CAIRO – Protests continued in the streets of Cairo Thursday as prospects for the fledgling Egyptian democracy look increasingly bleak. Egyptian politicians and pundits alike have expressed surprise at the anti-government sentiment sweeping the nation, as the first bill passed by the new government was done so unanimously.
The ‘Egyptian Perambulatory Unification Act’ was the cornerstone of President Morsi’s election campaign, and is the first piece of legislation to be codified by the new democratic set-up. The act is the result of decades of concerted pressure from citizen groups across the country, first felt in 1986 with the emergence of a workers’ union song that linked the march toward self-governance to the unique gait of the Egyptian people.
The Morsi regime has responded to the public criticism and hopes to improve its approval ratings by passing a new bill allowing workers to work a half day on Mondays, due to the somewhat manic and tiring nature of the day.
Future legislation slated for debate in the Egyptian Parliament includes a bill aimed at tackling the hungry poor (‘The Hungry Like a Wolf Act’) and bringing greater equality to women across the region (‘The Girls Just Wanna Have Equal Pay Act’).
