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The constitution has split the country and caused tempers to flare
People in Egypt have begun voting on a new constitution endorsed by the Islamist president, which has divided the country and sparked deadly unrest.
President Mohammed Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood have campaigned heavily in favour of the draft document, which may define Egypt for years to come.
Opponents say it is poorly drafted and overly favours Islamists.
The vote, which is staggered over a week, appears to be going smoothly with indications of a high turnout.
BBC correspondents at polling stations report a relaxed mood. Many people said they were voting for the restoration of stability in Egypt.
At the scene
Police officers and army soldiers in riot gear holding batons line up the entrance gate of the Tawfiqiya School polling station in central Cairo. An armoured vehicle with four soldiers sitting on top is parked outside.
This polling station is designated for men and long queues have formed on either side of the gate.
Heated discussions have already started.
"It makes no sense," one voter says emphatically to another man standing behind him in the queue.
"Why modify and change articles we don't like after we vote? Why don't we wait and do it right"
Further down the queue another man says: "I'm afraid to vote 'Yes' or 'No' , I'll vote with what my conscience tells me."
"I'm voting 'Yes' because we need stability. We need to move on," another says.
A "No" voter tells me: "I'm voting 'no' to this constitution and Ikhwan [Muslim Brotherhood]. They are spreading like a cancer in the country and should be stopped.
"I came here because boycotting is like saying yes to them."
Saturday's voting takes place in Cairo, Alexandria and eight other provinces, a week before the rest of the country.
Some 250,000 security personnel have been deployed to safeguard a referendum in which more than 51 million people are registered to vote.
Polling reportedly had to be spread out because few judges were willing to supervise the referendum but human rights groups have expressed fears the results from the first round could sway the opinion of those voting in the second.
A constitution must be in place before elections can be held early next year.
Mr Morsi was elected president in June with just over half of the vote, more than a year after Hosni Mubarak was overthrown in a popular revolt in Egypt, the biggest country in the Arab world.
'Wrong for Egypt'Outside polling stations, the queues formed early, the BBC's Jon Leyne reports from the capital Cairo.
Egyptians are still enthusiastic about this vote, even after weeks of protests, debate and argument, he says.
The simple ballot paper just asks if Egyptians support or oppose the new constitution. Supporters include President Morsi, who voted near the presidential palace in the Cairo district of Heliopolis, the Muslim Brotherhood and most other Islamists.
Opponents include liberals and others who want a more secular future for Egypt. Some of them say the new constitution would take away some of the new freedoms hard won in last year's revolution.
Constitution at a glance
- Sharia remains the main source of legislation
- Al-Azhar, Sunni Islam's leading authority, to be consulted on "matters related to Sharia"
- Christianity and Judaism to be the main source of legislation for Christians and Jews
- Religious freedom to be limited to Muslims, Christians and Jews
- Limits president to two four-year terms of office
Our correspondent says the referendum is more than a vote on obscure clauses - it is about whether Egypt should be an Islamic country or a secular one.
Voters interviewed by Reuters news agency in Cairo were hopeful the vote would bring some calm to Egypt.
"I see this is a positive step for the country... a good base that we can start to work from," said one, Ahmed Gindy.
In the northern port city of Alexandria, where there were clashes on Friday between rival activists fighting with clubs, stones and other weapons, Mohamed Ewais explained why he was voting "No".
"I cannot accept a constitution with very limited, very limited actually, rights for minorities, rights for women, rights for even children," he told the Associated Press news agency.
"It's not suitable for Egypt, actually. We are taking about a country that has been in place for over 210 years as a modern state."
Lasting debateThe violence in Alexandria reportedly broke out after a cleric at a mosque urged worshippers to vote "Yes".
Clashes continued late into the evening, with police firing tear gas, and at least 15 people injured in the fighting.
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Clashes flared between the rival camps in Alexandria on Friday
President Morsi has granted the army powers to arrest civilians.
The opposition National Salvation Front (NSF) coalition had vehemently opposed the referendum but this week said its supporters should go to the ballot boxes to vote "No".
In half-page advertisements in newspapers on Friday, the opposition called the document "a constitution that divides Egypt".
But supporters of the draft constitution accused the opposition of sowing "lies and discord" about the referendum.
Our correspondent says that even if one side or the other wins a clear victory, it is not likely to be the end of a debate that has divided Egypt down the middle.
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