The battle has intensified between the National Association for Change (NAC) and the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) over whether or not to write a new constitution before parliamentary elections scheduled for September, with the NAC sending a letter on Tuesday to Prime Minister Essam Sharaf, requesting him to refer the issue to the State Council. The NAC and a number of other parties argue that a new constitution must be in place before elections, while the MB insists on holding the elections first. “Resorting to the State Council is a circumvention of the will of the people,” said the NAC's Brotherhood representative Ahmed Abu Baraka. For his part, the Wasat Party Vice President Essam Soltan said NAC General Coordinator Abdel Gelil Mostafa acted on his own when he sent that letter. “It was a majority decision,” said Mostafa, adding that the Wasat Party had withdrawn from the NAC six months ago. The Free Front for Peaceful Change launched a campaign to collect 15 million signatures on a statement requesting the constitution be held first, while the Revolution Youth Coalition, which comprises eight political parties and movements, called for a million-strong demonstration on Friday, 8 July in several cities for the same purpose. Translated from the Arabic Edition
