Main Arab Legal Events: The Legal Agenda’s Perspective
Weekly Note noo 17 (24-31 December 2012)

Egypt’s Judges’ Club Abide by the New Constitution after its Adoption and Take back their Decision to Suspend Work in Courts
The Yemeni Judiciary Starts the Execution Procedures against the Government to Provide Treatment for the Revolution Victims
A New Draft Law for the Judiciary Purification in Libya

1- Egypt:
-As soon as the Egyptian constitution was signed into law after having been approved by 63,8% of Egyptians, the head of Egypt’s Judges’ Club announced that judges will abide by the new constitution since they are the first to support legitimacy and law. He stated that judges are adopting a “neutral stance” on whether or not the constitutional referendum results should be approved, and that the new constitution guarantees the Judiciary’s independence given the similarities between its items and the 2011 Judiciary law. However, it transgresses the Supreme Constitutional Court’s law rules. The Club called upon judges to resume work in courts in order to preserve the citizens’ interests since the new constitution abrogates the constitutional declarations and consequently puts an end to violations against the Judiciary’s independence.

-The 30 days siege imposed on Egypt’s Supreme Constitutional Court by the President of the Republic’s supporters was finally lifted amid a large-scale international and local condemnation of an act described as being a “moral intimidation” of the court. By virtue of article 176 of the newly-adopted constitution, the Constitutional Court was formed again with one President and 10 members. It should be noted that the most recently-appointed 7 members of the court were dismissed, including counselor Tahani Al-Jibaly who threatened to resort to legal action to regain her job at the court.

-The case of the General Prosecutor Talaat Abdullah (who revoked his resignation several days after having submitted it) is still resonating. The Supreme Judicial Council together with Egypt’s Judges’ Club and the provinces Judges’ Clubs have been unanimous in demanding his resignation, at a time where the General Prosecution members are warning of a possible escalation and an ongoing sit-in to exert pressure on Abdullah to resign.
2- Libya:
-Demands for the purification of the Judiciary have been renewed after the Justice and Judicial Affairs Committee has, during the National Conference called upon the purification of the Judiciary from the ancient regime’s leading figures, notably the members of the judicial circumscriptions prosecuting Al-Kaddafi’s supporters to enhance the citizens’ trust in the impartiality and integrity of the judges in charge of investigation and prosecution of those supporters.

3- Yemen
-Within the framework of the execution of the legal verdict according to which the National Reconciliation Government is to provide healthcare for the revolution’s injured people, the administrative court addressed the government to transfer the amount of 330 thousand dollars to the court’s treasury as an estimate cost to cover the treatment of 9 injured people in the German and Cuban revolutions, otherwise the court shall take legal action by freezing the amount from the cabinet account at the Central Bank.

-The verdict related to the case filed against Ali Al-Saidi accused of apostasy for having, among others, published on a social networking website findings considered by the General Prosecution as going against the rules of Islam has been postponed till January 7, 2013. Al-Saidi is facing a judgment of separation from his wife and capital punishment.

Beyond the Weekly Note:

-Bahrain:
The human rights activist Zeinab Al-Khawaja was released on bail after having been accused of “inciting hatred against the regime”, knowing that the case in which she faces charges of “association and assembly” was postponed until January 15, while keeping her under arrest. On another note, the Bahraini General Prosecution decided to renew the detention period of “Sayed Yusuf Al-Mouhafaza”, the responsible for supervision and documentation at the Bahraini Center for Human Rights, for having published false information on Twitter.  The Arab Network for Human Rights Information denounced such ongoing repressions practices.

-The Arab Emirates:
The Arab Network for Human Rights Information denounced the arrest of three Egyptian doctors by the Emirati authorities who also prevented the doctors’ families from leaving the country, knowing that charges against them remain unknown, as is the case for the detention’s reasons and places. According to some unconfirmed information on a social network website, those doctors are accused of planning a coup d’état.

Prepared by Christelle El-Feghaly