Further meetings of the constituent assembly charged with drafting a new constitution have been postponed indefinitely following a court order that the assembly be suspended, reports Gamal Essam El-Din The third meeting of the constituent assembly tasked with writing Egypt's new constitution is postponed indefinitely, parliamentary speaker Saad El-Katatni announced on Tuesday. "The postponement," he said, "shows respect for judicial orders and upholds the sovereignty of the law and the constitution." El-Katatni's decision came hours after the Administrative Court ruled the constituent assembly be dissolved after judging it had been formed improperly. The majority Freedom and Justice Party, to which El-Katatni belongs, has signaled its intention to appeal the court order but then changed its mind. A fifth of the members of the 100-seat assembly had already boycotted its second meeting, held on 4 April, though El-Katatni said he had received apologies from just 11 members. "We are keen," he announced following the meeting, "that members who are boycotting rejoin the assembly's ranks but they should be aware that we do not have much time and if they withdraw they will be replaced." El-Katatni's announcement triggered strong criticism from political forces opposed to the way Islamists had contrived to dominate the constituent assembly. They made much of the withdrawal of Al-Azhar's representative and comments by the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Sheikh Ahmed El-Tayeb about the unrepresentative nature of the current assembly. The boycott of the representatives of Egypt's various Christian churches and of Al-Azhar has, argues Tagammu Party Chairman Rifaat El-Said, rendered the assembly untenable. On 5 April El-Said met alongside Wafd Party head El-Sayed El-Badawi, chairman of the Egyptian Social Democratic Party Mohamed Abul-Ghar, chairman of the Free Egyptians Party Ahmed Said and Nasserist party chair Sameh Ashour to review the situation. El-Said argued that "the way Islamists imposed their will on the assembly reveals their intention to tailor a constitution that does not reflect the aspirations of Egyptians for a free and democratic state". The 5 April meeting, according to El-Said, was intended as a nucleus for building a broad-based coalition that would isolate the Islamist-dominated constituent assembly. "A constitution drafted without the participation of Al-Azhar or the Coptic Orthodox Church," he said, "can never be considered a constitution for all Egyptians." On the same day the board of the Press Syndicate withdrew its representative, syndicate chairman Mamdouh El-Wali, from the assembly. Major-general Mamdouh Shahin, legal advisor to the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), announced at the assembly's second meeting that "SCAF aims to provide legal protection for the assembly which was elected in a constitutional way". "Shahin can say what he likes," retorted Wafd's Al-Badawi. "He does not have the power to force political forces to join the Islamist-dominated assembly." Yesterday's meeting was expected to endorse the constituent assembly's internal regulations and elect two deputies for El-Katatni, one representing parliamentarians and the other non-parliamentarians. The regulations would have solely empowered the chairman of the assembly to convene meetings, and set the quorum at 51 members. Meetings of the assembly would have been closed to the media and members banned from speaking to the press. Briefings would have been limited to an officially appointed media spokesman. Members who failed to attend three meetings would have been automatically replaced. Under the regulations five sub-committees were due to be formed, one to receive proposals; the second to review Egypt's previous constitutions and those adopted by other countries; a third to receive expert testimony; a fourth to conduct a national dialogue on proposed drafts and the fifth to compose an initial draft constitution. The regulations up for vote also stated: "There will be separate committees to draft chapters on the state and the basic elements of the Egyptian society; on the sovereignty of law, freedoms and public duties; and the system of government. The committee entrusted with drafting the latter will comprise sub- committees that will address issues of executive power; legislative power; judicial power; defence and national security; culture and the press, special agencies and the supervisory and independent organisations." The regulations indicated that the draft articles of the new constitution would need to be endorsed by at least 60 members of the assembly to be accepted.
