Egyptian Constitution of 2012

[2] On 8 July 2013, acting President Adly Mansour issued a decree that envisaged the introduction of amendments to the constitution and put them to a referendum; if approved, the suspended-constitution would be restored into law.

Zaghoul el-Balshi, the general secretary of the commission overseeing the planned constitutional referendum, resigned in the wake of the protests.

The Constituent Assembly was originally elected by Parliament in March 2012, before being dissolved by a court in April after it was deemed unconstitutional.

[citation needed] The constitution ends Egypt's all-powerful presidency, institutes a stronger parliament, and contains provisions against torture or detention without trial.

The article says that no person may be "arrested, searched, incarcerated, deprived of freedom in any way and/or confined" unless it is ordered by a "competent judge".

[14] The new constitution limits the President to two four-year terms,[15] marking a clear shift away from the era of Mubarak, who ruled for 30 years.

[9] Mr. Ali of the International Institute for Democratic and Electoral Assistance noted that another article in the document calls for the election of local councils in each province but keeps all the power in the hands of federally appointed governors.

And even though Egypt's pervasive public corruption was a major complaint by those who forced Hosni Mubarak from power, the assembly declined to borrow any international models to promote transparency, Ali said.

"There won't be a huge improvement in the way government works and the way services are delivered, and that is a setback for democracy.

The State and the society have to maintain the authentic character of the Egyptian family, and to work on its cohesion, stability and protection of its traditions and moral values.

[9] Article 198 provides that, "Civilians may not be tried before the military justice system except for crimes that harm the armed forces, and this shall be defined by law."