34 members of 'Judges for Egypt' referred to disciplinary committee

Ahram Online, Sunday 18 May 2014

Group has drawn fire for allegedly being aligned with ousted president Mohamed Morsi and his now outlawed Muslim Brotherhood

Judges for Egypt
(Photo: Ahram Online)

Investigative judge Mohamed Shereen Fahmy referred 34 judges to a disciplinary committee within the lawsuit that was filed against them for taking part in an illegal group, Al-Ahram's Arabic news website reported.

Judges for Egypt are a group of Egyptian reformist judges who helped monitor the post-25 January Revolution presidential elections, won by deposed president Mohamed Morsi. The group has been accused of affiliation to the Brotherhood.

The judges – accused of forming an illegal group, disturbing security and social peace, as well as inciting strife among judges – are also known for their leading role in the movement demanding judicial independence in 2005-2006 under ousted president Hosni Mubarak.

An official source has said that the investigation is still ongoing and that the judges are currently not working until a decision by the court is made.

The group was the first to announce Morsi’s victory in the 2012 presidential poll, a day before official results were released by the Supreme Presidential Electoral Commission (SPEC). Later investigations showed that the group held press conferences to support a constitutional declaration issued by Morsi in November 2012 in which he elevated the presidency above the judiciary.

Ahead of this year's constitutional referendum in January, the judges group announced via its Facebook page that it would boycott what it called "the constitution of the military".

Investigations have also shown that the group was established from another group which used to call itself the Independent Current for Judges, headed by Mahmoud Mekki, the former presidential advisor to Morsi.

The judges involved in the lawsuit include Mekki, former deputy head of the appeals court, Mahmoud El-Khodeiry, and former head of the Judges Club, Zakaria Abdel-Aziz. The three figures played leading roles in the pro-judicial independence protests in 2005-7 during Mubarak's presidency.

Morsi, who was removed from power by the army in July 2013 amid nationwide protests against his year-long rule, also faces a number of other charges in separate trials, including espionage and breaking out of prison in 2011.

 

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