Morsy Edict Divides Egypt but Unifies Opponents, Critics and Observers Say
Morsy Edict Divides Egypt but Unifies Opponents, Critics and Observers Say
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Critics call Morsy a dictator acting in Mubarak’s footsteps
Morsy declared last week no court can overturn his decisions
Experts say it is dividing society, but unifying his opponents
They say his moves are intended to strengthen Islamists
Egyptian President Mohamed Morsy’s decree last week giving him a host of new powers has divided society, but it has also unified opposition groups that fear any moves toward Islamic rule, critics and observers said Sunday.
Morsy assures his people that his moves are only temporary and intended to clear the political obstacles posed by remnants of the old regime. An order banning courts from overturning any decisions he has made or will make in the next six months, Morsy says, will last only until a new constitution is put together.
His critics, however, say Morsy has made himself into a dictator — and that dictators can’t be trusted.
“We, as citizens, no longer have safeguards for our freedoms and rights,” Amr Hamzawy, a former member of parliament and a member of Egypt’s Freedom Party, told CNN on Sunday.
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Even if Morsy stays true to his word and rescinds the decree after the constitution is finalized, he will have managed to consolidate more power, said Eric Trager, a fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
“By the time you get that new constitution, it will have been written by an Islamist-dominated assembly that all non-Islamists have completely abandoned, and the new parliamentary elections will likely exclude members of the former ruling party who posed the greatest threat to his authority,” Trager told CNN.