Decision to Suspend Interrogations of Reformist Judges

Political and judiciary sources said a superior decree has been made to suspend investigations of the Higher Prosecution of the State Security with the four justices of the Cassation Court on their statements on ballot rigging. Recently, the Higher Judiciary Council resolved to withdraw the judiciary immunity of four justices to face investigations. 
 
The sources added the contradictory statements of the Attorney General, the Justice Ministry, and the Higher Judiciary Council in this regard resulted form their different views on how to announce the decree without showing judges and their union victorious.
 
The sources said high-level bodies warned the political authorities that any escalation in policy towards judges will not be of service to the regime especially after the great support of judges and civil society for the under-investigation justices. Putting the judges of the Cassation Court, the superior judiciary power in Egypt, has very serious significance. Soon, the Cassation Court will consider the contest of Ayman Nour, a prominent opposition politician, in the verdict of the Criminal Court that sentenced him to five-year imprisonment on charges of forging documents used to found his political party. Therefore, any government attempt to punish any of the court’s justices means that they are prone to the government power; they are not independent.
 
The sources did not rule out that the decision may come after that some government sectors indicated the dangerous outcome of referring judges to the extraordinary Higher Prosecution of the State Security, whose legality is questioned. The step may put the regime under local and foreign pressures to yield to requests of judges to pass the union-sanctioned bill of judiciary power. 
 
Moreover, the Justice Minister promised the Judges Union to release 10-million funds as soon as possible, after a decision to cut the annual government subsidy to the union.          
 
The sources regarded these new procedures a rollback in the government stance to judges that aims to contain their outcry before the coming meeting of their General Assembly, in which judges decide to step up their measures of protest.