CAIRO: Egypt's National Council officially announced its bill of constitutional principles on Saturday while calling for drafting a new constitution ahead of the legislative elections planned for September. During a press conference at the Journalists Syndicate, the Council called for a national dialogue to discuss the possibility of integrating several bills that have been proposed by various groups. "Presenting this bill isn't an alternative or a retreat for demanding the constitution first and this isn't a tactical or an electoral stance but it is in the best interest of society," said Sameh Ashour, member of the general secretariat of the council and head of the Nasserist Party. The bill, prepared by a group of constitutional and legal experts, retained the much-debated second article of the constitution identifying Islam as the religion of the state and Islamic Sharia as one of the principle sources of legislation. However, the bill added constitutional guarantees, giving non-Muslims the right to refer to their respective religions with regards to personal status issues and allowing the legislator to choose from among the diverse rulings of Sharia in accordance with the general interest and under the supervision of the Supreme Constitutional Court. The bill also proposed mechanisms to protect the civil nature of the state by banning any future modifications in constitutional articles related to the identity of the state and the republican system and by assigning the Armed Forces as the protector of the republican, civil and democratic identity of the state. "Discussions about the constitution should be ongoing whether the elections take place first or not because this is a huge political process that will guide life in Egypt for decades to come," said Justice Tahany Al-Gebaly, Egypt's first female Supreme Court judge, and also a member of the National Council. The bill also gave constitutional protection for natural resources like the Nile and strategic assets like the Suez Canal, the High Dam and educational and scientific research institutes. "We present this bill based on complete awareness of the importance of reaching consensus on the basic principles that will be included in any future constitution," said architect Mamdouh Hamza, spokesperson of the council. The bill will be tabled for discussion at universities, among political parties and professional and workers' syndicates. "These are not ultra-constitutional principles because they must be included in the constitution itself but are general guidelines for the upcoming constitution that political powers want to include in the constitution," said Mohamed Nour Farahat, law professor and secretary general of the National Council. Several groups have started similar initiatives to steer the work of the constituent assembly that will eventually draft Egypt's new constitution. Presidential hopeful Mohamed ElBaradei presented a 17-article bill of rights outlining the principals that should govern the constitution. Another initiative is in the works to get ordinary Egyptians to voice their aspirations in what should be included in the constitution. "These bills present different points of view but do not contradict each other," Farahat said. The bill suggested that the 100-strong constituent assembly that will draft the constitution include representative of social, professional and syndicate groups as well as 50 independent politicians and constitutional experts.
