Subject: [SocialistWorker.org] Mobilizing against the military
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http://socialistworker.org/2012/06/20/mobilizing-against-the-military
Statement
======== MOBILIZING AGAINST THE MILITARY =====================================
June 20, 2012
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With rumors flying about the reported death of ex-dictator Hosni Mubarak,
masses of people descended on Tahrir Square on Tuesday, June 19, in a show of
resistance against the military's dramatic assault on the revolution.
Last week, with days to go before a run-off presidential election pitting the
regime candidate Ahmed Shafiq against Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim
Brotherhood, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) re-imposed large
parts of the repressive Mubarak-era emergency law. A day later, the Supreme
Constitutional Court not only upheld Shafiq's place in the run-off, but
invalidated previous parliamentary elections and ordered the body dissolved.
Then, shortly after the polls closed for the run-off on Sunday, the SCAF
issued an "addendum" to the interim constitution giving it sweeping new
powers, including legislative authority and veto power in writing a new
constitution.
Morsi appears to have won the presidential vote by a narrow but clear margin.
But if he is allowed to assume the presidency, the SCAF's latest declaration
will strictly limit his powers.
Those who participated in the January 25 revolution against Mubarak
recognized the SCAF's moves for what they are: a "soft coup." Morsi and the
Muslim Brotherhood called for demonstrations against the dissolving of the
parliament they dominated and the SCAF's constitutional annex. They were
joined by a host of liberal and left organizations who called for a mass
mobilization to Tahrir to defend the revolution.
Egyptians responded to the call to action in the tens of thousands, filling
the famed symbol of the uprising against Mubarak. Ahram Online reported that
a popular slogan was: "The law of the revolution, not the military law." A
smaller crowd gathered at the parliament building, as members of the People's
Assembly attempted to enter, only to be blocked by riot police.
Meanwhile, after reports that Mubarak had been declared dead in a military
hospital, government officials claimed he was still alive, but unconscious
and on life support.
Here, we reprint the joint statement of a group of left-wing organizations
denouncing the military's grab for power and calling for the mass
mobilization in Tahrir on Tuesday.
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THE SIGNATORIES to this statement announce their complete rejection of the
Supplementary Constitutional Declaration. The declaration completes the
process of the military coup which began on February 12, 2011 after Mubarak's
rule had been ended, and put down roots through the Constitutional
Declaration of March 2011 and the ludicrous and corrupt arrangements for the
transitional period.
We therefore call on the Egyptian people to reject the Supplementary
Declaration and to show their rejection by participating a mass mobilisation
against it as an expression of their insistence that the revolution must
continue and meet its objectives.
We affirm that resistance to the coup demands the following:
-- A mass mobilization completely rejecting the Supplementary Declaration
-- A declaration by the president-elect stating his definitive rejection of
the Supplementary Declaration, by refusing to take the oath of office in
front of the Supreme Constitutional Court and refusing to swear that he will
uphold the Constitutional Declaration and its amendments, because this will
legitimize the Supplementary Declaration completely.
-- Parties, political movements and the main trade unions to elect a
Constituent Assembly on the basis of consensus in order to block the
military's attempts to intervene in the formation of the assembly.
-- The president-elect must issue an immediate order calling on the military
to return to its barracks and cancelling the powers granted to the military
police to arrest civilians.
-- The president-elect must issue an immediate amnesty for all civilians
detained by the military and form a committee to investigate the crimes
committed against the revolutionaries and to punish the killers of the
martyrs.
-- The president-elect must cancel the exceptional measures which restrict
the exercise of democratic rights, and especially the criminalization of
strikes.
We therefore call on you to participate in the first protests against this
tyrannical declaration in a march from Talaat Harb Square to Tahrir Square,
Tuesday, June 19, at 5 p.m.
Glory to the martyrs and victory to the revolution!
Down with the military coup!
The National Front for Justice and Democracy
The Popular Committees to Defend the Revolution
The Revolutionary Socialists
The Revolutionary Forces Alliance
The Free Egyptians Movement
The Liberty Front for Peaceful Change Youth for Justice and Liberty
The National Assembly for Change
The Second Revolution of Rage
Revolution Continues Bloc (Helwan)
The Suez Youth Block
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