Dozens of protesters gathered Wednesday in Tahrir Square for a third consecutive day to demand the implementation of a law that could oust presidential candidate Ahmed Shafiq from the runoff.
The protesters hope the Political Isolation Law, which would deny political rights to certain officials who served under former President Hosni Mubarak, would remove Shafiq from the race and replace him with Hamdeen Sabbahi, who came in third in the first round of voting last week.
The controversial law was passed by Parliament and approved by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, but has not been implemented because of questions over its constitutionality. It is under review by the Supreme Constitutional Court.
Protesters also demanded protection from the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, the right to peacefully protest and the independence of the judiciary.
Some passers-by argued with them, saying the election results should be respected no matter who wins. Demonstrators countered that Egypt should remove those who served in the Mubarak regime to rebuild the nation.
The protests did not disrupt traffic in the square, but with the afternoon rush hour of government employees and the disappearance of traffic police in the square, flow has slowed considerably.
In Baltim City, Kafr al-Sheikh, a number of Sabbahi supporters on Wednesday marched through the main streets, chanting slogans against the “supreme guide’s rule,” referring to Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Morsy, who is running against Shafiq.
During the more than two-hour rally demonstrators chanted slogans expressing their rejection of the results of the election’s first round.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
