• EGYPT
  • October 31, 2011
  • 4 minutes read

MB Lawyers: Dialogue is the Solution to the Judiciary and Lawyers Crisis In Egypt

MB Lawyers: Dialogue is the Solution to the Judiciary and Lawyers Crisis In Egypt

The two wings of Justice in Egypt, the judges and the lawyers are locked in a contrived conflict following the discussions of the judiciary law and the emergence of Article 18, which lawyers say reduces their immunity before the courts.


Ali Kamal, a Brotherhood figure as well as leader of the Committee on Islamic Law at the Egyptian Bar Association and also one of the coordinators of the meeting with Hossam Ghariani (President of the Supreme Judicial Council) said: “More than a week ago, we launched an initiative through the elders of the legal profession; and it was agreed that a meeting would be held with Chancellor Hossam Ghariani. The meeting took place in an atmosphere of cordiality and mutual respect and appreciation from both parties."


In an interview with IkhwanWeb, Ali Kamal explained that: "The meeting ended with a statement from the President of the Supreme Judicial Council in which he expressed his appreciation for the legal profession and the assertion that the proposed draft to amend the judiciary law is related to Articles connected with Independence of the Judiciary only, and that he rejected any articles beyond that, especially the text of Article 18."


Ali Kamal continued, saying: "We believed that the crisis would end promptly. But there are some who still want this conflict to boil on between the judiciary and lawyers, in pursuit of electoral interests to come, between the two parties.


He stressed that there are those who want to ignite the situation between the judges and the lawyers, interested parties affiliated with the former regime, and some who have electoral interests. He also explained that the conflict between the lawyers and the judiciary, after the end of the judges’ general assembly, is moving in that dangerous direction.


Ali Kamal added: "From the outset, the Sharia committee has been trying to calm everyone and resolve the crisis peacefully and logically, away from the electoral horse-trading scams. Even when its members called the elders of the profession, their action was away from the media, so no-one could possibly accuse them of having their own electoral interests in any of their endeavours.


The leader of the Committee on Islamic Law at the Egyptian Bar Association resumed, saying: "After the crisis yesterday between lawyers and judges, a statement is being prepared, calling for everyone to use the language of dialogue in the debate in order to safeguard the sovereignty of justice, because the legal profession and the judiciary are the two wings of justice. The statement will also call upon all to preserve the institutions of the state, because justice is one of the pillars of the state which, if collapsed, the whole state would collapse too."


Ali Kamal concluded by stressing the importance of everyone seeking to stabilize the situation, adding that: "The Committee on Islamic Law at the Egyptian Bar Association seeks, through the delegations and the elders of the legal profession, in addition to the elders of law in the governorates, to meet with the general assemblies of judges for consultation on mechanisms to end the crisis urgently."