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An Egyptian opposition activist scuffles with riot police during a rally

04 May 2010 04:41 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Opposition groups and social movements in Egypt have protested against the country’s President Hosni Mubarak in the capital city of Cairo, APA reports quoting presstv.ir website.

About 400 people gathered near the government headquarters at the Tahrir square in Cairo on Monday, Reuters reported.

Police used batons and splintered wooden sticks to disperse the protesters. At least one person was detained in the clashes.

The demonstrators called for an end to an emergency law that permits indefinite detentions and to rules that make it difficult for candidates to challenge Mubarak in any vote.

Egypt enforced an emergency law following the assassination of former President Anwar Sadat in 1981 that allows for indefinite detention of detainees and strips them the right to appeal sentences they are handed.

"Bypassing justice by referring sensitive cases to emergency courts undermines the criminal justice system and encourages human rights abuses," Amnesty International has said about the law.

The protesters also called for raising the minimum wage, unchanged for more than a quarter of century and now worth the equivalent of just USD 6 a month.

The 82-year-old Egyptian leader has yet to announce whether he would run for another six-year term in the 2011 presidential election.

Many Egyptians believe his son Gamal, who is a politician, will stand for presidency, should Mubarak choose not to run for the office again