CAIRO: The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) agreed to put an end to military trials for civilians, except for “those who attack army soldiers,” at a meeting with representatives of 47 political parties on Sunday. SCAF also emphasized the necessity of applying emergency law, a week after it activated some clauses. Decree 193 of 2011 released by SCAF last week says that since Egypt is facing domestic disturbances, terrorism and disruption of national security and public order, then calling a state of emergency is justified. Military Chief of Staff Sami Anan said that the recent activation of broader emergency law clauses was necessary in light of the events of Sept. 9 at the Israeli embassy, adding that the exceptional measures will be lifted as soon as possible. On Sept. 9, clashes erupted between protesters and police outside the Israeli and Saudi embassies and the nearby Giza Security Directorate leaving three dead and 1,049 injured. Most of the political parties called for lifting emergency law, one of the main triggers of the Jan. 25 uprising. Representatives of political parties met with SCAF to discuss the upcoming parliamentary elections, the PA and Shoura Council laws and other issues related to the transitional period. Mostafa El-Naggar, cofounder of El-Adl Party, said in a note on his Facebook page that political powers agreed on a proposed timeline for the upcoming parliamentary elections. The PA and Shoura elections are each to be held in three separate phases, each of which includes nine of Egypt's 27 governorates. According to the proposed timeline, the first phase of PA elections will start on Nov. 21, with the second to start Dec. 7 and the third on Dec. 27. Shoura elections will follow starting Jan. 22, with the second stage set to begin Feb. 7 and the third Feb. 26. However, there were conflicting reports regarding the official announcement of the final elections timeline. Al-Tagammu Party's Rifaat Al-Saeid told Daily News Egypt that no specific timeline was agreed upon by political parties and SCAF during the meeting. Mohamed Morsi, head of the Freedom and Justice Party, called on SCAF to stick to its preliminary roadmap and hold the PA and Shoura elections at the same time, according to Ikhwan Online. He added that the Shoura elections should be held immediately after the PA elections, if it proves “difficult” to hold both at the same time. According to the official Middle East News Agency (MENA), head of the Supreme Electoral Commission, Abdel Moez Ibrahim, said that SCAF had approved the proposed dates for the upcoming elections as suggested by the committee. “Determining the dates of the PA and Shoura elections is done in coordination with SCAF,” Ibrahim said in a telephone interview on ONTV's “Akher Kalaam” Sunday night. He added that the committee is keen on holding the elections on time, so the country can transition to democratic rule within a specific timeframe, without leaving anything to circumstance. According to Al-Ahram online, the Cabinet is scheduled to discuss the timeline proposed by the commission on Wednesday. The ruling council did respond to political parties' demand to reconsider the breakdown of the recently announced electoral constituencies for the upcoming elections. Earlier this month, political powers and experts slammed leaked lists charting the delineation of new electoral constituencies saying it made it "extremely difficult" for candidates to campaign. Saeid said that SCAF would accept the political parties' proposals for a new map for the electoral constituencies within the next 72 hours. Thirty-two political parties also called for the implementation of an open party list system instead of a combination of closed party lists and the individual candidates system proposed by SCAF, according to Saeid. However, judges from the Supreme Constitutional Court including its vice president, disagreed, saying that it was “unconstitutional” to have an election system based solely on the open party list. This system, judges explained, would deprive individual candidates from running in the elections independently, and force them to join a political party and abide by its principles. Aboul Ela Mady, head of Al-Wasat Party, condemned the participation of judges from the Supreme Constitutional Court in the meeting, in a phone interview on Dream TV's “Al-Ashera Masa'an” Sunday night. He said that the court is supposed to officially express its opinion after the law is issued. But El-Naggar pointed out that judges made it clear they weren't representing the court in the meeting, and merely participated in their personal not professional capacity. SCAF also agreed not to compel political parties to put the name of at least one farmer or worker on the top of their lists, according to El-Naggar. The law states that 50 percent of the People's Assembly's seats should be reserved for workers and farmers. The parties were divided over implementing the treachery act, with some saying that it would eliminate a large number of Egyptians from the political arena, while others believed it would achieve justice and hold those who “corrupted” the previous elections through rigging and thuggery, accountable for their actions. In August, the Cabinet released the amended treachery act, a post 1952 revolution law, which strips officials proven guilty of political corruption of their right to practice politics for five years. General Mamdouh Shahin of SCAF said that the council was still reviewing the law. Regarding political campaigning, Saeid suggested enforcing a legal penalty on candidates who use mosques, churches or religious slogans in their campaigning. Some Salafi parties participating in the meeting rejected the suggestion, saying that anything can be interpreted as religious campaigning. “If I start a speech with, ‘in the name of God,' it can be interpreted as religious campaigning,” said Saeid, quoting a Salafi leader. On his part, Communications Minister Osama Heikal vowed to offer equal coverage to all political parties. Anan stressed at the beginning of the meeting, that the army council's only role in the upcoming elections is to secure the polling stations. He added that the council wants political powers, legal and constitutional experts to agree on one vision regarding the upcoming elections, to prevent the ongoing controversy. Anan concluded the meeting saying that the military council will convene several times with the political parties in the future to reach a consensus regarding pressing issues.
