CAIRO: Egypt on Sunday slammed Amnesty International condemnation of President Hosni Mubarak s proposed constitutional changes, saying that non-Egyptians had no right to comment on the country s internal matters.
Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said Amnesty s statement was an attempt to impose foreign oversight on the decision of the Egyptian people.
The human rights body called on Egypt s parliament on Saturday to reject the proposed changes which it described as the most serious undermining of the people s rights in 26 years.
It is not the right of non-Egyptians to comment or simply pass an opinion on a purely internal question, that is, on the constitution [of Egypt] and its national laws, said the minister in a statement.
Egypt s parliament on Sunday began debating the changes with around 100 MPs, mainly Islamists, boycotting the session in protest at the attempt to change the constitution.
Nearly 100 Egyptian personalities have already denounced the proposals, accusing Mubarak of laying the groundwork for his son Gamal to succeed to the presidency.
In its criticism, Amnesty said the changes would give sweeping powers of arrest to the police, allow monitoring of private communications and enable Egypt s president to bypass ordinary courts for people suspected of terrorism.
If parliament adopts the changes, the amendments will be put to a referendum on April 4.
