CAIRO: Minister of Justice Mamdouh Marei has issued a new law to re-establish the Court of Conduct, Vice Chairman of the Court of Appeals Hisham Al-Bastawisy told Daily News Egypt. Al-Bastawisy says that the new court is a monitoring authority on judges, with the power to supervise and investigate their actions. He believes that Marei's decision to establish the Court is in violation of President Hosni Mubarak's judicial strategy, implemented through constitutional changes made in early 2007. The changes involved dismantling monitoring systems on the judiciary to answer their long-called-for struggle for independence. "This decision is proof that the country does not abide by either the law or the constitution, Al-Bastawisy added. The new court will be activated in October 2008. The move indicates that the year to come is likely to follow the same path as 2007, with rising conflicts between the Ministry of Justice and members of the judiciary. Judges were in the spotlight in November 2007, when Justice Marei backtracked on a controversial article in a draft law which would have given the ministry sweeping powers. The law would have allowed the ministry to strip judges of their immunity and penalize them when it sees fit. Days before Marei retracted the changes, the Center of Independent Judges and Lawyers issued a strongly-worded statement denouncing the proposed law. It was the first time Marei responds positively to judges' demands after months of conflict. In July, Yehia Ragheb Dakroury, chairman of the Judges' Club, filed a lawsuit against Marei at the State Council, accusing him of insulting judges. His complaint was one of a series of accusations exchanged between the Judges' Club and the minister. Controversy erupted among judges a few months before that when the People's Assembly approved both the new judges' law, which pushed the retirement age up to 70, and controversial amendments to the political rights law.
