The undersigned rights organizations add their voices to that of the Journalists’ Syndicate, which has rejected the draft counterterrorism law in light of its inconsistency with Article 71 of the Egyptian constitution and because it seeks to reinstate restrictions that journalists have fought against for decades—a struggle that came to fruition in the 2014 constitution.
Files: Freedoms of expression
The case was filed in 2013 following the Edward Snowden leaks, which revealed the scale of communications surveillance by British and US intelligence practiced through the direct interception or tapping into global communication infrastructure.
Yesterday, the investigating judge in the NGO foreign funding case delegated a committee from the Ministry of Social Solidarity to visit the offices of the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS) in Cairo and look into its activities.
The ElRaml Appeal Misdemeanor Court issued a verdict on 31 May 2015 of imprisonment against women human rights defender (WHRD) and lawyer Mahienour El-Massry and other activists, namely Youssef Shaaban and Loay ElKahwagy, for 15 months in the case known as "ElRaml Police Station"
The undersigned organizations believe that these charges are aimed at harassing independent judges who support legislative reforms to improve the human rights situation
The arrest comes in the midst of security investigations regarding a call via social media channels for a public strike launched by activists and youth groups, including the 6th April Movement.
In an escalation move rejected by the undersigning Human rights organizations and individuals, the Prosecutor’s Office decided to transfer Ms. AzzaSoliman from the list of witnesses in the case of the Shaimaa El Sabbagh to the list of defendants.
The undersigned organizations reiterate that the objective of the judges’ forced retirement is first and foremost to send a message to judges, telling them to withhold their opinions except when expressing approval of the current political administration
The court sentenced Alaa Abd al-Fattah and Ahmed Abd al-Rahman to five years in prison, a fine of LE100,000 each, and five years of police probation upon release.
The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) welcomed the acquittal of the suspects in al-Bahr bathhouse case, and called on the government to stop pursuing people based on their sexual orientation, or what is believed to be their sexual identity.
