Drafting the Egyptian Constitution: a Comparative Analysis Between the Drafting Committees of the 2012 and 2014 Constitutions

Autores

  • Karim Mahmoud El-Shahed University of Groningen

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21056/aec.v20i79.1308

Palavras-chave:

legislative drafting, constitutional drafting, Egyptian Constitution, Egyptian legal system, constitution.

Resumo

This article analyzes the significant role the constitutional drafting committees of the 2012 and 2014 Egyptian Constitutions played in shaping Egyptian constitutionalism. It investigates how these committees were selected, along with their composition, their members’ political backgrounds and legal expertise, their policies and aims as well as the contexts of the drafting of both constitutions. It also examines the written preliminary works of the drafting committees, as well as the video-recorded meetings. This article argues that a multi-level independent constitutional drafting committee composed of technical experts and lay people effectively facilitates the drafting of democratic constitutional provisions.

Biografia do Autor

  • Karim Mahmoud El-Shahed, University of Groningen
    Ph.D. Candidate of Philosophy of Law at the University of Groningen (Groningen, Netherlands). Joint Master's Degree in Legislative Studies from LUISS Guido Carli University, Complutense University of Madrid and University of London. Public Prosecutor at the Egyptian Public Prosecution's Office, and Legal Officer with the United Nations. E-mail: karim.m.elshahed@gmail.com

Referências

ABDELAAL, Mohamed. Entrenchment Illusion: The Curious Case of Egypt's Constitutional Entrenchment Clause. Chicago-Kent Journal of International and Comparative Law, 2016.

AL-ALI, Zaid. Egypt’s Constitutional Morass. Foreign Policy. Washington, DC, 23 August 2013.

BROWN, Nathan J. Egypt’s Daring Constitutional Gang of 50. Foreign Policy. Washington, DC, 20 September 2013.

BROWN, Nathan J. Still Hope for Egypt’s Constitution. Foreign Policy. Washington, DC, 1 October 2012.

CHICK, Kristen. Why is Egypt's Draft Constitution so Controversial? The Christian Science Monitor. 30 November 2012.

EL CHAZLI, Fattouh. Egyptian Constitutional Drafting: A Comparative Review. Legal Agenda. 31 December 2013.

HAMZAWY, Amr; FAKIR, Intissar. Drafting Egypt’s Constitution. Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Washington, DC, 15 November 2012.

HELLYER, H. A. A Better Egyptian Constitution. Foreign Policy. Washington, DC, 6 December 2012.

HUSSEIN, Abdel-Rahman. Egyptian Assembly Passes Draft Constitution Despite Protests. The Guardian. 30 November 2012.

INTERNATIONAL IDEA. Discussion Paper: Selecting the Members of the Constituent Assembly – Comparative Experiences and Learned Lessons. In Arabic. 2012.

KIRKPATRICK, David D. Egyptian Islamists Approve Draft Constitution Despite Objections. The New York Times. 29 November 2012.

KNIGHT, Philip. The Role of the Constitutional Drafter: Thoughts on the Art of Expressing Constitutional Visions. Constitution-making in Focus: Issue Paper. 2010.

LANSBERG-RODRÍGUEZ, Daniel. An Obituary for the Egyptian Constitution, Dec. 26, 2012-July 3, 2013. Foreign Policy. Washington, DC, 4 July 2013.

SKY NEWS ARABIA. Egypt.. The Judiciary Nullifies the (Constitution's Assembly). 10 April 2012.

STEFANOU, Constantin. Drafters, Drafting and the Policy Process, in STEFANOU, Constantin; XANTHAKI, Helen (eds.). Drafting Legislation: A Modern Approach. Ashgate, 2008.

The Preliminary Works of the Fifty Committee. (in Arabic).

The Preliminary Works of the Hundred Committee. (in Arabic).

The Preliminary Works of the Ten Committee. (in Arabic).

TRAGER, Eric. Egypt's New Constitution: Bleak Prospects. The Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Washington, DC, 16 December 2013.

XANTHAKI, Helen. On Transferability of Legislative Solutions: The Functionality Test. In: STEFANOU, Constantin; XANTHAKI, Helen (eds.). Drafting Legislation: A Modern Approach. Ashgate, 2008.

Interviews

Interview with Mona Zulficar. Member of the Fifty Committee of Drafting the Egyptian Constitution of 2014 ‘Telephone Call’. 30 June 2018.

Interview with Yusuf Auf, Constitutional Expert and Board Member of the Arab Association for Constitutional Law ‘Telephone Call’. 1 July 2018.

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Publicado

2020-03-29

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