The Cabinet has agreed to adopt an intiative in partnership with the European Union that would create a new law to “shift the burden of proving the legality of smuggled funds to the symbols of the former regime who made the desposits,” said Justice Minister Ahmed Mekky on Thursday.
The Egyptian government will work on the intiatiive with the ambassadors of Switzerland and the Netherlands, as well as with the British home secretary.
Mekky told Al-Masry Al-Youm that the new bill is expected to be issued in June, if approved by the rest of the European Union members.
After the 2011 revolution, Egypt has been struggling to recover the funds smuggled by former President Hosni Mubarak, members of his family and senior officials of his regime.
The efforts of the Egyptian government, however, have been met by legal complications amid assurances from foreign countries that the process of recovering the funds will not be an easy task, and may take time.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
