CAIRO: After the upper house agreed to President Hosni Mubarak's proposal to extend the Emergency Law for two years, criticism of the decision has been non-stop. National newspapers published few reactions, focusing instead on Mubarak's announcements, while the independent press launched a campaign against the much-criticized law. According to Al Ahram, "the Emergency Law would be extended for two years or until anti-terrorism laws are passed, a notion that suggests that the law may be further extended even though it has been in force in Egypt for 25 years. Less than two weeks ago, 114 upper house members who were mostly Muslim Brotherhood representatives, formed an opposition front against the laws, calling on local human rights groups to support their cause. The members have said that violence or the threat of violence should not be used as an excuse to "stifle people's freedom. However, when Mubarak suggested the extension, the majority of parliament complied. The Emergency Law was enacted in 1981 after a group of Islamists assassinated former President Anwar El-Sadat, and has been renewed every three years since. It allows security to carry out mass arrests without permits, holding detainees for as long as six months without trial. Any other perceived threat to national security by a group or an individual are taken to military or state security emergency courts. The law also puts restrictions on freedom of speech, sit-ins and gatherings, if the latter are without prior authorization from state security. According to the Washington Post, the president renewed the law "despite his promise that it would be canceled and replaced with specific anti-terrorism measures. "Egyptian officials signaled in recent weeks that the U.S. pressure had eased and that recent reforms had gone far enough. Mubarak heralded the status quo two weeks ago, telling reporters that a new law would take 18 months to two years to formulate, added the newspaper. "The Emergency [Law] is for the protection of the state and the confrontation of terror, Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif told Al-Akhbar. "We are committed to plans of political and constitutional reforms, and democracy outlined by the president. The same newspaper carried the picture of Nasr Khamis, deemed principally responsible for the three Dahab Red Sea resort bombings that killed 18 and wounded at least 90. "Intensive efforts to catch the fugitive are underway, explained Al-Akhbar after it reported an "exchange of fire between Khamis, his supporters on one side and security police on the other in the Sinai Mountains on Sunday. Also, according to Reuters' police sources, police shot dead two other men suspected of belonging to the group of Sinai Bedouins who carried out the Dahab attacks. "A police patrol came across two of the men in the Mount Hilal area of northeastern Sinai. The men threw two hand grenades at them but the grenades did not explode, they said. Police opened fire in response and killed them both, read a Reuters report. A day before the gunfire battle, police said they had detained two men suspected of plotting the attacks. Coinciding with the renewal of the law, security police have also rounded-up at least 18 members of the Muslim Brotherhood branch in Al-Sharqiya governorate. The members were reportedly hanging up posters condemning the Emergency Laws and distributing leaflets. According to Reuters, "The Brotherhood has launched a campaign against extending the laws, including blacklisting politicians who support it, and has said the state is cracking down on the group in response.
