Ahmed Mekki (politician)

Ahmed Mekki (born 1941) was the Minister of Justice of Egypt from 2 August 2012 until he submitted his resignation to President Morsi on 20 April 2013.^[1] He was a member of the Qandil Cabinet.^[2] Mekki was one of the independent ministers in the cabinet.^[3] He is the brother of the former vice president Mahmoud Mekki, who resigned from office on 22 December 2012.^[4][5]

Ahmed Mekki
Minister of Justice
In office 2 August 2012 – 20 April 2013
President	Mohamad Morsi
Prime Minister	Hesham Qandil
Preceded by	Adel Abdel Hamid
Succeeded by	Ahmed Sulaiman
Personal details
Born	1941 (age 82–83)
Political party	Independent
Alma mater	Alexandria University

Early life and education

Mekki was born in 1941.^[6] He studied law at Alexandria University and graduated in 1961.^[6]

Career

Mekki is the former deputy head of the Court of Cassation, Egypt’s highest appeals court.^[7][8] He was also the chairman of the fact-finding Committee in the Egyptian Judges Club.^[3]

On 2 August 2012, he began to serve as minister of justice in the cabinet led by prime minister Hesham Qandil, replacing Adel Abdel Hamid.^[9] Although Mekki was an independent member of the cabinet, he is close to the Muslim Brotherhood.^[10] Mekki resigned from office on 20 April 2013.^[11] His resignation was due to pressure from both the opposition and Brotherhood supporters.^[12] In a reshuffle of May 2013, Ahmed Sulaiman was appointed minister of justice, succeeding Mekki in the post.^[13][14]

Views

Mekki is a strong supporter of judicial independence.^[8] He was known as "a reformist judge", and "the revolution’s representative" in Qandil’s government.^[8][15] After his appointment, Mekki argued that Egypt is an Islamic state governed by Islamic traditions.^[16]

References

1. "Egyptian justice minister resigns". Reuters. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
2. Sarah Sirgany (2 August 2012). "Egypt Cabinet ministers sworn in". CNN. Retrieved 2 August 2012.
3. "Egypt's Newly Appointed Cabinet Ministers" (PDF). American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
4. Lipin, Michael (13 August 2012). "Egypt Reshuffle Puts New Defense Chief, Vice President in Spotlight". Voice of America. Archived from the original on 1 July 2013. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
5. "Egyptian VP Mahmoud Mekki resigns amid constitution vote". Deutsche Welle. 22 December 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
6. "Ahmed Mekky". Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Archived from the original on 8 February 2013. Retrieved 8 December 2012.
7. "Egypt's new government ministers sworn in". France 24. AFP. 6 August 2012. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
8. Ashour, Omar (7 August 2012). "Egypt's New Old Government". Project Syndicate. Cairo. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
9. "Meet the ministers: A thumbnail guide". Al Ahram. 7 December 2011. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
10. El Din, Gamal Essam (3 August 2012). "Egypt PM Qandil makes some surprise, controversial ministerial choices". Ahram Online. Retrieved 7 March 2013.
11. Gamaleddine, Sayed (21 April 2013). "Egypt's justice minister Ahmed Mekki resigns: Judicial sources". Ahram Online. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
12. Azeem, Zenobia (21 April 2013). "Brotherhood Demands Judicial Purge in Egypt". Al Monitor. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
13. "Egypt's Morsi Brings More Islamists into Cabinet". Voice of America. Reuters. 7 May 2013. Archived from the original on 18 June 2013. Retrieved 16 June 2013.
14. El Din, Gamal Essam (7 May 2013). "A disappointing reshuffle". Al Ahram Weekly. 1152. Archived from the original on 30 June 2013. Retrieved 16 June 2013.
15. "Egypt's government: It's time to get to know the ministers". Egypt Business. 5 August 2012. Archived from the original on 13 November 2012. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
16. "Minister of Justice to MCN: It is normal for the ruling systm [sic] and judiciary be influenced by Sharia with no discrimination between Muslims and Copts". Cairo: MCN. 12 August 2012. Retrieved 30 August 2012.