CAIRO, (Reuters) – Egypt’s new military rulers dissolved parliament and suspended the constitution yesterday but said they would govern only until elections to replace ousted president Hosni Mubarak, possibly in six months.
Troops, some wielding sticks, earlier took control of Tahrir (Liberation) Square, the fulcrum of the 18 days of protests that swept Mubarak from power on Friday. It let traffic flow through central Cairo as the army struggled to return life to normal.
The Higher Military Council, which took over after a revolt that changed modern Egyptian history and ended Mubarak’s 30-year rule, promised a referendum on constitutional amendments in this key American ally in the Middle East.
The initial response from opposition figures and protest leaders was largely positive. “Victory, victory,” chanted pro-democracy activists in Tahrir Square.
“It is a victory for the revolution,” said Ayman Nour, who challenged Mubarak for the presidency in 2005 and was later jailed. “I think this will satisfy the protesters.” A military statement read: “The higher council of the armed forces will manage the affairs of the country for a temporary period of six months or until the end of elections to the upper and lower houses of parliament, and presidential elections.”
It gave no timetable for what will be a complex process. But setting an initial period of military rule at six months seemed to be an early indication of the generals’ thinking on timing. No other body seems able to run the country before elections.
Egypt’s constitution was written with built-in guarantees to keep Mubarak in power, elections were rigged in favour of his ruling party and opposition groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood were sometimes harassed, sometimes tolerated.
As the momentous events in Egypt continued to ripple across the region, demonstrators in Yemen, inspired by protests in Tunisia and Egypt, clashed with police blocking them from marching on Ali Abdullah Saleh’s presidential palace.
ARMY IN COMMAND
Egypt’s government now reports to the military as it did to Mubarak. The former air force commander wasdespised by many for ruling like a pharaoh, though he was once a hero for his role in the 1973 war with Israel and who steadied Egypt after the 1981 assassination of his predecessor Anwar Sadat. Protest organisers were forming a Council of Trustees to defend the revolution and urge swift reform from a military intent on restoring law and order during the transition.
Any sign the army is reneging on its promises of democracy and civilian rule could reignite mass protests on the street.
Uncertainty remains over how much influence the military will seek to exert in reshaping a corrupt and oppressive ruling system which it has propped up for six decades.
People argued heatedly in Tahrir Square over whether to comply with army orders to leave. “The people want the square cleared,” some chanted. “We will not leave!” countered others.
Police officers, emboldened by Mubarak’s downfall, gathered outside the Interior Ministry to demand higher pay. Warning shots were fired in the air. No one was hurt.
Workers from the health and culture ministries staged demonstrations as Egyptians began venting pent-up frustrations.
Egypt declared today a bank holiday after workers disrupted operations at the country’s main state banks. The military is expected today to ban meetings by labour unions or professional syndicates, effectively forbidding strikes, and to tell all Egyptians to get back to work.
There will also be a warning from the military against those who create “chaos and disorder”, an army source said, adding the army would, however, acknowledge the right to protest. The cabinet met and, for the first time, the portrait of Mubarak did not gaze over its proceedings as Egyptians quietly removed once ubiquitous images of the 82-year-old former leader.
Protesters have demanded the release of political prisoners, the lifting of a state of emergency, the abolition of military courts, fair elections and a swift handover to civilian rule
