Contrary to popular belief, camels are not a common sight on the streets of Cairo, but anything goes on referendum day (AFP photo/MAHMOUD KHALED)
Relax; you are not experiencing a déjà vu. It’s just that time of the year again: the time of the referendum. This might just be the third referendum Egyptians have seen in three years, but not the umpteenth time they have stood patiently in line to vote on something or another. Most Egyptians have learned the location of their polling station by heart, formed friendships in the long queues and even had some reunion or other with long-lost relatives or friends.
So, yes, it’s a usual sight, even that camel walking by the polling station; just another day of citizenship and national duty. Nothing to see here.
Egyptian women sit in front of posters reading in Arabic: “Yes to the constitution” and a portrait of Egypt’s army chief Al-Sisi as Egyptians turn at at polling stations to cast their vote on a new constitution on 14 January 2014. (AFP Photo)
An Egyptian fills in his ballot paper at a polling station during the vote on a new constitution on January 14, 2014 in the coastal city of Alexandria. Egyptians began voting amid high security on a new constitution billed as the first step toward democratic transition after the ouster of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi.
(AFP PHOTO / STR)
A handout picture released by Egyptian presidency shows Egypts interim president Adly Mansour showing his ink-stained finger after voting on a new constitution outside a polling station in Cairo on 14 January 2014.
A woman shows her ink-marked finger as she leaves a polling centre after voting on a new constitution on January 14, 2014 in Mounira, a district of Cairo. Egyptians vote on a new constitution amid high security in a referendum likely to prompt a presidential bid by the army chief who overthrew Islamist president Mohamed Morsi.
(AFP PHOTO / VIRGINIE NGUYEN HOANG)
Egyptian security forces stand guard as people queue outside a polling center before voting on a new constitution on January 14, 2014 in Cairo. Egyptians vote on a new constitution amid high security in a referendum likely to prompt a presidential bid by the army chief who overthrew Islamist president Mohamed Morsi.
(AFP PHOTO / KHALED DESOUKI)
An Egyptian man shouts at a soldier who stands guard at the entrance of a polling center during the vote on a new constitution on January 14, 2014 in Cairo.
(AFP PHOTO / KHALED DESOUKI)
Egyptians headed to polling stations early Tuesday morning to cast their votes on the draft constitution finalised on 3 December.
Interim Egyptian President Adly Mansour and Defence Minister Abdel Fatah Al-Sisi called upon Egyptians to participate in the much-anticipated referendum earlier this week.
The referendum on the draft constitution is part of the roadmap put in place by the military on 3 July following the ouster of President Mohamed Morsi.
An Egyptian woman living in Oman casts her vote on a divisive draft constitution in Egypt at the Egyptian embassy in the Gulf sultanate’s capital Muscat on January 8, 2014. (AFP PHOTO/MOHAMMED MAHJOUB)
By Ali Omar
Over 100,000 of 681,000 eligible Egyptian expatriates voted in the referendum over the new constitution during a five-day period, according to Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Badr Abelatty. The numbers were down by almost 60% from the 2012 referendum, although 20,000 more voted in person this year.
Abdelatty said that the low voter turnout was due to the inability of expatriates to vote by mail, the Muslim Brotherhood’s boycott of the referendum, and voter ID laws that prevented some from casting ballots. Abdelatty noted that 65% of voters in Gulf countries voted by mail.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Nabil Fahmy visited the Egyptian embassy in Paris during the referendum to oversee operations. The foreign ministry’s Facebook page said he spoke with voters and that they “praised the good organisation” of the process.
Although the final count has yet to be established, the results have been overwhelmingly in favour of the constitution. According to data compiled by independent researchers, 97.4% of the vote was in favour.
Saudi Arabia recorded over 23,000 votes, more than any other country. 97.3% were in favour of the constitution. An estimated 40% of all Egyptians living abroad reside in Saudi Arabia.
The High Electoral Commission Monday said that 103,000 expatriates voted in the referendum. 681,000 voters were registered to vote, meaning that a mere 15% took part in the referendum. The International Organization for Migration says that around 2.7 million Egyptians live abroad.
Almost 53 million Egyptians are eligible to vote in the national referendum, which is slated to take place 14 and 15 January.
Defence Minister Abdel Fatah Al-Sisi said he would run for president if the people demand it and the military supports him, state media quoted him as saying on January 11, 2014. (AFP PHOTO/MOHAMED EL-SHAHED)
The candidacies of Defence Minister Abdel Fatah Al-Sisi and former presidential candidates Ahmed Shafiq, Abdel Moneim Abul Fotouh and Hamdeen Sabahy remain shrouded in uncertainty, their recent statements indicate.
On Saturday, Al-Sisi said he would do “whatever Egyptians demand”, in response to questions over a potential bid for president. He added that he would “never turn his back on Egypt.”
His statements come after increasing speculation on whether the commander in chief of the armed forces would enter the presidential race. A campaign was launched in September with the purpose of convincing Al-Sisi to run for the presidency, vowing to gather millions of signatures.
Similarly, the status of Ahmed Shafiq’s candidacy also remains up in the air. The former prime minister, who was appointed by ousted Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, recently said in a television interview on the Al Kahera Wal Nas channel that he “will not hesitate” to run if Al-Sisi does not run for president.
Shafiq proceeded to the second round of the 2012 presidential bid but lost against Muslim Brotherhood candidate Mohamed Morsi, who won with 51% of the vote.
Al-Tayar Al-Sha’aby leader Hamdeen Sabahy was cited by his political group on Saturday as saying that he remains a “potential” candidate and that his candidacy depends on a prospective electoral programme and the formation of a campaign team that “represents the revolution.”
He had announced on 25 November that he would run for presidency in the upcoming elections only if publicly recognised as the “candidate of the revolution”.
Misr Al-Qawia Party Chairman Abdel Moneim Abul Fotouh told Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that he still remains undecided on whether or not he would run again and that the final decision would be made by the party.
Both Sabahy and Abul Fotouh had made runs for the 2012 presidential race but were eliminated after the first round of voting.
As it stands, it is still undecided whether the upcoming constitutional referendum will be followed by presidential or parliamentary elections. A decision on the contentious issue is yet to be made by interim President Adly Mansour.
The majority of non-Islamist political movements are in favour of prioritising the presidential elections over the parliamentary ones.
An Egyptian man living in Oman casts her vote on a divisive draft constitution in Egypt at the Egyptian embassy in the Gulf sultanate’s capital Muscat on January 8, 2014. (AFP PHOTO/MOHAMMED MAHJOUB)
Turnout for Egyptians abroad has reached approximately 94,000, said the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday. The announcement came with one day left for Egyptians to submit their ballots in person at Egyptian embassies and consulates.
Voting for Egyptians across the globe is scheduled to come to a close at 9pm local time at Egypt’s diplomatic missions, according to the statement issued by the foreign ministry, after which the counting of the ballots would proceed.
A total of 64,000 Egyptians abroad had submitted ballots for the country’s constitutional referendum after three days, according to the High Elections Commission (HEC) on Saturday, after three days of open polls.
The polls for Egyptians abroad opened last Wednesday, and the HEC said that it expected turnout to continue to increase on Saturday and Sunday, which are weekend days for most countries.
The total number of voters in Saudi Arabia had reached 20,000 by the end of Saturday, according to state-owned Al-Ahram. Of the Egyptian expats eligible to vote, more than 40% reside in Saudi Arabia.
There are more than 681,000 Egyptians abroad eligible to vote across 161 countries. In previous elections, expatriate voters were able to cast their ballots to the nearest embassy or consulate by mail, but new regulations require a voter to appear in person. This has caused some problems with some Egyptians overseas, especially when embassy or consulate locations were inconvenient to reach.
Spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs BadrAbdelatty previously said that the measures were taken to prevent cover fraud and rigging, adding that establishing polling places outside official diplomatic missions violated the local law in some countries.
So far, this year’s turnout is smaller than that of the 2012 referendum on the constitution, when approximately 41% of eligible voters abroad, over 240,000 voters, submitted their ballots. Over 67% of them voted in favour of the 2012 constitution that was largely backed by the Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamist groups.
Polls in Egypt are scheduled to open on Tuesday for two days.
Misr Al-Qawia Party’s lawsuit to strike an amendment made by interim President Adly Mansour to the law on the right to political participation was reviewed before the Administrative Court on Saturday.
The court had not issued a decision as of time of publishing.
Mansour had amended provisions to Law 73/1956 on Monday, 6 January, allowing people living outside their governorates to vote in polling stations outside of their electoral districts in the upcoming constitutional referendum.
Presidential spokesman Ihab Badawi said the purpose of the amendment is to facilitate voting for citizens, state-run MENA reported.
The party, however, believes that the amendment opens the door for “manipulation” and the “repetition of voting at more than one polling station”.
“It greatly affects the integrity of the electoral process especially given the lack of the modern technology needed to implement it,” the party said.
Interior Minister Mohamed Ibrahim said in a press conference on Thursday that the cabinet would provide harsher punishments for those who abuse the newly-issued decree by voting more than once, “lest the Brotherhood use it as an excuse to claim that vote-rigging occurred”.
The court oversaw the hearing in a special session, since it normally convenes on Tuesday but held an extraordinary session Saturday due to the upcoming referendum. The referendum is scheduled to be held on 14 and 15 January and expats have already started voting as of last Wednesday.
Article 32 of the law has been amended to include the following section: “During a referendum, it is permissible for a voter who is present in a governorate other than the governorate which their address on their national ID cards falls under to vote before a polling station in the governorate which they are present in, according to regulations determined by the Supreme Electoral Commission.”
An Egyptian man living in Oman casts his vote on a divisive draft constitution in Egypt at the Egyptian embassy in the Gulf sultanate’s capital Muscat on January 8, 2014. (AFP PHOTO/MOHAMMED MAHJOUB)
On Wednesday morning, polls opened for the more than 681,000Egyptians living abroad in 161 countries to vote on the constitution.
Eligible Egyptian expatriates will be able to vote until Sunday at the headquarters of diplomatic missions in their current nation of residence, including embassies and consulates, according to state-run Al-Ahram.
In a Wednesday afternoon statement, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman BadrAbdelatty said that so far voting was going well and that the ministry had not received any complaints.
Egyptians residing abroad gained the right to vote in 2011. In previous elections, expat voters were able to cast their ballot to the nearest embassy or consulate by mail, but new regulations require a voter to appear in person. This has caused problems with some Egyptians citizens overseas, especially when embassy or consulate locations were inconvenient to reach.
Sarah Ayman, an Egyptian engineer living in New Castle, England, said that it would take her over six hours to go to London, the nearest polling station. Ayman said she only became informed that she could not vote via mail two days ago.
“I’m upset that I won’t have the time to go vote,” said Ayman, “I support the referendum, and I want to show support for my government.”
Hany Girgus, an Egyptian software engineer living in Toronto, said that he would have to travel to Canada’s capital city, Ottawa, to vote. Coptic churches in Toronto were organising busses to take Egyptians to go vote over the weekend, said Girgus.
Abdelatty said that voting via mail was prohibited to prevent voter fraud and rigging, adding that establishing polling places outside of official diplomatic missions violated the local law in some countries.
Of the Egyptian expats eligible to vote, more than 40% reside in Saudi Arabia, said spokesman for the Supreme Electoral Commission Hisham Mokhtar.
Votes cast by expatriates will be counted from 13 to 15 January. Eligible voters residing in Egypt will go to the polls on 14 and 15 January to cast their ballots.
The centre also recommended that the interim government educate citizens on the“parameters of the referendum, including what results or thresholds will constitute approval as well as what will happen if the referendum fails”. (AFP FILE PHOTO/MAHMOUD KHALED)
By Ali Omar
The American-based Carter Center released a statement Tuesday urging Egypt’s interim government to create an inclusive and meaningful environment in which the proposed constitution can be discussed. The statement stressed the need to ease restrictions and crackdowns on the Muslim Brotherhood and opposition activists in order to create a stable environment for Egypt’s transition to democracy.
The statement reinforced the centre’s support for Egypt’s transition to democracy, but warns that present political conditions are likely to hinder any progress. “The centre recommends that Egyptian authorities reverse the crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood and other opposition activists,” and to “rescind the recently enacted protest law that restricts public gathering”.
The Protest Law, signed by interim President Adly Mansour on 24 November, also applies to gatherings in support of political candidates, which could greatly hinder opposition candidates’ upcoming parliamentary and presidential campaigns.
The statement also urged the interim government to lift restrictions on media outlets sympathetic to the Muslim Brotherhood, while urging security forces and citizens to “refrain from acts of violence, incitement and intimidation”, which have plagued and polarised Egypt since the 3 July ousting of Mohamed Morsi.
The centre also recommended that the interim government educate citizens on the“parameters of the referendum, including what results or thresholds will constitute approval as well as what will happen if the referendum fails”.
If the referendum passes, the statement added, it is crucial that authorities take “genuine steps… to initiate and sustain inclusive and meaningful dialogue on additional constitutional reforms and a broadly accepted framework for future elections”.
Although the centreis not sending monitors to oversee the referendum, it organisedan“expert mission” to analysethe ongoing legal and political context of the transition.
The Carter Center oversaw the recent 2011-2012 parliamentary elections as well as the 2012 presidential election. It called Egypt’s recent attempts at formulating and implementing a meaningful constitution “deeply flawed”, adding that the rushed attempts served “as a source of political conflict and polarisationrather than a means to achieve consensus”.
The referendum, which will be monitored by 47 national and international NGOs, is slated to take place on 14 and 15 January. An estimated 54 million Egyptians are eligible to vote.
Tunisian deputies attend a meeting at the Constituent Assembly in Tunis on December 25, 2013 (AFP, Fethi Belaid)
AFP- Tunisia’s national assembly on Friday began voting on the long-delayed new constitution, which must be adopted by January 14, the third anniversary of the 2011 revolution.
Lawmakers approved, by 175 votes out of the 184 MPs gathered for the session, the title of the charter, which is to be voted on article by article.
They were then due to examine the text’s preamble, before scrutinising its 150 articles and 225 proposed amendments, completing a process that would represent a crucial milestone in the country’s democratic transition.
For the constitution to be adopted, it must be approved by two thirds of the national assembly’s 217 elected members or put to a referendum.
It has taken more than two years to draft the text, mainly because of disagreement between the ruling Islamist party Ennahda and opposition, which has hampered the formation of functioning state institutions.
Its adoption should also end the impasse between Tunisia’s divided political factions that has gripped the country since the killing of an opposition MP in July by suspected Islamist militants.
Members of the Egyptian constitutional panel arrive to vote on the new constitution at the Shura council. (AFP PHOTO/GIANLUIGI GUERCIA)
The Anti-Coup Alliance said on Monday that it is boycotting the referendum which is set to take place next month.
The alliance, also known as the National Coalition to Support Legitimacy, is made up of several parties and organisations including the Muslim Brotherhood.
Interim president Adly Mansour announced on Saturday that the referendum for the amended 2012 constitution will take place over two days, on 14 and 15 January.
The alliance made the announcement in a tweet, describing the constitution as the “coup constitution”.
The alliance claimed that there were European pressures “to participate and vote No” and that the alliance is rejecting these pressures.
The alliance’s rejection of the referendum comes after weeks of its continued protest to the unseating of former President Mohamed Morsi from power at the hands of the military. The alliance has been organising weekly protests to voice that rejection since Morsi’s ouster in July.
Constituent Assembly head Amr Moussa said on Sunday that the assembly is hoping for a 75% voter turnout in the upcoming referendum on the constitution while also calling on all divisions of Egyptian society to participate.
After months of convening to amend the 2012 constitution, Moussa handed the final amended version to Mansour on 3 December at the Presidential Palace.
Several parties have already announced their positions on the referendum, including Al-Dostour Party, which strongly supported protests that led to Morsi’s outser, called last week on Egyptians to “strongly participate” in the referendum. It also expressed its rejection of any campaign calling for boycotting the referendum.
Moderate Islamist party Misr Al Qawia Party also announced its position last week, urging Egyptians to vote No.
Islamist Al-Nour Party announced that they will vote Yes.
