Call for solidarity with activist and journalist Said Muhammad Farag

Posted on By 3arabawy

I received the following statement:

Call for solidarity with activist and journalist Said Muhammad Farag
The undersigned organizations call upon all activists and human rights organizations and journalists to express their solidarity with activist Said Muhammad Farag, journalist at El-Ahrar newspaper in the torture case where he was victim to El Zawia El Hamra investigations officer.
The court case will be held on the 26th of February 2007 at 9 a.m. in the Galaa Courts compound.
Concerning the case:
The Public prosecutor had referred officers Ahmad Salah, Muhammad Youssef (chief investigations officer at El-Zawia El-Hamra Police Station) and others to court, charging them of torturing activist and journalist Said Muhammad Farag and detaining him for 26 days with no legal grounds, after he had been arrested in 2005 to prevent him from nominating himself for the 2005 parliamentary elections. The police then claimed that Said was charged and convicted in a criminal case. Later, it was revealed that he was not the person concerned and he was released by the Cairo criminal court. Despite the court order Said was arrested again on the 1st of February 2007 on the same grounds in an attempt to pressure him to protect the officers referred to court and charged of his torture. Once again the court ordered his release on the 12th of February 2007.
Background:
This torture case raised by Said is not the first harassment he suffers by the hands of the police. It is the most recent incident in a long chain of harassments that started with Said developing interest in human rights cases and issues. The police campaign against him escalated with his attempts to disclose police violations of human rights. Some of those police officers were charged and imprisoned. Said also played a role in exposing several cases of corruption involving major institutions and agencies.
Said was among the first journalists to write about torture in Egyptian newspapers. In 1998/89 he was behind the exposure of the death of Makhlouf Abdel Aal under torture. The officers were brought to court and were sentenced to three years in prison. In 1995 he covered the story of the torture of Abdel Latif Idris, the cook of one of the former ministries of health, upon which he was arrested and a charge of resisting authorities was raised against him. In 1997 he covered the torture case of a citizen accused of falsification, upon which he was arrested for 69 days and charges were fabricated against him. Again, the court ruled him innocent. In 1999 he tried to expose a major case of corruption in the Obour whole sale market, where he presented audio and visual evidence for an attempt of bribing him to stop his press campaign. The Public Funds Investigations police arrested him again and raised a case of bribery against him, but the court released him for the third time!

Undersigned Organizations:
Arab Network for Human Rights Information
Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression
Association for Human Rights Legal Aid
Egyptian Association against Torture
Egyptian Initiative for Persona Rights
El-Nadim Center for the Psychological Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence
Hisham Mubarak Law Center

Judge Mekki: No hope for reform under Mubarak

Posted on By 3arabawy

The deputy head of the Cassation Court, Judge Ahmad Mekki, lashed out against the constitutional amendments process, saying the regime’s proposed counterterrorism-related amendments would stiffle dissent, and “make even garbage-throwing a terrorist crime.” The judge added, “there is no hope for any reform under this regime.”

Blogger Kareem sentenced to 4 years in prison

Posted on By 3arabawy

I guess you heard or read the bad news by now. Secular blogger Kareem was sentenced to four years in prison today: three years for “insulting Islam” and another one for “insulting the president.”

المدون كريم عامر

And in a Kafkaesque development on the side of the trial, the recently released torture victim Abu Omar showed up in court today, using the opportunity there were media presence to expose his ordeal and cry out for help, reports Al-Jazeera:

During the trial, an Egyptian imam allegedly kidnapped by CIA agents in Italy and taken to Egypt, showed up to speak to the media, breaking his release conditions.
Known as Abu Omar, the former Milan-based imam on Thursday told reporters that he was tortured in an Egyptian prison and that he wants to return to Italy.
He showed the cameras scars he said were from torture in Egyptian jails and said he will resort to the Italian government to help him.

Local and international rights watchdogs have blasted the government over the verdict. Four Egyptian human rights groups denounced the trial and said they were filing an appeal. The NYC-based Human Rights Watch issued a statement strongly denouncing Kareem’s imprisonment as “setting a chilling precedent.” Amnesty International also condemned the prison sentence, and called for Kareem’s immediate and unconditional release.