Public referendum may be conducted on Red Sea islands: MP

CAIRO - 2 May 2017: A popular referendum may be conducted on an Egyptian-Saudi deal concerning the maritime demarcation between both countries, per which Egypt announced Saudi sovereignty on the two disputed islands in the Red Sea, said an Egyptian lawmaker on Monday.

“It is a sovereignty issue...it is possible that a public referendum would be conducted,” Deputy of the Defense and National Security Committee of the parliament Yahia Kedwani told Al-Shorouk newspaper.

The deal was reached in April 2016, during Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz’s visit to Cairo, which fueled public anger.

Immediately after the agreement was signed, human rights activists, including Lawyer Khaled Ali, called for holding a public referendum as per the 2014 Constitution, which stipulates that no treaty may be concluded which is contrary to its provisions, or which results in ceding any part of the state’s territories.

Human rights lawyers resorted to the judicial authority to stop the implementation of the deal.The Supreme Administrative Court (SAC) ruled in January 2017 that the deal is null and void; however, Egypt’s Court of Urgent Matters overturned the ruling and obliged the government on April 2 to proceed with the transfer of the islands.

However, another case was brought by the government to the Supreme Constitutional Court to issue its final ruling against the SAC’s verdict.

In April 2017, Prime Minister Sherif Ismail announced that the cabinet has already referred the agreement to the House of Representatives to discuss it.