Article 65 guarantees social security benefits to all Egyptians. Lawmakers could be seen applauding on Egyptian state TV after its approval.
  Read more: Clinton not warned of Egyptian president's power grab
  As the constitutional debate unfolded, fresh clashes broke out Thursday between rowdy protesters and police in central Cairo.
  The mayhem prompted the closure of the U.S. Embassy near Tahrir Square, the epicenter of the current protests and those in 2011.
  Opinion: Don't blame Muslim Brotherhood for Morsy power grab
  The Muslim Brotherhood has called for its own demonstration Saturday, in what would be the biggest public show of support for Morsy since he issued his controversial edict.
  They will be joined on the streets Friday and likely Saturday by opposition protesters.
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