It should surprise no one that the people of Egypt no longer enjoy a Constitution. On Sunday, February 13, 2011, the military suspended the constitution and dissolved parliament reportedly for "6 months" (or) until elections are held. Has it been killed?
We must certainly wonder how long that temporary situation will be arbitrarily extended, but for the record, we also live in unabated hope that it will be a very short period of time.
The conditions surrounding this not unexpected move by the military were outlined as follows:
1) The Egyptian Constitution is suspended.
2) A committee to amend constitutional clauses and define the rules of a popular referendum is to be formed.
3) House(s) of parliament were dissolved.
4) the Higher Military Council is to run the country until elections are held .
5) Egypt will be represented by the head of the council in foreign matters.
6) the Higher Military Council will arbitrarily issue laws during the transitional period
7) Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq will remain in office until the new government is formed.
8) Elections for representatives to parliament and the presidency are to be held.
9) The state is to continue to implement international treaties and commitments presently in force.
An important question might be: "Who is actually directing the military, and what are their ultimate intentions, since Egypt is now run by "military" rule?
Like other optimistic people, I'll keep my fingers crossed in hope, considering that we all know power corrupts, and only time will tell. Opportunistic seizure of power achieved --by inheritance, plan, by default or not, the temptation to extend an enduring military coup by generals that "come to like" power and the potential wealth of gold bars and other likely perks is always one possibility. "Hosni did it, why can't we?" Comes to mind. Hopefully, reason and logic will prevail, and the Constitution will be returned to the people.
Conclusion of the day:
The trouble with " Constitutions" rests in the fact they are "given" by the "leaders " and can therefore also be "taken away" .
In fact....They can be "taken away" more easily, and even more quickly. We refer the reader back to Egypt's current status.
I would encourage every thinking individual in North America to recognize the difference between GENUINE constitutional rights and freedoms of every citizen in every country of the world, --and those " arbitrary paper rights " that are so proudly "conjured out of thin air and awarded so generously to the people" by leaders who subsequently brag the "value" of their Constitution, knowing they can negate them instantly.
The issue of "how to kill a constitution immediately comes to mind."
Apparently it is FAR too simple.
To wit: In Egypt, the constitution was just SUSPENDED by the military.
To wit: In Canada, the "War measures Act" was declared in October, 1970 by Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau simply because of the manufactured "FLQ "crisis". Civil liberties were suspended arbitrarily and police were given sweeping powers.
We must assume that in the United States of America, the Declaration of Independence, which is a fine old document that attracts a lot of heart-pounding tourist views, but that document too, was weakened by subsequent legislation including the USA PATRIOT Act , and clearly means little or nothing in times of "crisis" like 9/11.
It is our belief that human rights and "constitutionality" are inborn, inherent RIGHTS of human beings within any and all jurisdictions, and in all countries of the world. Genuine rights and freedoms do not have to be made "official", they cannot be "given", they cannot be taken away, and they should not be taken away by force or any other means. They similarly can never be morally suspended, and should, under NO circumstance, be abused.
Here at Incoming BYTES that is my humble opinion and I'm sticking to it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USA_PATRIOT_Act
a test is in progress, but perhaps at the wrong location- question--do anarchists really believe in zero constitution and lack of legal recourse?
ReplyDeletethis is a test--and --only a test.
unfortunately in the absence of bureaucracy and dictatorship--is there abuse of power?--of course--someone is in charge of the top of any hierarchy--the sword still hangs over someone's head.
peace and patience to all. it's difficult to walk on eggs for six months.
I believe that given enough leeway, anarchists believe only in the power they can seize at the moment and offer no legal recourse to anyone outside of their group that may be negatively affected by their opportunistic and forceful ways. Their 'constitution' is opportunism and "may the most powerful be the boss' which may be driven primarily by the control freak factor, hedonism, greed, and perhaps even egotistic narcissism?
ReplyDeleteIn the absence of bureaucracy and dictatorship, there is abuse of power because someone calls the shots, "makes the rules" and dangles the sword over the head of the populace to "enforce". Hopefully there will be MUCH patience and peace to all...