This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/24/world/middleeast/as-egypt-constitution-passes-new-fights-lie-ahead.html
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Egypt Opposition Gears Up After Constitution Passes | Egypt Opposition Gears Up After Constitution Passes |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| CAIRO — Egyptians approved an Islamist-backed constitution, state news media said Sunday, and the headlines made clear that the political brawl about it has only begun. | CAIRO — Egyptians approved an Islamist-backed constitution, state news media said Sunday, and the headlines made clear that the political brawl about it has only begun. |
| “The People Sided With Democracy,” the flagship state newspaper, Al Ahram, declared in a headline. | “The People Sided With Democracy,” the flagship state newspaper, Al Ahram, declared in a headline. |
| “Wholesale Violations,” the largest independent daily, Al Masry Al Youm, said. | “Wholesale Violations,” the largest independent daily, Al Masry Al Youm, said. |
| Passage of the constitution begins what its supporters call the first experiment in Islamist democracy, and its results will be watched across the Arab world. Its approval is a victory for President Mohamed Morsi, of the Muslim Brotherhood’s political arm, who had sought to suspend temporarily the authority of the Egyptian courts in order to prevent rulings that he feared might block the referendum. | |
| But a backlash against Mr. Morsi and his Islamist allies over their authoritarian tactics has led to new pressure to rebut charges that they intend to exploit loopholes in the charter in order to move Egypt toward theocracy. | But a backlash against Mr. Morsi and his Islamist allies over their authoritarian tactics has led to new pressure to rebut charges that they intend to exploit loopholes in the charter in order to move Egypt toward theocracy. |
| In a news conference on Sunday, opposition leaders called the charter illegitimate and vowed to use any peaceful means available to prevent it from being carried out. “This is a constitution that lacks the most important prerequisite for a constitution: consensus,” said Hamdeen Sabahi, a leftist and former presidential candidate. “This means we can’t build our future based on this text at all.” | In a news conference on Sunday, opposition leaders called the charter illegitimate and vowed to use any peaceful means available to prevent it from being carried out. “This is a constitution that lacks the most important prerequisite for a constitution: consensus,” said Hamdeen Sabahi, a leftist and former presidential candidate. “This means we can’t build our future based on this text at all.” |
| Mr. Sabahi and other political leaders accused the Islamists of manipulating religious faith to rally support for the constitution in an effort to increase their own power and to “support capitalist interests.” The opposition also vowed to carry the momentum from the fight against the charter into the parliamentary elections. | Mr. Sabahi and other political leaders accused the Islamists of manipulating religious faith to rally support for the constitution in an effort to increase their own power and to “support capitalist interests.” The opposition also vowed to carry the momentum from the fight against the charter into the parliamentary elections. |
| “We will confirm to them that deceiving in the name of religion is done once and for all,” the main opposition coalition, the National Salvation Front, said in a statement. | “We will confirm to them that deceiving in the name of religion is done once and for all,” the main opposition coalition, the National Salvation Front, said in a statement. |
| Amr Hamzawy, a political scientist and liberal political leader, said the size of the vote against the constitution was a measure of the opposition’s growing clout. “We have a majority that isn’t big, and a minority that isn’t small. This means there is an evident division in society,” he said, adding, “We feel we’ve made a major achievement.” | Amr Hamzawy, a political scientist and liberal political leader, said the size of the vote against the constitution was a measure of the opposition’s growing clout. “We have a majority that isn’t big, and a minority that isn’t small. This means there is an evident division in society,” he said, adding, “We feel we’ve made a major achievement.” |
| About 64 percent of voters in the two-part referendum approved the new charter, Egyptian state media reported Sunday, citing preliminary results. About 57 percent voted yes in last weekend’s first phase, which included Cairo, where a sizable majority voted no. In the more rural precincts that voted on Saturday, more than 70 percent voted yes, outlining Egypt’s cultural divide. | About 64 percent of voters in the two-part referendum approved the new charter, Egyptian state media reported Sunday, citing preliminary results. About 57 percent voted yes in last weekend’s first phase, which included Cairo, where a sizable majority voted no. In the more rural precincts that voted on Saturday, more than 70 percent voted yes, outlining Egypt’s cultural divide. |
| The turnout in both rounds remained low, at just over 30 percent of eligible voters, according to the preliminary figures. A referendum on a plan for the transition after the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak drew about 41 percent of eligible voters. | The turnout in both rounds remained low, at just over 30 percent of eligible voters, according to the preliminary figures. A referendum on a plan for the transition after the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak drew about 41 percent of eligible voters. |
| The opposition leaders argued that violations of voting procedures had compromised the results, and they demanded that the election authorities rule on those allegations before issuing official results, which are expected Monday. | The opposition leaders argued that violations of voting procedures had compromised the results, and they demanded that the election authorities rule on those allegations before issuing official results, which are expected Monday. |
| But the ballots were cast into transparent boxes and counted on the spot under the supervision of independent monitors, reducing opportunities for fraud. The fact that the constitution was approved by 4.5 million votes — out of 16.2 million cast — suggested that rigging the results would have required systematic fraud. | But the ballots were cast into transparent boxes and counted on the spot under the supervision of independent monitors, reducing opportunities for fraud. The fact that the constitution was approved by 4.5 million votes — out of 16.2 million cast — suggested that rigging the results would have required systematic fraud. |
| International experts said the constitution does not significantly alter the role of religion in Egyptian law. But it raises the stakes in future contests over who will interpret it. Although the new charter preserves an article from the old constitution declaring that the principles of Islamic law are a main source of legislation, it adds a new article, No. 219, which broadly defines those principles as the established schools of Sunni Muslim scholarship. Independent scholars have said that whether the new provisions make a difference will depend on who controls their application. | International experts said the constitution does not significantly alter the role of religion in Egyptian law. But it raises the stakes in future contests over who will interpret it. Although the new charter preserves an article from the old constitution declaring that the principles of Islamic law are a main source of legislation, it adds a new article, No. 219, which broadly defines those principles as the established schools of Sunni Muslim scholarship. Independent scholars have said that whether the new provisions make a difference will depend on who controls their application. |
| Zaid al-Ali, a researcher at the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, an intergovernmental organization, said the constitution’s principal defects were not about religion. The biggest problem, he said, is that it protects the Egyptian military from legal and parliamentary oversight, engraving its autonomy in the constitution. Leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood had said privately for months that they were willing to provide the military such constitutional protections in order to ease the transition of power from the generals who assumed control from Mr. Mubarak. | Zaid al-Ali, a researcher at the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, an intergovernmental organization, said the constitution’s principal defects were not about religion. The biggest problem, he said, is that it protects the Egyptian military from legal and parliamentary oversight, engraving its autonomy in the constitution. Leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood had said privately for months that they were willing to provide the military such constitutional protections in order to ease the transition of power from the generals who assumed control from Mr. Mubarak. |
| A second problem, Mr. Ali said, is the failure to decentralize decision-making. While most of the world has shifted power closer to the local level, he said, the Arab states have resisted out of a fear that they might be divided up as they were under colonial rule. “Because of the centralization in the Arab region, as soon as you step out of the capital you are in different universe,” Mr. Ali said. “It is an ineffectual way to meet people’s needs, and services aren’t delivered.” | A second problem, Mr. Ali said, is the failure to decentralize decision-making. While most of the world has shifted power closer to the local level, he said, the Arab states have resisted out of a fear that they might be divided up as they were under colonial rule. “Because of the centralization in the Arab region, as soon as you step out of the capital you are in different universe,” Mr. Ali said. “It is an ineffectual way to meet people’s needs, and services aren’t delivered.” |
| Sectarian animosities continued to surround the vote. The Coptic Church pulled its representatives from the constitutional assembly in a dispute over the provisions about Islamic law in jurisprudence, and before the vote many Christians said it was axiomatic that everyone of their faith would vote against the charter. | Sectarian animosities continued to surround the vote. The Coptic Church pulled its representatives from the constitutional assembly in a dispute over the provisions about Islamic law in jurisprudence, and before the vote many Christians said it was axiomatic that everyone of their faith would vote against the charter. |
| Opposition leaders charged Sunday that Islamists had intimidated Christians or blocked their access to the polls in some precincts. But the accusations could not be confirmed. | Opposition leaders charged Sunday that Islamists had intimidated Christians or blocked their access to the polls in some precincts. But the accusations could not be confirmed. |
| Also on Sunday, a small group of President Morsi’s Islamist supporters continued a sit-in outside the constitutional court, still determined to discourage it from any ruling that might interfere with the referendum before the results are official. | Also on Sunday, a small group of President Morsi’s Islamist supporters continued a sit-in outside the constitutional court, still determined to discourage it from any ruling that might interfere with the referendum before the results are official. |