Several thousand Egyptians demonstrate against new 'anti-protest law'

Protest at the TV Building in Maspero.

In Tahrir Square around 1,000 protesters were voicing their anger on Friday over the anti-protests law approved by the cabinet on Wednesday, which proposed to punishable anyone inciting, urging, promoting or participating in a protest or strike with with jail sentences or an LE 500,000 fine. The law has nbot gone into effect yet, the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces has yet to approve it.
The protesters were also voicing dissatisfaction with the trials of the former ministers and businessmen during the Mubarak regime.Over in Maspero, near the Radio and TV-Building, another 2,000 protesters were also protesting against the new law and moreover calling for the removal of all media personalities associated with the old regime, all editors of national papers included. The protesters chanted, “The people want to free the media.”


The 25 January Revolution Youth Coalition had called on Egyptians to take part in the protest. It dubbed the planned protest “The Friday of Cleansing”, during which the protesters will demand the resignation of all officials loyal to the former regime of ousted President Hosni Mubarak, including those working for state TV and state-run newspapers.Wael Abbas, activist and blogger said on Friday that more people would have come out but were frightened of the anti-protest law.
 In a statement on Thursday, the coalition said protesters would also demonstrate their solidarity with the "assaulted university students and to support workers against intimidation attempts through the use of repressive laws, which should have been used to bring those truly corrupt to justice."  Late Wednesday, the armed forces broke up a sit-in by Cairo University communications students who were calling for the resignation of Dean Sami Abdel Aziz.

In another development the State Commissioner's Authority on Thursday called for the dissolution of the former ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) and the liquidation and return of all of its assets to the state.
In a report on Thursday, the Authority said that the NDP was behind the corruption of political life, the deterioration of democracy, and the poor state of the economy. The report was issued two days prior to the Supreme Administrative Court’s consideration of a lawsuit filed by a number of activists demanding the party’s  dissolution.