Mubarak, Emergency Law, Not Going Anywhere Says Egypt’s UN Ambassador

Hosni Mubarak will oversee changes to Egypt’s constitution and help implement political reforms leading to a September election, says  Maged Abdelaziz Cairo’s ambassador to the United Nations. 

 “There is a government in place and this is the government that’s going to take the transitional period forward. “ Abdelaziz told reporters outside the Security Council late Tuesday.

 Abdelaziz said he informed Secretary General Ban Ki Moon that the current framework of the Egyptian constitution did not allow for Mubarak to step down, but that the Egyptian  President was taking the steps necessary to make constitutional changes that  allowed for “free” and “unimpeded” presidential elections in September.

 Abdelaziz also downplayed the Obama administration’s call to lift the country’s 30 year old emergency law as “friendly advice” and went on to argue it was more relevant than ever:“During these events, 17 000 prisoners have escaped, i’m speaking about criminal prisoners, escaped from prisons .If you are asking for the lifting of the emergency situation…the government will have no power in order to collect them and put them back into the place where the judicial system has already asked them to be”

 Protesters have largely rejected the Mubarak government reforms as insignificant and accused the President’s  security forces of orchestrating jailbreaks to justify a violent crackdown and mass arrests.

  While UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon said he hoped the Egyptian political transition would occur sooner than later, he dodged questions about whether or not he thought government’s reforms were sufficient.

 Last week, Ban’s statements on the Egyptian situation drew complaints from Abdelaziz who said the Secretary General had gone too far in his criticism of the Egyptian government’s response to protests.The Secretary General stepped back from those comments on Tuesday, saying he was misunderstood and had since clarified his position with the Egyptian Ambassador.

 Although Ban said he encouraged government leaders to discuss reform options with opposition movements, he also emphasized Mubarak’s key role in Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations as a reason to ensure an “orderly” and “peaceful” transition of power.