Observers Without Borders – a human rights group – said on Wednesday that President Mohamed Mursi’s decision to disallow Egyptians from voting outside their registered districts will curb participation in next week’s constitutional referendum.

The elections committee that is overseeing the referendum had described the amendment as an attempt to lower slanders against the transparency of the vote.  

The move will deprive 10 million citizens from voting and thus lower the overall rate of participation, the state’s news agency reported Youssef Abdel Khaliq, director of the group, as saying.

Abdel Khaliq explained that many Egyptians who work and live outside their home residences will not vote due the difficulty of travels, etc.