10-person committee finalizes draft constitution

The committee of 10 legal experts mandated to amend Egypt’s 2012 Constitution has finished its work, making way for the formation of a 50-person committee that will produce a final revision of the document ahead of a referendum held within the next three months, state-run Al-Ahram reported.

The amendments point to an intention to reverse several articles that were slammed for reflecting the interests of the Islamist elites who drafted them last year.

The most prominent amendments include one to Article 4, which pertains to Al-Azhar. The amendment removes the stipulation that the Al-Azhar Council of Senior Scholars be consulted about the constitutionality of laws.

The amended article also stipulates that the Al-Azhar grand sheikh cannot be removed, and must be selected from its Council of Senior Scholars.

The committee also added a clause to Article 43, stipulating that for a home to be searched by security forces, a court order must determine the time, place, and reason for the raid. 

A phrase that many said opened the door to child labor was also removed from Article 60, replaced with a stipulation that forbids the employment of children before they reach school-leaving age.

The number of seats in parliament was increased from 350 to 450 seats, as per a change in Article 77, due to the dissolution of the Shura Council.

Article 116 was amended to stipulate that the president’s parents must not hold any other citizenships apart from Egyptian, a rule that applies to the president as well.

Article 134 was also amended to hold the president accountable if he or she violates the constitution.

Article 171 was amended to stipulate that the approval of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces must be given for the appointment of the defense minister.

This committee of 50 experts is set to approve the amendments in two months, after which it will present them to the president, who will in turn put them up for referendum within a maximum of 30 days.