Egypt approves a new constitution
One that's hopefully not what the Islamofascists would like. The Financial Times reports:
A constitution backed by the military and the interim government installed after last year’s coup was approved by 98.1 per cent of Egyptian voters, officials announced on Saturday.Now that's something to brighten a day. But I'm honestly irked by Salib's citing the Koran, because it wouldn't approve of what the army's helped to bring about. Though I am flattered he brought up the Bible and Torah in his speech.
In a televised press briefing, election officials confirmed that 38.6 per cent of eligible voters turned out for the polls in the referendum earlier this week, higher than the 32.9 per cent of voters that turned out for the referendum on a constitution backed by the Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamists ousted in the popularly-backed July coup. Nabil Salib, chairman of the Egypt’s election commission, praised voters and the tens of thousands of security forces who secured the vote.
“Do not worry about Egypt, it has special standing for God,” he said in a speech broadcast on television. “It is mentioned in the Quran, the Bible, and the Torah. Remember the heroes of your army. They have restored hope in our future and protected Egypt.”
Only about 380,000 of 53.4m registered voted against the constitution, reflecting a strident call by the Brotherhood and its supporters to boycott the process, as well as a campaign of harassment and intimidation by security forces against those calling for a ‘no’ vote.
The constitution, drafted by a 50-member panel largely devoid of Islamists and appointed by the military-installed president, Adly Mansour, remains controversial, granting the armed forces broad autonomy and privileges. But it also bolsters rights of religious minorities, women, children and the disabled when compared to the Brotherhood’s constitution.
