Egypt rulers form committee to amend constitution

CAIRO - Egyptian military rulers Tuesday formed a committee to suggest amendments to the constitution that will complete its task within 10 days.

The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces has reiterated that it will hand over power to a civilian authority within six months, Xinhua reported.

The committee will be chaired by Tareq el-Beshry, former head of the supreme constitutional court. Other members include three constitutional experts, three judges and a representative of the banned opposition group, the Muslim Brotherhood.

El-Beshry said the committee was appointed to amend the constitution in a way that would help maintain the country’s sovereignty and promote democracy.

The committee, however, does not have a working mechanism yet.

Defence Minister Hussein Tantawi Tuesday urged the committee to complete its task on time.

The military council said it hopes to transfer power to a civilian authority in the next six months that is elected in a free and fair election and reflects the will of the people, the official MENA news agency reported.

“The council affirmed that it is not seeking power, the current situation was imposed on the armed forces, and that they will not betray people’s trust,” it said.

The council had earlier suspended the constitution and dissolved parliament.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak stepped down last week after more than two weeks of protests and went into internal exile at his home city of Sharm el-Sheikh.