Coalition leaders allege ‘systemic violations’ and urge the government to not implement the constitution until an investigation is carried out.
Egyptian journalists muffle their mouths and raise their pens during a demonstration against the newly approved constitution in Cairo.
Egypt’s opposition on Sunday charged that fraud was committed during a referendum on the nation’s Islamist-backed constitution, which preliminary results indicated had been approved by voters. The dispute augured more ill will and public confrontation between Muslim Brotherhood supporters and their opponents.
The constitution, which went before voters Saturday in a second and final round of balloting, was approved by 64%, according to an initial count, the state news agency reported.
Leaders from the National Salvation Front, or NSF, the coalition of leading nationalist, left-wing and moderate politicians, accused Islamists of systematic fraud and urged the government to not put the constitution into effect until an investigation could be carried out.
“We documented a set of irregularities that are clearly evidence of systemic violations,” said Amr Hamzawy, an NSF leader and political science professor. “We would like the responsible party to investigate and report the conclusions before the final results of the referendum are announced,” he added, referring to Egypt’s High Elections Commission.
The NSF said it had compiled a list of 1,500 violations in the referendum’s first round on Dec. 15 and said a similar number of abuses occurred Saturday. Charges include voters being turned away and judges who served as observers turning up late at voting centers where the constitution was expected to fail.
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