Veteran legal expert criticises Egyptian coup

Veteran Egyptian legal expert Tariq al-Bishri has expressed his opinion that the army carried out a military coup against an elected president and a constitution adopted by the nation, Al-Shorouk newspaper reported on Friday. “This is a clear military coup against a constitution adopted by the will of the Egyptian people,” he said.

Al-Bishri criticised a number of the constitution’s articles when it was being drafted and declared the decrees issued by President Morsi last year to be null and void. He also opposed the president’s move to depose the public prosecutor, Abdul-Majid Mahmoud.

Nevertheless, he told Al-Shorouk, “The constitution saw the light of day and was accepted by the people in a transparent referendum; it was prepared by a respected institution, the Constitutional Assembly, which was chosen by the Shura Council and the Parliament; and the Parliament was also chosen through transparent elections.”

As such, added Al-Bishri, “The ousting of an elected president, who took office as a result of the January 25 revolution, is not acceptable. The military coup overturns the fruits of that revolution.”

When asked about the reasons for the June 30 counter-revolution, the veteran lawyer was clear: “The Egyptians were divided over the authority of the Muslim Brotherhood. Such difference is normal in all democracies but the solution was to hold parliamentarian elections.” The only democratic way to express opposition is through the ballot box, he insisted.