Moussa calls for closed session on day-two of draft constitution vote

Amr Moussa has called for a closed meeting of the draft constitution committee following a Sunday vote that saw four articles fail to receive the required votes for passage. Moussa is the head of the draft constitution committee.

The 50-member committee tasked with amending the constitution held its second voting session on Sunday, approving 104 articles of the remaining 108. The four articles, relating to parliamentary elections and representation, did not pass because they received less than 75 percent of the votes.

The articles pertain to the representation of workers and farmers, Christians and people with special needs in the constitution, as well as the parliamentary system and timeframe.

The committee did not pass articles 243 and 244, which stipulate that the state decides on the quota of workers and farmers, as well as Christians and people with special needs, in parliament.  

Article 229, which stipulates that parliamentary elections be held on a mixed system — two thirds allocated for individual candidates and one third for electoral lists —also did not pass.

Article 230, which states that parliamentary elections must be held after a minimum period of 30 days and a maximum of 90 days after the constitution is ratified, was also not passed.

Meanwhile, one of the most contentious articles that did receive approval — by a margin of 41 votes — was Article 204, which allows for military trials for civilians in certain cases. The article says civilians to can be tried in military courts for crimes connected to attacks on military installations, equipment, weapons, documents and personnel, as well as crimes pertaining to recruitment.

The article stipulates that members of the military judiciary are independent and cannot be removed, and that they have all of the rights, guarantees and duties of the judiciary.

The committee unanimously passed Article 245, canceling the Shura Council and transferring its employees to work in the parliament or Lower House of Representatives. 

They also approved articles pertaining to the president’s powers, including Article 159 which stipulates that the president can be accused of treason, of violating the constitution or any other crime by two thirds of the parliament and that, in such a case, his position should be suspended until a final court ruling.

On Saturday, the 50-member committee finalized voting on 138 articles of the draft. The articles covered during Saturday's voting session included the basic principles of the state, social and economic rights, freedoms, the rule of law as well as the legislative branch of state.

This committee is set to finalize the draft constitution, after which it will present it to the president, who will in turn put them up for referendum within a maximum of 30 days.

Interim President Adly Mansour is bound by the Constitutional Declaration issued last July to call for parliamentary elections two and half months after the new constitution is ratified.