Cairo, Egypt (CNN) -- Galvanized by the emotional words of a freed Google executive, thousands of Egyptians filled Cairo's Tahrir Square on Tuesday, dismissing the embattled regime's pledges of constitutional reforms.
The crowd swelled as the 15th day of the revolt progressed. A second front in the demonstrations sprouted as several hundred protesters filled the city block where the parliament building stands.
Freed executive Wael Ghonim went to the square and addressed protesters, speaking into a microphone on a makeshift stage.
"This country, I have said for a long time, this country is our country, and everyone has a right to this country," he said. "You have a voice in this country. This is not the time for conflicting ideas, or factions, or ideologies. This is the time for us to say one thing only, 'Egypt is above all else.'"
His words prompted the protesters to begin chanting "Egypt above all else."
"I apologize to you, I am so tired," Ghonim said. "Today we are emphasizing our voice." As he walked off the stage, Ghonim told a reporter in English, "We don't care. We are going to do what we've got to do."
A Facebook page created to authorize Ghonim to speak on behalf of the protesters has 150,000 fans, showing he could be emerging as the face of the opposition.
Earlier, Vice President Omar Suleiman announced on state television that a committee has been authorized to amend Egypt's constitution, which clearly delineates channels of succession. He also assured Egyptians that they should not fear arrest for speaking their minds.
But with the credibility of the regime in serious question, the statements from President Hosni Mubarak's deputy fell short. Real change, say Mubarak's foes, can only come with the strongman's immediate departure and an overhaul of the constitution -- not amendments here and there.
"That's not good enough," said Mohammed Habib, a leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, a key opposition party in Egypt that is outlawed by the constitution on grounds that it is based on religion.
"The first thing that the regime should do is for the president to leave," he said. "The government is dividing the opposition through these announcements."
Asem Abedine, head of the pan-Arab Nassiri party, said Mubarak was merely angling for time.
"The government is only making these announcements to avoid making real changes demanded by the people," he said. "The emergency laws should be lifted."
Mubarak has ruled Egypt with an iron hand since 1981, aided by an emergency decree that gave him sweeping powers.
Since the protests began January 25, he has appointed a vice president for the first time, reshuffled his Cabinet and announced that he won't seek a new term in September.
However, the constitution remains, reshaped in 2005 and again in 2007 to help retain power for the ruling National Democratic Party.
It has been at the heart of the dialogue between the government and some opposition representatives, who want several articles amended to make way for Egyptians who are not part of the ruling establishment to run for the nation's highest office.
U.S. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said the talks "are not broad-based enough."
--Fouad Ajami, professor at Johns Hopkins University.
He refused to say who should be included but told reporters that "major figures in Egyptian society" have not been invited. He said demonstrators should "test" the government's real motives.
The demonstrations, powered by the stamina of those who have put everything at risk for change, got an extra shot of energy Tuesday from Ghonim, who had been missing since January 28.
Ghonim told Egypt's Dream TV that he was seized around 1 a.m. January 28 as he tried to catch a cab. He was released Monday and told an emotional tale.
"I found all of a sudden four people surrounding me. They were kidnapping me," he said. "I yelled, 'Help me,' but of course I knew these were security forces."
Ghonim, a Dubai-based marketing executive, is the administrator of a Facebook page called "We are all Khaled Said," named after an Alexandria activist who was allegedly beaten to death by police. The page is widely credited with calling the first protest January 25.
"The thing that tortured me the most when I was in detention was that people would find out that I was the admin (of the Facebook page)," he said. "Because I am not the hero -- I was writing with the keyboard on the internet and my life was not exposed to any danger."
He walked out of the Dream TV interview in tears after being shown photos of those killed in the uprising.
"I want to say to every mother and every father that lost his child, I am sorry, but this is not our fault," he said before leaving. "I swear to God this is not our fault. It is the fault of everyone who was holding onto power greedily and would not let it go."
Opposition voices have started to splinter, which some analysts say plays right into the hands of a regime practicing a divide-and-conquer strategy.
Arab League Secretary-General Amre Moussa, who was among protesters last week, told CNN that Mubarak should be allowed a "dignified exit" in September.
"I believe that the president should stay until the end of his mandate. The consensus is growing on this point because of certain constitutional considerations," Moussa said.
Moussa, who was once Mubarak's foreign minister, has been seen as a possible presidential candidate. But he told CNN, "I'm giving all my focus now and my efforts to help the current situation."
CNN's Ben Wedeman, Salma Abdelaziz, Amir Ahmed, Frederik Pleitgen, Saad Abedine, Caroline Faraj and Jill Dougherty contributed to this report.
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