Changes to a 60-year-old law seek to make it easier to prosecute senior figures from the ousted regime, writes Gamal Essam El-Din In a statement on 21 July Prime Minister Essam Sharaf announced the introduction of amendments to Law 344/1952 -- the Ghadr, or treason, law -- issued by the Free Officers in the wake of the July Revolution, purportedly to prosecute officials accused of corrupting political life under the monarchy but subsequently used to silence political dissent. "It is not enough to see Mubarak's henchmen and senior officials stand trial on criminal charges. They must also answer allegations of political corruption, including rigging parliamentary elections and paving the way for the former president's son Gamal to inherit power from his father," said Sharaf. "Changes to the treason law will help us get rid of those who manipulated political life under Mubarak." Playing a role in rigging elections, disrupting opposition parties and drafting constitutional amendments in favour of the succession scenario and at the expense of the republican foundations of Egypt, are all within the remit of the amendments. So too is abuse of power by officials to further their own interests, or the interests of companies, institutions and public bodies with which they were associated. The law also extends to financial crimes, including manipulating the prices of property, goods and services, including shares. "There is no role for military courts in trying regime officials," said Minister of Justice Mohamed Abdel-Aziz El-Guindi. "And defendants will have the right to appeal against verdicts." Officials found guilty of corrupting political life under the treason law will be stripped of their political rights for a minimum of five years. "They will be barred from standing or voting in elections," says El-Guindi, "as well as from holding public posts or joining political parties." Alaa Abdel-Moneim, a former opposition MP, believes that the majority of officials from the now defunct National Democratic Party (NDP) could face prosecution. "Former parliamentary speaker Fathi Sorour, former chairman of the Shura Council and NDP secretary-general Safwat El-Sherif, Mubarak's chief of presidential staff Zakaria Azmi, not to mention Mubarak's son Gamal and his business associate Ahmed Ezz, face being prosecuted under the law." "Mubarak's henchmen will not escape punishment. While they may be acquitted of criminal charges such as squandering public money or profiteering from their posts, the treason law would see them cornered on political corruption crimes." Abdel-Moneim believes that the evidence necessary to press charges is easily assembled. "Documents detailing their political malpractices are everywhere, including in the minutes of the two houses of parliament -- the People's Assembly and Shura Council. Fathi Sorour was heavily involved in drafting the 2005 and 2007 constitutional amendments, tailored to promote Gamal Mubarak as Egypt's next president, orchestrating parliamentary debates and pushing through the amendments without proper discussion and in record time." As for rigging parliamentary elections, Abdel-Moneim believes that "the Court of Cassation's reports on the results of the elections contain enough evidence to send people like NDP former secretary for organisational affairs Ahmed Ezz to prison for many years". Leading political analyst Mohamed Hassanein Heikal told Al-Ahram that "it is not enough to prosecute Mubarak for illegal profiteering and ordering the killing of peaceful protesters". "Mubarak must be prosecuted for political corruption as well, for disrupting the republican nature of Egypt and preparing the country for a father-son succession scenario. Mubarak gave the green light for security forces and NDP officials to rig the elections, tinker with the constitution, and manipulate the state-run media in favour of his son." Fawzia Abdel-Sattar, professor of constitutional law at Cairo University, believes the scope of the treason law should be extended to include employees within the state-run media, including the editors of newspapers and magazines who were happy to promote the interests of the regime and tarnish the image of opposition politicians who objected to the succession scenario in return for financial privileges. The changes to the law have not been welcomed by everyone. In a statement issued on 28 July the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies denounced the law as undemocratic, suggesting instead that an independent court be established to try former officials. "The 1952 treason law was an exceptional law issued by the Free Officers. No one can argue it promoted democratic practice," said the statement." "The law returns us to an age when the army dictated exceptional laws without the approval of an elected parliament," says former presidential candidate Ayman Nour. "It would be far better to amend the law on the sovereignty of the judiciary to give ordinary courts greater powers in trying officials involved in corrupting political life." The Wafd Party denounced the treason law as "a noxious product of the 1952 army coup". In the aftermath of the July Revolution several leading party officials were tried under the extraordinary provisions and stripped of exercising their political rights.
