SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Egypt's Revolutionaries Protest 'Coup Against Legitimacy' by New President
Mohamed Mursi assumes 'sweeping' new powers
Nov 23, 2012
In what critics are calling "a coup against legitimacy," thousands of protesters gathered throughout Egypt on Friday after President Mohamed Mursi assumed new powers that ban challenges to his decrees, laws and decisions, and bar his decisions from being revoked by any court.
Demonstrators, led by "an array of liberal and secular groups, including activists at the forefront of the protest movement that forced veteran strongman Hosni Mubarak from power early last year," gathered in Tahir Square there to protest the decree, chanting, "Mursi is Mubarak ... revolution everywhere."
Mursi's decree, read on state television on Thursday, said, "The president can issue any decision or measure to protect the revolution. The constitutional declarations, decisions and laws issued by the president are final and not subject to appeal."
As Mursi's supporters--including the Muslim Brotherhood--gathered outside the presidential palace in Cairo, protesters set fire to Muslim Brotherhood offices in several cities including Port Said and Ismailia, and rival demonstrators reportedly clashed in Alexandria.
The BBC continues:
In a joint news conference on Thursday, Sameh Ashour, head of a lawyers association, and key opposition figures Mohamed ElBaradei and Amr Moussa accused Mr. Mursi of "monopolising all three branches of government" and overseeing "the total execution of the independence of the judiciary".
"We are calling on all Egyptians to protest in all of Egypt's squares on Friday," they said.
Mr. ElBaradei, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, wrote on his Twitter account that the president had "appointed himself Egypt's new pharaoh. A major blow to the revolution that could have dire consequences".
Critics say the decree is a "coup against legitimacy".
Mursi's decree will also allow retrials for people convicted of killings during Egypt's 2011 uprising, which led to Mubarak's outster, according to the BBC.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
In what critics are calling "a coup against legitimacy," thousands of protesters gathered throughout Egypt on Friday after President Mohamed Mursi assumed new powers that ban challenges to his decrees, laws and decisions, and bar his decisions from being revoked by any court.
Demonstrators, led by "an array of liberal and secular groups, including activists at the forefront of the protest movement that forced veteran strongman Hosni Mubarak from power early last year," gathered in Tahir Square there to protest the decree, chanting, "Mursi is Mubarak ... revolution everywhere."
Mursi's decree, read on state television on Thursday, said, "The president can issue any decision or measure to protect the revolution. The constitutional declarations, decisions and laws issued by the president are final and not subject to appeal."
As Mursi's supporters--including the Muslim Brotherhood--gathered outside the presidential palace in Cairo, protesters set fire to Muslim Brotherhood offices in several cities including Port Said and Ismailia, and rival demonstrators reportedly clashed in Alexandria.
The BBC continues:
In a joint news conference on Thursday, Sameh Ashour, head of a lawyers association, and key opposition figures Mohamed ElBaradei and Amr Moussa accused Mr. Mursi of "monopolising all three branches of government" and overseeing "the total execution of the independence of the judiciary".
"We are calling on all Egyptians to protest in all of Egypt's squares on Friday," they said.
Mr. ElBaradei, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, wrote on his Twitter account that the president had "appointed himself Egypt's new pharaoh. A major blow to the revolution that could have dire consequences".
Critics say the decree is a "coup against legitimacy".
Mursi's decree will also allow retrials for people convicted of killings during Egypt's 2011 uprising, which led to Mubarak's outster, according to the BBC.
In what critics are calling "a coup against legitimacy," thousands of protesters gathered throughout Egypt on Friday after President Mohamed Mursi assumed new powers that ban challenges to his decrees, laws and decisions, and bar his decisions from being revoked by any court.
Demonstrators, led by "an array of liberal and secular groups, including activists at the forefront of the protest movement that forced veteran strongman Hosni Mubarak from power early last year," gathered in Tahir Square there to protest the decree, chanting, "Mursi is Mubarak ... revolution everywhere."
Mursi's decree, read on state television on Thursday, said, "The president can issue any decision or measure to protect the revolution. The constitutional declarations, decisions and laws issued by the president are final and not subject to appeal."
As Mursi's supporters--including the Muslim Brotherhood--gathered outside the presidential palace in Cairo, protesters set fire to Muslim Brotherhood offices in several cities including Port Said and Ismailia, and rival demonstrators reportedly clashed in Alexandria.
The BBC continues:
In a joint news conference on Thursday, Sameh Ashour, head of a lawyers association, and key opposition figures Mohamed ElBaradei and Amr Moussa accused Mr. Mursi of "monopolising all three branches of government" and overseeing "the total execution of the independence of the judiciary".
"We are calling on all Egyptians to protest in all of Egypt's squares on Friday," they said.
Mr. ElBaradei, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, wrote on his Twitter account that the president had "appointed himself Egypt's new pharaoh. A major blow to the revolution that could have dire consequences".
Critics say the decree is a "coup against legitimacy".
Mursi's decree will also allow retrials for people convicted of killings during Egypt's 2011 uprising, which led to Mubarak's outster, according to the BBC.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.