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“Down, down, Hosni Mubarak,” a group of more than 200 chanted as they tried to gather in central
Hundreds of riot police were also stationed across the capital, encircling small groups of protesters as they gathered to converge on the centre.
Police beat some with sticks and dragged dozens away, witnesses said. They also chased off reporters and seized cameras being used by media trying to cover the protest.
Such demonstrations are rare in
“We are seeking to do away with injustice and other bad things,” screamed Meena Samir, a student at
The pro-reform group behind the protest, the Sixth of April Youth, is seeking constitutional amendments and an end to an emergency law that sanctions indefinite detentions.
Mubarak’s National Democratic Party is expected to win an overwhelming majority in parliament. But human rights groups, which have long complained of manipulation of Egyptian voting, are calling for international oversight of the elections.
Mubarak, 81, has not said whether he will run for a sixth presidential term but, if he does not, many Egyptians believe he will try to hand power to his politician son, Gamal, 46.
Rules outlined in the constitution make it almost impossible for any candidate to mount a realistic challenge for the presidency without the backing of Mubarak’s ruling party.
“What we are calling for is political freedom for Egyptians through peaceful means. Our aim is to instigate political movement among the people to demand their rights,” Omar Ali, an April 6 movement organizer, said before the protest.
Source: Gulf Times