CAIRO: After days of waiting, the Egyptian opposition coalition, the National Salvation Front (NSF), finally has come to the decision to campaign Egyptians to vote “no” in Saturday's controversial draft constitution. They said they would continue to battle against the draft and push forward until all the demands of the January 2011 uprising were met. The constitution going to a vote was written predominantly by Islamists and allies to conservative President Mohamed Morsi. Former Presidential candidate and NSF leader Hamdeen Sabahi said that their participation in the constitution depends on a number of factors, including “complete judicial monitoring, comprehensive security, local and regional supervision by non-governmental organizations, the announcement of results immediately following the end of the vote, and concluding the process in one day.” As they announced their push for a “no” vote, the Morsi government also announced that voting in the referendum would take place over two days, throwing into question the opposition's participation once again. The Front added that they would do on all it can to topple the controversial draft constitution, adding that this is “not the last battle and that the struggle will continue until the goals of the revolution are met.” The constitution has been a major contentious issue and the Front has repeatedly demanded that President Mohamed Morsi postpone the referendum as a court is to rule on the assembly's legality in the drafting process. Egypt is facing continued deadlock over the future of the country. Supporters of Morsi claim that as the democratically elected president of Egypt he has the right, even the duty, to push forward the draft constitution for referendum on December 15. Critics of the president argue that the document was written by a largely Islamist front of ultra-conservatives and threatens the very future of freedom and rights in the country. It's a stalemate, even as Morsi rescinded the presidential decree that made his decisions above judicial review on Saturday night. He, however, refused to budge on the constitutional referendum, which has sparked more anger and more protests scheduled for Sunday across the country. The constitution, drafted by predominantly conservative Islamists, is the issue at hand in Egypt. Critics say that even though Morsi was democratically elected, he does not represent the majority and cannot implement his will through the constitution. They argue that the drafting process was not representative of the country, especially after numerous groups, including women's rights organizations, Coptic Christians and liberal leaders withdrew after saying the Islamists would not compromise on any issue. Adding fuel to the protest movement now gripping the country is the first-round of election votes, which saw Morsi garner only 25 percent of the electorate. Anti-Morsi critics say this is proof that he does not have a mandate to rule with an iron fist and force down the throats a constitution that eliminates women's rights, equality and freedom of religion. “This is the problem we are facing right now," 27-year-old Mohamed Mahmoud, an unemployed recent university graduate, told Bikyamasr.com on Friday at the presidential palace as hundreds of thousands had gathered. “We are not represented and we have no time to campaign and make people aware. It is not fair and it is not democracy," he added. At the heart of the matter for more than half of Egypt's 90 million population, are women's rights and how they are represented, or not represented, in the draft constitution.
