Abdel-Rahman Hussein in Cairo
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 23 October 2012 00.30 BST
President's struggle with judiciary represents one of most significant moments since Mohamed Morsi came to power
If the court annuls the assembly it will be a failure for President Morsi in his attempts to rein in the judiciary. Photograph: Ho/AFP/Getty Images
The continued friction between Egypt's judiciary and its president, Mohamed Morsi, will come to a head on Tuesday as a court prepares to give its verdict on whether to dissolve the Islamist-dominated constituent assembly drafting the country's post-revolution constitution.
If the court annuls the assembly on grounds of the unconstitutionality of its makeup it will be a failure for Morsi in his attempts to rein in a judiciary that is refusing to acquiesce to executive will.
The struggle represents one of the most significant moments since Morsi came to power with Islamist backing following presidential elections this summer.
"We need a constitution that represents all Egyptians and not just Islamist forces. This Islamist hegemony does not allow for dissenting voices," said Hafez Abu Saeda, head of the Egyptian Organisation for Human Rights and one of the claimants of the case.
The issue of the assembly and the role of the judiciary has been a core battle for the president – and one that has been met with a fierce backlash from judges and other groups.
Morsi has found more success in removing the top generals of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, the military junta that oversaw Egypt's transitional period and was responsible for the constitutional declaration that governs the country until a permanent constitution is drafted. It is the arguments over the tenets of this document that has put Morsi, along with his Freedom and Justice party and its umbrella group the Muslim Brotherhood, at loggerheads with the judiciary.
"This struggle between the Islamists and the judiciary will continue because there is a general consensus that state institutions belong to the people and should not be controlled by Islamists," said Nasser Amin, head of the Egyptian Centre for the Independence of the Judiciary.
Morsi had sought to appease the judiciary by appointing the respected judge Ahmed Mekki as his minister of justice, who was a central figure in the judiciary's struggle for independence during the reign of ousted dictator Hosni Mubarak. Morsi also appointed his brother, Mahmoud Mekki, as his vice-president. Though both brothers are not affiliated to the Brotherhood, both are known to have Islamist leanings.
"The judiciary isn't independent or clean, yet what Morsi's trying to do is take over the institution rather than reform it. It's no surprise that those in the current institution are resisting that attempt. Morsi would have had more support had he been trying to restructure and reform the judiciary rather than take it over in its corrupt form," said journalist and blogger Wael Eskander.
There is also more at stake for the judiciary, with a released version of the current draft indicating that judicial powers will be reduced under the new constitution. Another article prohibits any amendments to the constitution for a period of 10 years.
If the court does not dissolve the constituent assembly on Tuesday, a final draft will be put to a general referendum in November, according to a statement by the Egyptian prime minister, Hisham Qandil. If it is dissolved, and in the absence of parliament, Egypt's current constitutional declaration declares that the president is able to pick the new assembly.
• The second paragraph of this article has been amended. It previously stated that the court anulling the assembly would be a victory for Morsi. This has been corrected.
Egyptian court decides whether to dissolve Islamist-dominated assembly | World news | guardian.co.uk
