Egypt’s Morsi scraps controversial decree but will hold referendum

Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi has cancelled a decree that gave him sweeping powers and sparked violent unrest but did not delay this month’s referendum on a new constitution that was a major demand of his opponents.
Morsi’s supporters have insisted the referendum should go ahead on time on December 15, saying it is needed to complete a democratic transition still incomplete after autocrat Hosni Mubarak’s overthrow 22 months ago.
Ahmed Said, a leading member of the main opposition National Salvation Front said the decision to press ahead with the referendum was “shocking” and would deepen a political crisis. “It is making things a lot worse,” he said. “I cannot imagine that after all this they want to pass a constitution that does not represent all Egyptians.” He said the Front would meet later on Sunday to give a formal response. The announcement that Morsi had scrapped his November 22 decree followed talks on Saturday that ran into the night at his presidential palace. Billed as a “national dialogue”, the meeting was boycotted by his main rivals and had little credibility among protesters in the most populous Arab nation.
The April 6 movement, which helped galvanise street protests against Mubarak, said in a statement about the outcome of Saturday’s talks: “What happened is manipulation and a continuation of deception in the name of law and legitimacy.” The constitution was fast-tracked through an assembly led by Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood and other religious parties. Liberals and others walked out, saying their voices were not being heard. “A constitution without consensus cannot go to a referendum,” said Hermes Fawzi, 28, a protester camped with dozens of others outside the presidential palace. “It’s not logical that just one part of society makes the constitution.”
Nearby were tanks and military vehicles of the Republican Guards positioned there to protect the palace after clashes in the past week between Islamists and their rivals killed seven people and injured about 350. The military, which led Egypt through a turbulent interim period after Mubarak fell, stepped into the crisis on Saturday to tell feuding factions that dialogue was essential to avoid “catastrophe.” But a military source said this was not a prelude to the army retaking control of Egypt or the streets.
DEEP RIFTS: After Saturday’s talks, Morsi issued a new decree in which the first article “cancels the constitutional declaration” announced on November 22, the spokesman for the dialogue, Mohamed Selim al-Awa, told a news conference held around midnight. But he said the constitutional referendum would go ahead anyway next Saturday, adding that although those at the meeting discussed a postponement, there were legal obstacles to a delay.