BICOM

Unrest in Egypt shows no sign of abating in the aftermath of President Mohammed Mursi’s announcement last week of a decree that would make his decisions immune to judicial oversight.

Mursi, who represents the Muslim Brotherhood, was elected as president in June in Egypt’s first poll since the fall of Hosni Mubarak’s regime.  Last Thursday, Mursi announced that any laws that he may pass would be immune from legal challenges until a new parliament is elected and a constitution is in place.

Although Mursi and his supporters claimed that the decree was necessary in order to move more swiftly towards democracy, the move was interpreted by many as authoritarian and has sparked mass protests which now look set to enter their second week. On Tuesday, an estimated 100,000 people participated in a peaceful rally in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, while protests reportedly turned violent in Alexandria and Mansoura. Meanwhile yesterday, sections of the Egyptian court system went on strike, despite assurances given by Mursi to members of the judiciary on Monday that the immunity of his decisions would only apply to matters of “sovereign” importance.

In the latest development, it was announced last night that the constituent assembly tasked with drafting a new constitution for the country, seen as a cornerstone of the new, democratic Egypt, will finish its work today, paving the way for a referendum on the document in mid-December. Reuters reports that the acceleration of the constitution-forming process is viewed by the Muslim Brotherhood as a way of ending the crisis by quickly replacing Mursi’s unpopular decree. However, the constitution, which will determine the powers of the president, parliament, the judiciary and military and will set out the role of Islamic law, is a cause of deep division in itself.

Opposition leader and former Arab League chairman Amr Moussa criticised the decision to wrap up the constituent assembly’s work, telling Reuters “This is nonsensical and one of the steps that shouldn’t be taken, given the background of anger and resentment to the current constitutional assembly.”