The First English Reference on The Role of Judges in the Political Reform in Egypt

The First English Reference on
The Role of Judges in the Political Reform in Egypt

Press Release

In a first step of its kind, The American University in Cairo Press published the chapters speaking about Egypt from the book “Judges and Political Reform” issued by Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS) in 2006.
If justice in the Arab world is often marked by a lack of autonomy of the judiciary towards the executive power, one of the characteristic features of the Egyptian judiciary lies in its strength and activism in the defense of democratic values. Judges have been struggling for years to enhance their independence from the executive power and exercise full supervision of the electoral process to achieve transparent elections.
The last three years have seen growing tensions in Egypt between the judiciary and the executive authority. In order to get concessions from the power, judges went as far as to threaten to boycott the supervision of the presidential and legislative elections due in Autumn 2005 and to organize sit-ins in the streets. The struggle between the two powers was in full swing in Spring 2006, when a conference convened in Cairo from 1st to 3rd April on the theme: “The Role of Judges in the Process of Political Reform in Egypt and in the Arab World”.
The Conference was organized by the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS) in cooperation with the French Institute of Research for Development (IRD) and supported by the European Commission, with participants from 11 Arab countries, France, Germany and U.S.
This book is a collection of the papers dealing with Egypt. They allow a better understanding of the role judges are playing in the process of democratic reform in Egypt as well as the limits of their struggle. It is edited by Nathalie Bernard-Maugiron (senior researcher at the Institut de recherche pour le développement), with contributions from Ahmed Abd El-Hafeez, Nabil Abdel Fattah, Mohamed Maher Abouelenen, Hafez Abu Seada. Hesham El-Bastawissy, Negad Mohamed El-Borai, Nathan J. Brown, Abdallah Khalil, Mahmud al-Khudayri, Isabelle Lendrevie- Tournan, Tamir Moustafa, Atef Shahat Said, Mohamed Sayed Said, Mustapha Kamel al-Sayed, Sherif Younes.
The book is available at the American University in Cairo Press for 150 L.E/ 34.95 $.