MUBARAK SUBMITS CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM PACKAGE TO

C O N F I D E N T I A L CAIRO 007251

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

NSC FOR WATERS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/28/2016
TAGS: PGOV KDEM EG
SUBJECT: MUBARAK SUBMITS CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM PACKAGE TO
PARLIAMENT

REF: CAIRO 7211

Classified By: Counselor for Economic and Political Affairs
Catherine Hill-Herndon, for reasons 1.5 (b) and (d).


1. (C) On December 26, in accordance with procedural
requirements for amending the Egyptian constitution,
President Hosni Mubarak submitted to the People's Assembly
and the Shoura Council a letter proposing the amendment of 34
constitutional articles. As anticipated reftel, the proposed
changes can be broadly categorized as follows:

-- Recasting the Executive-Legislative Relationship (Articles
74, 78, 82, 84, 85, 115, 118, 127, 133, 136, 138, 141, 195,
and 205): Likely changes include strengthening parliamentary
oversight of the budget; the prime minister (rather than the
vice-president) being named interim head of state in the
event the president is unable to carry out his duties;
mandating that the president obtain parliamentary approval of
a new cabinet; and other changes to enhance the
responsibilities of the cabinet, Parliament, and the Shoura
Council.

-- Electoral Issues (Articles 62, 76, 88 and 94): The
amendment of articles 62 and 94 will lay the groundwork for a
subsequent new elections law establishing a
proportional-representation electoral system, and set
mandatory quotas for female parliamentarians. Article 76
(which sets onerous requirements for presidential
candidates),will be amended to ease the requirements for
presidential candidates from political parties, not
independent candidates (a move designed to encourage legal
political parties, but to exclude the Muslim Brotherhood (MB)
from running a presidential candidate). Article 88 (judicial
supervision of elections) will be amended to terminate the
direct supervision of judges at every polling station,
replaced with a Supreme Elections Commission (composed at
least partially of high-ranking judges) tasked with
supervising elections and conducting polls in one day (vice
the previous practice of holding elections in various parts
of the country on different days).

-- Paving the Way for an Anti-Terror Law (Article 179): This
article will likely be changed to give the government the
flexibility to maintain various powers it would otherwise
lose with the de-activation of the Emergency Law, through
establishing "legal authorities to combat terrorism", and
allowing legislators to "enact provisions to protect the
society from terrorism." Changes to Article 179 will
theoretically allow for the suspension of rights currently
guaranteed by articles 41, 44, and 45 (no search, detention,
inspection, wire-tapping, inspection of correspondence, or
restriction of movement without a judicial or prosecutorial
warrant).

-- Deleting Socialist Terminology from the Constitution
(Articles 1, 4, 12, 24, 30, 33, 37, 56, 59, 73, 180, and 194).


2. (C) In a surprise recommendation clearly targeted at the
Muslim Brotherhood (MB),Mubarak also proposed the amendment
of Article 5 (which currently reads, "The political system of
the Arab Republic of Egypt is a multiparty system ..."),so
as to formalize the de facto ban on "political parties based
on religion, race, and lineage." Article 161 (which divides
Egypt into administrative units at the provincial, city, and
village levels) will be amended in an effort to encourage
greater decentralization, and provide local councils with
enhanced authorities. The amendment of Article 173 will
mandate that the Supreme Judiciary Council (presided over by
the President) be composed of the heads of the various
judicial bodies.


3. (SBU) According to Parliamentary Speaker Fathi Surour, the
General Committee of Parliament will meet on January 6 and 8
to prepare an initial report on Mubarak's proposals,
following which the People's Assembly will discuss the
proposed amendments, and refer the issue to Parliament's
Legislative Committee, which will prepare a final draft of
the proposed amendments. NDP Secretary-General Safwat El
Sherif was quoted in Cairo newspapers on December 28 as
stating that the national referendum on the amendments will
be held by April 10.


4. (SBU) Post will report septel on the largely negative
reaction thus far to the proposed amendments from opposition
parties, the MB, the Judges Club, and civil society
organizations.
RICCIARDONE