The People's Assembly (the Lower House of the Egyptian Parliament) on Saturday approached the Cassation Court, the highest judicial authority in Egypt, to verify the membership of 468 lawmakers in the 518-strong legislature, which opposition and rights groups claim was the product of a rigged vote. "The Committee of Legislative and Constitutional Affairs referred 1,527 appeals to the Cassation Court against 468 MPs. The court is asked to issue decisions on the validity of their membership," said Amal Othman, the head of the committee. She added, however, that the final decision concerning the lawmakers' removal or stay in the legislature would be decided by the House itself. "Only 22 MPs and ten others appointed by President Hosni Mubarak are not appealed against," said Othman, the only woman who garnered a seat in the House in ordinary seats. Sixtyfour women have gained membership of the People's Assembly in the recent legislative elections after running in women-only constituencies under a quota system. The Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's largest-butbanned opposition group, and the secular Al-Wafd Party pulled out of the runoffs of last year's elections claiming that the first round was rigged to the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP). The Brotherhood last week called on Mubarak to dissolve the Parliament and hold new elections, in a move that appeared to be an attempt to capitalise on the hopes for change sparked by Tunisia's popular uprising. The Brotherhood also called for an end to Egypt's 30-year-old Emergency Law that bans political rallies, and demanded sweeping constitutional amendments to allow free and fair presidential elections.
