By Marwa Awad and Edmund Blair
CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt extended an emergency law for two years on Tuesday while promising to limit its use, but analysts said it could still be used to stifle dissent.
Ending emergency law has long been a call of government critics and it has been a rallying cry of protests in Cairo since April 6 that have been small by global standards but unusual in Egypt where security quickly quashes dissent.
The state has long said terror and drugs cases were the focus of the law, in force since 1981. Analysts argue this is a legal ploy that masks the law's violation of basic human rights.
Egypt's parliament, dominated by Mubarak's National Democratic Party, passed the extension with about three-quarters of the vote after intense debate led by the opposition.
About 200 protesters -- including former presidential candidate Ayman Nour, Muslim Brotherhood lawmakers and labour leaders -- gathered outside parliament ahead of the vote.
"Down, down with emergency law. Down, down with military rule," protesters chanted. They were outnumbered by hundreds of police in riot gear.
The United States, one of Egypt's Western allies and a major donor, has called for the law to be lifted and replaced with a counter-terrorism law. It also drew criticism from local and international rights groups.
GOVT COMMITMENT
Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif told parliament the extension request came with a commitment the government would only use it to deal with "the threat of terrorism and narcotics, and only to the extent necessary to confront these dangers".
"The emergency law will not be used to undermine freedoms or infringe upon rights if these two threats are not involved," he said in a speech before parliament voted.
The new law does not allow the state to monitor any form of communication, censor media, close publishing and broadcasting outlets, or confiscate property, the resolution said.
Minister of State for Legal Affairs Moufid Shehab said the changes made the law similar to anti-terrorism legislation in other states and that an anti-terrorism act was in the works.
Yet, the opposition criticised the changes as cosmetic as it still allows indefinite detention and other measures which rights groups and activists say have been used to silence opponents of President Hosni Mubarak, 82, and his ruling party.
"There are no real changes or amendments to the emergency law, which has only ever been applied to control those with political opinion," former judge Mahmoud Khoudary said.
A group of 16 Egyptian rights groups said late last year that up to 14,000 people, some held for 15 years, are being held without charge or trial despite some being granted release.
Those held under emergency law for crimes not related to "terrorism and narcotics" would be released on June 1, the speaker of parliament Fathi Sorour said.
The extension runs until May 31, 2012, covering a period that includes parliamentary and presidential elections.
"There are no free and fair elections with emergency law in place," said Mohamed el-Beltagy, a Brotherhood parliamentarian. "This extension seals the fate of political life in upcoming elections and shows the government is lying to the people".
Critics have said changing emergency law to a terror law would not amount to any substantive legal difference.
Gamal Mubarak, the president's son and a senior official in the ruling National Democratic Party, previously told Egyptian journalists that the law should be applied with "certain controlling measures" on its use. He did not give details.
The president has not said if he will seek another six-year term in office. Many Egyptians believe that, if he does not run, his son, 46, might be levered into office.
Reuters Africa
