Egyptian opposition reports violations in referendumDecember 15, 2012 - 18:32 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The Egyptian opposition accused President Mohamed Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood of attempted "vote rigging" in the Dec 15 referendum on the country’s new constitution, The Daily Star reports. The National Salvation Front, in a statement, expressed "deep concern... over the number of irregularities and violations in the holding of the referendum," charging it "points to a clear desire for vote rigging by the Muslim Brotherhood." The statement, however, did not call for a boycott which the Front had threatened if it felt the referendum was unfair. Instead it urged voters to reject the new constitution, which was largely drafted by Mursi's Islamist allies. The Front sent a separate statement with a long list of alleged irregularities recorded. The violations cited included unsealed ballot papers, Muslim Brotherhood members coercing people into voting for the charter, an absence of judges to monitor and polls being closed early. In Cairo's Nasr City, where Islamists held a pro-constitution rally on Friday, Dec 14, a judge forbade Christians from voting, the Front said. Egypt, the Arab world's most populous nation, is split over the draft charter, which is being decided in a staggered referendum being held Saturday and a week later. Mursi's camp argues the text needs to be adopted to stem the instability which has endured since the overthrow early last year of Hosni Mubarak. But the secular-leaning opposition sees the proposed constitution as undercutting human rights, especially for women and religious minorities, and boosting military powers to usher in sharia-style laws wanted by the Islamists. Egypt has weathered three weeks of protests against Mursi and the draft charter. Last week, clashes between pro- and anti-Mursi demonstrators in Cairo left eight people dead and hundreds injured. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Scholz hopes Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty will be signed this year German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hopes that a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan will be signed this year. Ucom equips four bus stops in Ijevan with free Wi-Fi Ucom now provides free Wi-Fi coverage in smart bus stops in four communities of Ijevan. Armenia, Russia discuss life extension of Metsamor nuclear plant Issues regarding the extension of life of the 2nd power unit of the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant were discussed in Yerevan. Armenians stage more campaigns against territorial concessions to Azerbaijan Protesters blocked more roads across Armenia on Friday, April 26 in continuing attempts to scuttle territorial concessions to Azerbaijan. |