Marty Hopes Democratization In Egypt In Line With People's Interest

Jakarta, July 4 (Antara) - Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Marty Natalegawa expressed concern over the current situation in Egypt saying that he hoped the situation would return to normal soon and democratization process there would be in line with people`s interest. Egypt`s military forces last Wednesday (July 3) toppled President Mohamed Mursi`s government and announced a transition period in the country. "The Indonesian government expects the transition period in Egypt to run smoothly and peacefully with preference to people`s interest," he said here on Thursday. As to the fate of thousands of Indonesians living in Egypt he called on them to respect the law in the country and avoid being in mass activities. "I have instructed officials at the Indonesian Embassy in Cairo to closely observe the situation there and brace themselves to give service to Indonesians living in Egypt," the minister added. Earlier Reuters news agency reported Egypt`s armed forces overthrew elected Islamist President Mohamed Mursi on Wednesday (July 3) and announced a political transition with the support of a wide range of political, religious and youth leaders. After a day of drama in which tanks and troops deployed near the presidential palace as a military deadline for Mursi to yield to mass protests passed, the top army commander announced on television that the president had "failed to meet the demands of the Egyptian people". Flanked by political and religious leaders and top generals, General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi announced the suspension of the Islamist-tinged constitution and a roadmap for a return to democratic rule under a revised rulebook. The president of the supreme constitutional court will act as interim head of state, assisted by an interim council and a technocratic government until new presidential and parliamentary elections are held. "Those in the meeting have agreed on a roadmap for the future that includes initial steps to achieve the building of a strong Egyptian society that is cohesive and does not exclude anyone and ends the state of tension and division," Sisi said in a solemn address broadcast live on state television. After he spoke, hundreds of thousands of anti-Mursi protesters in central Cairo`s Tahrir Square erupted into wild cheering, setting off fireworks and waving flags. Cars drove around the capital honking their horns in celebration. But a statement published in Mursi`s name on his official Facebook page after Sisi`s speech said the measures announced amounted to "a full military coup" and were "totally rejected". The Arab world`s most populous nation has been in turmoil since the fall of autocrat Hosni Mubarak as Arab Spring uprisings took hold in early 2011, arousing concern among allies in the West and in Israel, with which Egypt has a 1979 peace treaty. The Muslim Brotherhood president, in office for just a year, was at a Republican Guard barracks surrounded by barbed wire, barriers and troops, but it was not clear whether he was under arrest. The state newspaper Al-Ahram said the military had told Mursi at 7 p.m. (1700 GMT) that he was no longer head of state.