The administrative judiciary is preparing to strike back at the minister of justice, writes Mona El-Nahhas At a stormy general assembly of the State Council Judges' Club (SCJC) on Friday, around 600 judges working for the administrative judiciary decided to form a committee to meet President Hosni Mubarak. The sole topic on the agenda would be what they described as the "offensive behaviour" of Minister of Justice Mamdouh Marei towards them and their chairman. The assembled judges also decided to sue Marei for LE10 million for slander and called for his dismissal. At the same time, they vowed to use all means necessary to protect the dignity of the judiciary and end the minister's unrelenting assault against them. A delegation representing Cairo's Judges Club -- the first judiciary club targeted by Marei -- attended Friday's assembly in support of the SCJC. The delegation stressed that anger over their squandered dignity and independence will unite judges, and lead them to form a unified judiciary authority capable of liberating itself from the influence of executive authority. Marei is reported to have recently mocked the chairman of the SCJC Judge Yehia Dakrouri by saying "[Dakrouri] was weeping like drama queen actress Amina Rizq" when pleading for medical treatment for a junior judge. Marei made the statement during a meeting with a group of judges at the ministry's Judicial Studies Centre, in reference to Dakrouri's efforts to secure funds for Judge Mohamed Gad Manzalawi's treatment from a brain tumor in Germany after the Justice Ministry refused to foot the bill. Besides insulting Dakrouri, Marei questioned the integrity of the administrative judiciary when the Higher Administrative Court obliged the ministry to pay for Manzalawi's treatment. The minister hinted that the ruling favoured the sick judge because he is a member of the administrative judiciary. Marei's off colour remarks enflamed the sensibilities of the administrative judiciary, who issued several statements condemning his breach of all judiciary principles and traditions. In fact, at Friday's meeting, reports were distributed documenting the minister's violations. Dakrouri filed a complaint with Prosecutor- General Abdel-Meguid Mahmoud suing Marei for libel, and submitted a list of the judges who attended the meeting in question. Another lawsuit was submitted by Judge Abdel-Salam El-Hereibi against Marei, accusing him of founding a new ministerial department to secretly assesses the performance of judges, which is in violation of the law. Against this backdrop of bickering, Mubarak ordered the formation of a committee of top officials, headed by Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif, to evaluate the performance of the Justice Ministry since Marei took over in August, 2006. The committee will also assess Marei's method of dealing with judges and the clashes he initiated with them since he was appointed. The judges hope that Mubarak's interference is an indication that the justice minister will be fired in the anticipated cabinet reshuffle. They feel the regime could find that it's time for Marei to go after fulfilling the mission he was chosen for, namely weakening judges clubs and silencing outspoken judges who call for judicial reform and comprehensive judicial supervision over elections. Since his appointment in 2006 as part of a limited cabinet reshuffle, Marei has been viewed by the majority of judges as someone who came to settle a score with them.
