Tag: courts

A return to the Age of Inquisition

Posted on By 3arabawy

I received the following statement from the Nadim Center…

El-Nadim Center for the Management and Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence
Ruling against Karim Amer: A Return to the Age of Inquisition
El-Nadim Center expresses its major concern regarding the prison sentence of Karim Amer. Despite repeated promises by the Egyptian President to cancel the prison penalty for publication, we are faced with an increasing number of journalists who are brought to court beginning with the Dostour journalists to Howaida Taha to Karim Amer to Shahenda Maklad who was charged for giving an interview to El Mossawar magazine. Yesterday’ sentence against Karim Amer crosses all red lines which authorities should respect in view of the provisions of the constitution, which grant freedom of opinion and expression and in view of international conventions, foremost the international declaration for political and civil rights, endorsed by Egypt in 1982 without reservations.
The sentence against Karim Amer of 4 years in prison and his earlier arrest upon a complaint by Al Azhar University takes us back to the ages of inquisition. We also wish to note that Al Azhar University has played the same role during the sports show organized by some of its students.
Karim’s trial lacked all conditions of a fair trial according to Egyptian and international standards. A new charge was added to the indictment without informing the defense lawyers or granting them access to the new documents based on the new charges made by the prosecution. The court also did not permit the lawyers to make their defense except through written memoranda prepared before the addition of the new charges.
The common factor shared by all journalists and writers who were brought to court or who were sentenced to prison is that they are all charged of exposing corruption, torture and other human rights violations.
El-Nadim Center:
·Condemns the harassment of journalists and writers and their imprisonment because of what their opinions and views.
.Demands the immediate release of Karim Amer
·Demands dropping of all charges related to freedom of opinion and expression.
Cairo, 25/2/2007

محاكمة رجال شرطة وضحاياهم في نفس الجلسة

Posted on By 3arabawy

اليوم الاثنين، 26 فبراير 2007
في محكمة جنح باب شرق – الإسكندرية
محاكمة رجال شرطة وضحاياهم في نفس الجلسة
الشرطة: بتهمة استخدام القسوة والضرب؛ والضحايا: بتهمة مقاومة السلطات!!

القاهرة 25/2/2007

يعود تاريخ القصة إلى يوم 15 أغسطس 2005.
ثلاث جروح غائرة بفروة الرأس وذراع في جبيرة مغطاة بالدماء هي ما انتهى إليه حال محمد عبد العزيز عبد الفتاح الذي تم ضربه واعتصار عنقه حتى فقد الوعي تحت أقدام المخبرين العربي صالح محمد وجمعيه عبد المنصف إبراهيم، حينما حاول إنقاذ شقيقه عبد الرازق عبد العزيز عبد الفتاح.. ليس لأن عبد الرازق شخص خطر أو مسلح بل لأنهما كانا يحاولان إجباره – شأن الكثير من المخبرين – على دفع إتاوة مقابل ممارسة عمله.
المخبران جمعه والعربي كادا أن يقتلا عبد الرازق ضربا في عرض الشارع بالحضرة الجديدة وحين تدخل محمد دفاعا عن أخيه ضربه المخبر جمعه على رأسه على حين أطلق المخبر العربي ثلاث رصاصات أصابت أحدها محمد في ذراعه، فهرب المخبران بعبد الرازق تاركين محمد ينزف إلى أن وجده صديقه أحمد على عبده حجاج، الذي تصادف مروره بالطريق.
لكن القصة لم تنته هنا.
ذهب أحمد حاملا صديقه الفاقد للوعي إلى النيابة لإثبات الواقعة وتحويله إلى المستشفى بصورة عاجلة.. أمر وكيل النيابة بنقله إلى المستشفى.. فقرر الضابط الجالس معه اصطحابهما إلى المستشفى..
لكنه لم ينقلهما إلى هناك وإنما إلى قسم باب شرق.. وبدلا من العلاج تلقى أحمد ومحمد جرعة ضخمة من الصفعات واللكمات والركلات والسباب والتهديد بالاغتصاب..
ظل محمد ينزف من جرح رأسه وساعده بينما الضابط يهدد أحمد بالاعتقال كي يشهد أمام النيابة بان محمد وعبد الرازق هما اللذان تعديا على المخبرين!!
أما نهاية الرحلة فكانت في مقر مباحث امن الدولة حيث تم تعصيب العنين وتقييد الأيدي والتعذيب المتواصل.
لماذا أمن الدولة؟ لأن أحد الضباط “يعرف” المخبر الذي أطلق الرصاص ويريد مجاملته.. وقد أخر المجاملة إلى بعد الانتهاء من كتابة تقرير الطب الشرعي حتى لا يتضمن التقرير رصدا لآثار تعذيب أمن الدولة .. ومن أمن الدولة خرج محمد وأحمد إلى القسم مرة أخرى ومن هناك أطلق سراحهما بعد عشرة أيام.. أما عبد الرازق فقد استمر احتجازه..
أما عمرو عبد العزيز عبد الفتاح، الأخ الثالث لمحمد وعبد الرازق فلم يسلم هو الآخر من جبروت شرطة قسم باب شرق. فقد حاول عمل محضر بما حدث لأخويه فكان نصيبه حفلة من الضرب واللكمات والركل بالأحذية في وجهه وصدره وظهره.
غدا يمثل خمسة من أطراف هذه القصة أمام محكمة جنح باب شرق.. المخبرين جمعه والعربي بتهمة استخدام القسوة والضرب.. وعبد الرازق وأحمد ومحمد بتهمة مقاومة السلطات.
لقد أصبحت الحالات القليلة والنادرة من حالات التعذيب التي يمكن بصعوبة بالغة الوصول بها الي ساحة القضاء، تمثل عقابا وتهديدا للضحايا وليس انتصارا لحقوقهم، فمقابل كل تهمة توجه الي أي من افراد الشرطة تصطف قائمة من التهم الملفقة توجه للضحايا. لقد اصبح تلفيق التهم وتزوير المحاضر إجراء احتياطي يلجأ اليه أفراد الشرطة عقب تعذيب الافراد أوانتهاك حقوقهم لتساومهم علي حقوقهم أولتعاقبهم علي تجرأهم بتلك الشكوي ولترهب الجميع. ونحن إذ نطالب القضاء بإنصاف الحق، لا نريد ان يصبح نصيب عبد الرازق وأحمد ومحمد هو نصيب عماد الكبير وايهاب مجدي ضحايا الفيديو كليب : السجن

Trials Day

Posted on By 3arabawy

It was my first time to go to the New Cairo Court House Compound, in el-Tagammu el-Khames, on the outskirts of my neighborhood Nasr City, east of Cairo, to cover the trial of Muhammad el-Attar, the alleged Egyptian Canadian spy, coincidentally at the same time when Khairat el-Shatter and other MB leaders were appealing against the govt freeze on their funds. Central Security Forces were deployed in the morning, awaiting the arrival of the MB detainees, besieging the gates of the court house compound.

  • Central Security Forces deployed in front of the court house compound gates, awaiting the arrival of the MB detainees. New Cairo, 24 February 2007.
  • Central Security Forces deployed in front of the court house compound gates, awaiting the arrival of the MB detainees. New Cairo, 24 February 2007.
  • Central Security Forces deployed in front of the court house compound gates, awaiting the arrival of the MB detainees. New Cairo, 24 February 2007.
  • Central Security Forces deployed in front of the court house compound gates, awaiting the arrival of the MB detainees. New Cairo, 24 February 2007.
  • Central Security Forces deployed in front of the court house compound gates, awaiting the arrival of the MB detainees. New Cairo, 24 February 2007.
  • Central Security Forces deployed in front of the court house compound gates, awaiting the arrival of the MB detainees. New Cairo, 24 February 2007.
  • Central Security Forces deployed in front of the court house compound gates, awaiting the arrival of the MB detainees. New Cairo, 24 February 2007.
  • Central Security Forces deployed in front of the court house compound gates, awaiting the arrival of the MB detainees. New Cairo, 24 February 2007.
  • Central Security Forces deployed in front of the court house compound gates, awaiting the arrival of the MB detainees. New Cairo, 24 February 2007.
  • Central Security Forces deployed in front of the court house compound gates, awaiting the arrival of the MB detainees. New Cairo, 24 February 2007.

As with all trials I had attended (I never covered a military trial before though), the High State Security court was similar to a circus, with many standing on the bench seats, shouting every now and then, the TV cameramen pushing and shoving to get a good view, the judges whispering to themselves, to the lawyers and the prosecutors without us being able to hear a word.

Muhammad el-Attar denied the prosecutor’s charges, and shouted from his cage saying he was innocent, and that he “was pressured by the Mukhabarat into confessing” he was spying for the Israelis. “The charges are fabricated,” he said. The Judge did not give him the chance to speak, saying Muhammad should speak to his lawyer first, and then the lawyer would say whatever Muhammad wanted to convey to the court.

And speaking of the lawyer–the defendant’s former lawyer Ragab el-Assal, who withdrew few days before the start of the trial, showed up today to announce his resignation from the case officially in front of the judge. Another lawyer stepped in for Muhammad’s defence by the name Ibrahim Bassiouny. I asked Bassiouny outside the court later how he was assigned to the case, he said he was assigned today by “coincidence” as he had gone to the court for another case, when Muhammad’s family bumped into him and asked him whether he wanted to take up the case, after the Lawyers’ Syndicate, he said, failed to provide one.

Earlier, an army of TV crews and photographers had assembled outside the compound waiting for the prison truck that held the alleged spy into court. Hardly no one managed to see him, since the police, acting all cheeky, took the guy inside the court building via a garage tunnel.

Muhammad’s trial was postponed to Wednesday. So the new lawyer has to read the entire case file, prepare his defense in four days.

We were on the first floor. Every now and then, we could hear strong chants. The chants were coming from the ground floor, where the trial of the MB leaders was in process. The appeal was adjourned, also to Wednesday.