EGYPT: Opposition Fights Martial Law Extension

By Adam Morrow Reprint | | Print |

Adam Morrow

CAIRO, May 5 2006 (IPS) - Opposition groups and rights activists condemned a government decision this week to extend the emergency law – already in place for a quarter century – by another two years.

“The move is consistent with the government’s lack of commitment to political reform,” Hisham Kassem, vice-president of foreign affairs with the recently established al-Ghad opposition party, and vice-chairman of independent daily al-Masry al-Youm told IPS. “It didn’t take anyone by surprise.”

Extension of the Emergency Law, first imposed following the 1981 assassination of former president Anwar Sadat, was approved by the People’s Assembly Apr. 30. The decision to extend the law until May 2008 was passed with 257 MPs in favour – the vast majority from the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) – and 91 against in the 454-member assembly.

Parliamentary endorsement of the highly unpopular state of emergency illustrated the relative weakness of Egypt’s political opposition. Despite elections last September that saw an unprecedented 88 assembly seats go to the banned but tolerated Muslim Brotherhood, the combined opposition is still far from the two-thirds majority necessary to block legislation.

“It’s still just a question of percentage,” said Kassem. “Even after the elections, the opposition only represents about 20 percent of the assembly, so you can’t expect it to affect the political course.”

The voting session on the law was a stormy one, with a number of sharp exchanges between supporters and opponents of the decision. Opposition and independent parliamentarians came to the Assembly wearing black sashes with the slogan ‘No to Emergency’. NDP representatives retaliated by distributing flyers saying ‘No to Terrorism’.

In an opening statement, Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif justified his request for extension of the Emergency Law by pointing to the Apr. 24 bomb attacks in the Red Sea resort town of Dahab, which killed 18 and injured scores. He also spoke of the recent violence between Muslims and Christians.

“The incidents that Egypt has witnessed in the recent past push us to request this extension,” Nazif said. “This time, we’re asking for an extension of only two years, or until the passage of new anti-terrorism legislation.” He added that the Emergency Law would be implemented only when “absolutely necessary.”

NDP representative Abdel-Ahad Gamaleddin sought justification for the decision by pointing to the Dahab attacks. “The NDP hardly loves the Emergency Law,” Gamaleddin was quoted as saying in the May 1 edition of al-Masry al-Youm. “But the latest incidents have confirmed that Egypt is under threat by those that would trifle with its national security.”

Despite the extension of its mandate, the state of emergency has long been abhorred by both opposition and human rights groups, who say its primary function is to kill political dissent.

“The law was just used to arrest 25 members of our group,” said Muslim Brotherhood spokesman Essam al-Erian. “They had been expressing dissatisfaction with the Emergency Law when they were arrested – does that sound like terrorism?”

Walid Kazziha, chairman of the political science department at the American University in Cairo, said the emergency legislation had lent itself to political abuse. “The state of emergency has served two purposes,” Kazziha told IPS. “It has been used – and continues to be used – against terrorism, but it has also been employed to suppress the opposition.”

Critics say the recent Dahab attacks were being used as a pretext to maintain a highly unpopular and oppressive law. “The Dahab incident has undoubtedly strengthened the hand of the ruling party to approve the extension of emergency measures,” said Kazziha. “The attacks allowed the government to delay progress and put aside reforms.”

But Kazziha said extension of the law by two years rather than the usual three could be a reflection of the opposition’s rising parliamentary clout since the elections. “It’s not at the point where it can turn the tables, but it has become recognised.”

In advance of the country’s first contested presidential election last year, President Hosni Mubarak vowed to replace the law with an anti-terrorism bill. The bill has yet to be tabled, but some observers expect to see it before expiration of the Emergency Law.

“Within two years, we’ll see the introduction of some kind of new anti-terrorism law,” said Kazziha. “It will also be controversial, no doubt, and will probably give the government much of the same powers that the Emergency Law has.”

Much of the opposition stands firmly against such a move. “We’re against the introduction of any new laws aimed at replacing the state of emergency,” Muslim Brotherhood’s al-Erian told IPS. “While we hate the Emergency Law, at least it’s temporary, and must be renewed periodically. Any new anti-terrorism law, by contrast, would be permanent.”