Friday 29 June the then president-elect Mohamed Mursi headed to Tahrir Square after he had performed Friday prayers at al-Azhar mosque, and delivered a fiery speech intended to
Friday 29 June the then president-elect Mohamed Mursi headed to Tahrir Square after he had performed Friday prayers at al-Azhar mosque, and delivered a fiery speech intended to inflame revolutionary sentiments. Mursi made the surprise move of taking the presidential oath before the crowds, insisting he derived his legitimacy and authority from the people. The following day, however, Mursi took the oath before the Supreme Constitutional Court (SCC), earning thus his constitutional legitimacy as president of Egypt over the coming four years.
Even though I saw the Tahrir oath as an overt courting of the masses, I had no qualms with that as long as the official oath was taken before the SCC, thereby confirming that Mursi respected constitutional legitimacy, and allaying fears of the opposition on that head.
Thus was inaugurated the Second Republic in Egypt, based on a sound constitutional and legal foundation. It is the duty of the president to bring all his policies and decisions in line with this foundation; even if the need arises for him to interact directly with the masses or the revolutionaries, it should never contradict constitutional and legal legitimacy. The implementation of this principle is of vital importance in order to regain the dignity and authority of the State, which was shattered in the wake of the 25 January 2011 Revolution.
Mursi’s public announcements since he was pronounced president-elect have been cause of comfort. They have followed the moderate line he adopted during his campaign, and have thus reassured Egyptians that the country was embarking on an era of moderation, respect for freedoms, and equality, in order to remedy the political and societal flaws that led to discrimination among Egyptians. But everybody ought to understand, including President Mursi himself, that courteous rhetoric is not alone capable of changing an ailing climate and creating a lucid one. Declarations are an expression of goodwill and give rise to reassurance and hope, but they have to materialise into legislation in order to reflect on our everyday life, achieve communal peace, and take to account whoever upsets that peace.
Once he took the oath before the SCC, Mursi declared that Egypt is a “civil, democratic, modern” State. I see this as the prime challenge that should be embedded in the country’s new constitution which is at the moment about to be written. This should in turn give rise to legislation that empowers the constitutional principles.
In another instance, Mursi announced during a meeting with the editors-in-chief of Egyptian papers that it was impossible for the Egyptian State to tilt in any direction. Mursi was refuting an allegation that the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) and its political arm, the Freedom and Justice Party, were attempting to turn the Egyptian State into an incarnation of the MB. Mursi insisted these allegations were absolutely unfounded. Again, I stress that it is a long and arduous journey till the president’s declarations are instituted in the constitution and relevant legislation. We have to begin promptly and vigilantly.
President Mursi was adamant that Copts should rest assured that “this country belongs to us all, and we all have equal rights here.” I thank Mursi for his honeyed words, but it must be noted that these words do not acknowledge the inequality and discrimination Copts are regularly subjected to. He actually bypasses all the injustices against Copts and goes on to deny any differences between them and their fellow Muslim Egyptians. Mursi should know that good intentions are in no way sufficient here; there is need for a candid, bold scrutiny of the ailment in order to prescribe the long-awaited methods of reform, whether constitutionally or legally, to activate equality and citizenship rights.
I am strongly reminded that the previous president Hosni Mubarak used to insist there was no difference between Christians and Muslims in Egypt, in order to throw into the shadows the grave injustice Copts were the victims of. He apparently thought his declaration was sufficient to resolve all Coptic problems. I believe, however, that no honeyed declarations or good intentions can re-form the future of Egypt without a brave confrontation and correction of the causes of the injustice.
WATANI International
8 July 2012