Ihab Magdi Farouk, the victim of Imbaba Police brutality video is still on the run, fearing for his safety after he went public with the details of his torture in an interview with Al-Masry Al-Youm on Thursday, only to have his house raided and family detained.
Ihab made a phone call yesterday to journalist Ali Zalat of Al-Masry Al-Youm, who broke the exclusive the report about Ihab’s identity, and told him he would stay on the run till he’s provided with legal aid.
I received updates regarding the Hadayek el-Qobba State Security torture case, which will be investigated in El-Tagamo El-Khames (Nasr City) court Saturday 9am.
Here is a statement from a coalition of rights watchdogs:
NGOs Coalition to Oversee the Trial of a State Security Officer
31/1/2007
A number of human rights organizations and human rights advocates announced the formation of a coalition to oversee the criminal trial on the case of murder by electric shock of Muhammad Abdul-Qader Alsayed, in the case number 4681 of 2004, criminal, Hadaeq Al-Qobba, registered under number 533 of 2005, criminal, West Cairo. The case is considered by the twenty first district in the New Cairo city (Al-Tagamo Al-Khames), East Cairo. The case is postponed to Saturday, February 3rd, 2007. The accused is Ashraf Mostafa Hussein Safwat, captain in the State Security Investigation Body.
The facts of the case start with the arrest of the brothers Muhammad Abdul-Qader Al-Sayed and Sameh Abdul-Qader Al-Sayed and their detention in Hadaeq Al-Qobba police station on December 16th, 2003. Muhammad Abdul-Qader Al-Sayed died three days later after his arrest as a result of the torture he has been subjected to. On April 1st, 2006, the prosecution general referred the accused officer to the criminal court.
What raised the concern of the organizations and prompted them to form a coalition to monitor and oversea the trial is what they received from the defense panel instructed by the victim’s family to the effect that this panel was surprised in the session held on February 4th, 2006, when the defense of the accused submitted to the court a statement establishing that the family of the victim waived the civil action and cancelled all the proxies to the said defense panel. It’s noting worthy that the family of the victim consists of his wife and three minor girls, and his brother is still under detention by virtue of the Emergency Law. What made the organizations interested in forming such coalition is that it in 20 years since 1986 when 44 officers were tried, this is the first time where a State Security officer is tried in a case of torture.
The monitoring coalition, while observing the application of the national and international standards of fair trial, stresses its concern regarding this waiver to have been made as a result of severe pressures exercised on the family of the victim to force it to waive the case, especially that the brother of the said victim is still under arrest under the control of the accused officer.
Members to the Coalition
– Egyptian Anti-Torture Society
– The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information
– Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights
– National Center for Law and Human Rights
– Egyptian Organization for Human Rights
– Defense for Freedoms Committee, the Egyptian Bar Association
– Land Center for Human Rights
– Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies
– Al-Nadim Center for Psychological Rehabilitation and Treatment of Victims of Violence
– Hisham Mubarak Law Center
– Mr. Mahmoud Qandeel – Lawyer
And here’s a statement I received few minutes ago (in Arabic) from AHRLA (whose lawyers have been spearheading the campaign to prosecute State Security Captain Ashraf Safwat) calling on journalists and rights activists to show up in court for solidarity:
فى تمام الساعة التاسعة من صباح يوم السبت الموافق 3 فبراير 2007 تعقد جلسة محاكمة الضابط / أشرف مصطفى حسين صفوت “بجهاز مباحث أمن الدولة” المتهم بتعذيب المواطن / محمد عبد القادر السيد حتى الموت فى القضية رقم 4681 لسنة 2004 جنايات حدائق القبة المقيدة برقم 533 لسنة 2005 جنايات غرب القاهرة التى تنظرها الدائرة الحادية والعشرون والتى تعقد بمدينة القاهرة الجديدة (التجمع الخامس) شرق القاهرة.
وتعود وقائع القضية إلى عام 2003 حيث قام الضابط المتهم بإلقاء القبض على الاخوين / محمد عبد القادر السيد وسامح عبد القادر السيد وإحتجزهما بقسم الحدائق وقام بتعذيبهما. وقد لفظ الأول أنفاسه متأثراً بتعذيبه بالصعق بالكهرباء. واستمر التحقيق فى وقائع تلك القضية لمدة 3 سنوات حتى أُحيلت لمحكمة الجنايات. وهناك شكوك قوية فى ممارسة أجهزة الأمن لضغوطها على أسرة الإبن القتيل حتى يتنازلوا عن الدعوى.
وأستجابة لدعوة جمعية المساعدة التى وجهتها الى منظمات المجتمع المدنى فى مصر قام عدد من تلك المنظمات بتشكيل ائتلاف حقوقى لمراقبة المحاكمة يضم كلا من (الجمعية المصرية لمناهضة التعذيب, الشبكة العربية لمعلومات حقوق الإنسان, المبادرة المصرية للحقوق الشخصية, المركز الوطنى للقانون وحقوق الإنسان, المنظمة المصرية لحقوق الإنسان, لجنة الدفاع عن الحريات بنقابة المحامين المصريين, مركز الأرض لحقوق الإنسان, مركز القاهرة لدراسات حقوق الإنسان.
مركز النديم للتأهيل النفسى لضحايا العنف, مركز هشام مبارك للقانون, الأستاذ / محمود قنديل محام), ومن المنتظر أن يحتشد يوم المحاكمة ممثلون لعدة منظمات حقوقية ووسائل إعلام .
وتدعو الجمعية كافة المهتمين بمواجهة ظاهرة التعذيب فى مصر افرادا ومنظمات الى الحضور صباح يوم الجلسة للاعلان عن الرفض والادانة لجريمة التعذيب المنظم الذى تمارسه أجهزة الدولة ضد المواطنيين ، كما تدعوهم للتوقيع على المناشدة التى تطالب بعدم افلات ضابط مباحث امن الدولة المسئول عن تعذيب وقتل المواطن محمد عبد القادر من المحاكمة والافراج عن شقيقه سامح عبد القادر (المعتقل حاليا) وعلى الموقع الإلكترونى للجمعية: www.ahrla.org
لمزيد من التفاصيل الإتصال بجمعية المساعدة القانونية لحقوق الإنسان على الأرقام التالية:
025770901 / 025789069
0103860605 / 0182361121
For more background information about the case, make sure your read Paul Schemm’s AFP report. And you can click on the banner below to read Kefaya’s exclusive report and photos:
Your solidarity is needed. Please try to show up in court on Saturday.
I received the following statement from Dr. Aida Seif el-Dawla, the Chairman of the Egyptian Association Against Torture:
Who can protect Ihab Magdi Farouk against the terror of officer Muhammad El Shazli?
Once again the policy of hostage taking
The police interrogates his father and wife, takes his brother hostage and waits for him at his homeAs this statement is being written a number of policemen from Imbaba police station are present in Ihab Farouk’s residence waiting for him to return. This development followed a night long interrogation of his father and wife, followed by taking his younger brother, Muhammad Magdi Farouk, hostage until this moment.
Less than 24 hours after the release of today’s issue of the daily Al-Masry Al-Youm (Thursday, 1 February 2007) featuring the story of torture of citizen Ihabd Magdi Farouk, 19 years, at Imbaba police station, the police started looking for him at his residence. Not finding him there, they arrested his father and wife, took them to the same police station and interrogated them for 5 hours – from 2a.m. until 7 a.m. asking about the whereabouts of Ihab. Why do they want him? In order to settle some matters between him and some police sergeants, as claimed by the Imbaba police.
When Ihab did not show up the police arrested his younger brother, Muhammad Magdi Farouk, as hostage until the appearance of Ihab. At the same time a number of Imbaba police force remained at his residence waiting for his return. The situation continues until the release of this statement.
Behind this scenario targeting the terrorization of Ihab’s family is officer Muhammad El Shazli from Imbaba police intelligence.