Egyptian President Mohamed Morsy will on Monday start talks on forming a coalition government, which will face the task of healing deep political divisions and convincing the military to ease its grip on power.
Morsy, of the Muslim Brotherhood group that was banned under Hosni Mubarak, on Sunday became Egypt’s first freely elected president.
He has promised an administration that includes Christians, women and youth, seeking to appeal to liberal and leftist Egyptians who fear rising Islamists will undermine democracy and human rights.
Dozens of people camped in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, where Brotherhood supporters celebrated Morsy’s win, to pressure the ruling military council to revoke a decree that granted it broad legislative powers and control over the state budget.
The military issued the decree after Egypt’s highest court last week dissolved the Islamist-led lower house of parliament.
Under the new rules, Morsy will have to work with the army generals, who have run Egypt since Mubarak’s ouster 16 months ago.
Morsy won 51.73 per cent of the vote in the June 16-17 presidential runoff to beat Ahmed Shafiq, Mubarak’s last prime minister and a former army general.
