Cairo (AsiaNews/ Agencies) - Egypt's parliament
announced the names of the 100-member constituent assembly whose task is to
write the country's new constitution more than a year after the fall of President
Hosni Mubarak. The first assembly was dissolved last April because its membership
was too skewed towards Islamist movements (Muslim Brotherhood and Salafis), who
have been accused of trying to monopolise political life. At that time,
Islamists had used their parliamentary majority to appoint 60 lawmakers and
ideologues from the Muslim Brotherhood and Salafis.
The new body will include 39 parliamentarians, mostly
Islamists but also seven young women who took part in the Jasmine revolution;
five Islamic scholars from al-Azhar Universities and other Islamic institutions;
four delegates representing Christian denominations, 13 representatives of
trade unions; 21 important businessmen; and 19 legal experts and law
professors. The liberal nationalist Wafd party was excluded because in the
recent elections it called on voters to boycott the poll by spoiling their
ballot.
People's Assembly (lower house) Speaker Saad
al-Katatny announced that the new assembly would hold its first session at the
end of the week.
Under new regulations approved recently by parliament
and the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, constitutional proposals need a 67
per cent majority to be adopted by the assembly, a requirement that should
limit the influence of Islamist parties. The latter however may still seek
votes among non-political members whose names and orientation have not yet been
made public.
Meanwhile, Egyptians are preparing to head for the
runoff in the presidential election next Saturday and Sunday. They will have to
choose between Ahmed Shafiq, a former prime Minister under Mubarak backed by
supporters of the former regime and the military, and Mohamed Morsy, leader of
the Freedom and Justice Party, the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood, who
is supported by Salafis and other Islamist movements.
Many of the young Egyptians who took part in the 'Arab
spring' said that they did not feel represented by either candidate and so will
not vote.
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