AFRICAN UNION SUSPENDS EGYPT

    Addis Ababa, 27 Sha’ban 1434/6 July 2013 (MINA) – In a statement, African Union (AU) has suspended Egypt from the continental body and all activities on Friday after the ouster of president Mohamed Morsi.

    The decision of the 54-member bloc came while demonstrations in support of ousted president Mohammed Morsi were going on in Cairo, the Egyptian capital, Aljazeera quoted by Mi’raj News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

    “As mandated by the relevant AU instruments, the African Union Peace and Security Council decides to suspend the participation of Egypt in AU activities until the restoration of constitutional order,” Admore Kambudzi, Secretary of the Peace and Security Council of AU, said after a meeting on Friday.

     The pan-African bloc met on Friday at AU headquarters in the Ethiopian capital to discuss the political crisis in Egypt, the Times of India reported.

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    “The council reiterates the AU’s condemnation and rejection of any illegal seizure of power,” the statement added.

     “The overthrow of the democratically elected president does not conform to the relevant provisions of Egypt’s constitution, and therefore falls under the definition of an unconstitutional change of government.”

      Ahead of the meeting, AU commission chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma stressed its “principled position” on such changes of government.

     However, Mohamed Edrees, Egyptian ambassador to the AU, said ahead of the decision that “the voice and the call of tens of millions of Egyptians must be heard, understood and respected”.

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      Speaking Friday before the suspension, Edress said that Egypt wanted to maintain its role in the AU and “continue to take part in this family”.

     The bloc has previously suspended members which broke its rule of unconstitutional changes of government, most recently in March when it suspended the Central African Republic after opposition movement seized power.

      Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau are also suspended.

      Suspension decision is the AU’s usual response to any interruption of constitutional rule by a member state. (T/P09/E1).

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Mi’raj News Agency (MINA).