Egypt’s Supreme Court Rules Against Shura Council

In a surprising decision, Egypt’s Supreme Constitutional Court (SCC) ruled on June 2 that the Shura Council, currently the country’s only functioning legislative body, and the Constituent Assembly, which drafted the December 2012 Constitution, are unconstitutional. The ruling, however, is of little immediate impact, as in its judgment, the court authorized the Shura Council, the upper house of parliament, to remain seated until the election of a new People’s Assembly, the lower house of the legislature. The date of that election is yet to be decided as the electoral law is still being amended.

The court found that the electoral law under which the Shura Council was elected violated the principles of equality and non-discrimination because party members were allowed to contest the two-thirds of seats reserved for parties as well as the one-third of seats allotted for independents. The judgment is in accord with the SCC’s legal reasoning for dissolving the People’s Assembly in June 2012.

The decision proved legally complicated due to the change in the country’s legal framework between the February 2012 Shura Council elections and the court’s June 2 ruling. The SCC explained that its ruling on the council’s unconstitutionality is based on the March 2011 provisional constitution in effect at the time of the Shura Council elections because the December 2012 Constitution cannot be retroactively applied.

The court’s decision to allow the Shura Council to continue its work, however, is based on Article 230 of the December 2012 constitution, which protects the council from dissolution until the election of a new People’s Assembly. As stipulated by the article, the court also ruled that new Shura Council elections must be held within six months of the first meeting of the People’s Assembly.