The Press Syndicate’s Liberties Committee have called for a protest, tomorrow Monday 1pm, demanding the release of Muslim Brotherhood journalist Ahmad Ezzedin Ahmad–media advisor to the group’s Supreme Guide–who was part of those rounded in the recent security crackdown on the Islamist opposition.
Tag: protests
Bigotry and sectarianism par excellence
I arrived at the State Council building in Giza at 10am sharp, and I knew it was gonna be a bad day. I had already spoken with rights activists and bloggers involved in the solidarity with the Egyptian Baha’is–and we were all expecting a rotten verdict. And our guesses were right.
Dozens of Baha’is, rights activists, lawyers and journalists crammed up in the court room, when the judge finally threw his bomb, declaring the government had the right not to acknowledge the Bahaai’ faith, and keep its institutional racism.
Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights
Press Release- 16 December 2006
Government Must Find Solution for Baha’i Egyptians
Egypt’s Supreme Administrative Court today found the government may not recognize the Bahai’i faith in official identification documents, leaving Baha’i Egyptian citizens unable to obtain necessary documents that must include a citizen’s religion, such as birth or death certificates and identity cards.
“Today’s regrettable decision throws the ball in the government’s court,” said Hossam Bahgat, Director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), which represented the Baha’is in the case. “The government must find a solution now for the hundreds of citizens who used to be able to obtain official documents recognizing their faith for more than five decades until the government decided recently to change its policy and force them to choose between Islam and Christianity.”
The EIPR said the press release issued by the Chief Judge of the Court today did not respond to any of the legal arguments and evidence submitted by the EIPR in the case. The press release only discussed the tenets of the Baha’i faith, which fell outside the scope of this lawsuit. The question before the court was about the legality of forcing Egyptian citizens to falsely adopt Islam or Christianity in order to obtain official documents that are necessary in their daily lives.
Today’s decision overturned an April 2004 ruling by the lower Administrative Justice Court in favor of Baha’i Egyptians. The decision also reversed the position of the Supreme Administrative Court whish had found in 1983 that Baha’is had the right to have their religious affiliation included in official documents even if the Baha’i faith was not “recognized” in Egypt as a religion.
The EIPR will wait for the written decision to be issued in the coming days before determining its new legal strategy in the fight for Baha’i Egyptians citizenship rights.
The moments that followed announcing the verdict were an example of bigotry and sectarianism par excellence. Two bearded men started shouting: “Allahu Akbar! Islam is victorious!”
Another veiled woman, joined in the chanting. “God’s religion is Islam! Baha’is are infidels! They are infidels! Allahu Akbar!” The woman then knelt and kissed the floor. She then stood up, and continued her hysterical outcry outside the court room in the corridor. “Baha’is are the cause of problems in Iraq! They also destroyed Lebanon!!” she kept on screaming. I had no clue what the heck she was talking about, and did not know if I should laugh or cry. It was pure bigotry. “They are germs in our society!”
As I was standing to watch the ongoing circus, a civil servant who worked at the court building approached me.
“What is this business of Baha’is?” he asked. “Is it a new movement?”
“No. It’s a religion,” I answered.
He paused for few seconds, looked at the Baha’is in tears outside the court, and then looked back at me. “They’ll go to hell, the sons of %$#^”
Meanwhile, the veiled woman and the bearded men were still raving… and they were joined by the janitors, plainclothes building security personnel. Hatred. Hatred. Hatred. That was the atmosphere.
Fifteen minutes later, I went downstairs. Nora, Sherif, Sharqawi and I stood in front of building entrance on the stair steps, carrying banners made out of enlarged photocopies of Hossam Ezzat’s I.D. card, that had his Bahaai’ faith written in the “Religion” entry.
The four of us stood silent carrying the banners, while people gathered, and another chapter of bigotry and hatred started showering our ears. This is for example one conversation I and the other protesters were having with the crowd.
“Are you Baha’is?” one asks.
“No, we are Muslims actually,” I answer.
“Why do you support Baha’is?”
“They are citizens of this country, and have the right to have ID cards.”
“This is an Islamic country, we don’t agree with their religion.”
“We (protesters) don’t agree with their religion. We don’t think it’s good or bad. We are talking about their right to have an ID card, to be able to enrol their kids at school, to get birth and death certificates issued by the government, and not to be persecuted or arrested. It’s simple.”
“But this is an Islamic country.”
“Well, we have Christians here too, right? And I’m sure there are few Jews around. They get ID cards, don’t they?”
“Christians and Jews believe in God. Those Baha’is are infidels.”
“Baha’is believe in a God too, I can assure you. But that’s not the point. What do you propose we should do with them? They are here. Should we just get rid of them all, and burn them alive?! They are here in this country, and they are around, and they want to live in peace.”
“They should go back to where they came from!”
“Dude, I’m telling you, they are Egyptians. Their fathers were Egyptians, and their grandfathers were Egyptians too! Where should we send them?!”
“You know… You yourselves can’t be Egyptians. You do not look like Egyptians.”
“You got us man. We are from Mozambique.”
UPDATE: Al-Masry Al-Youm, whose journalist did not bother interviewing any of the protesters, ran a ludicrous report on the following day saying Baha’is (not bloggers) were demonstrating outside the court. One photo had Nora Younis, a secular leftist Muslim blogger, carrying a banner, while the caption read: “A female Bahaai protester”!
UPDATE: Mukhtar al-Azizi uploaded two videos to YouTube: One where I and leftist lawyer Emad Mubarak having an argument with an anti-Bahaai citizen. The other is of a first class bigot who was applauding the verdict and accusing me and the protesters of being “Jews, non-Egyptians, sons of dogs…”
State Security crackdown on MB activists
At dawn, State Security agents kidnapped at least 180 Muslim Brotherhood students from Al-Azhar University, and arrested senior leaders from their home, including the all-powerful Khairat el-Shatter, the deputy head of the group’s Supreme Guide.
The crackdown comes following a campaign by the state-owned press against Al-Azhar MB students, who held a demo that included a group of masked MB activists who performed a martial art show during the demo, with bandanas written on it, “Samedoun” (Steadfast). The demo had been organized to protest the expulsion of student activists who were part of the Free Student Union.
I totally object to this media witch-hunting, and see the whole “militia” affair to be exaggerated out of proportions.
1- It’s not the first time the MB activists hold similar parades. These have been common since the outbreak of the intifada. Some of these demos (that had the masked martial arts students) had taken place with permission of the security services to defuse dissent on campus.
2-It is ludicrous to assume these pathetic masked kids are part of a “militia” or a new secret organization. The Brothers are NOT involved in terrorism anymore. While Mubarak loves to accuse them of terrorism during interviews with Western press outlets, not a single terror case featured a MB member. And knowing how Mubarak handles terror suspects, we could have expected the MB to be butchered by now (and ho ho believe me, there are those in the security services who would love to do it.) if they possessed a single bullet.
3-The tradition of activists wearing masks during demos is not solely limited to the MB. I’ve seen many Socialists and Nasserists doing it before, for the sake of protecting their identity from the State Security photographers and informers who are present in demos.
4-The MB kids’ parade simulated a HAMAS parade in Palestine… What’s the big deal? The Palestinian intifada is a inspiration for activists in the region, whether it is Islamists or Leftists… but that does not necessarily mean they wanna simulate their tactics. Does wearing a Che Guevara shirt mean you wanna grab an AK-47 and shoot the police?! For many here in the region (secularists or Islamists), Hamas and Hezbollah fighters are the Arab Guevaras. It’s common to see students and random citizens wearing shirts that celebrate the two organizations.
5-Those who have made it their cause to expose the MB “Masked Militia” should worry more about the State Security Masked Militias. Don’t State Security officers bring with them a platoon of masked Special Forces soldiers, armed with machine guns, whenever they raid homes of unarmed activists to arrest them, causing terror in the entire neighborhood?! That’s the “Masked Militia” the press should be worried about, not the pathetic Karatae Kids the MB has.
Here’s a report by journalist and friend Ali Zalat about today’s arrests:
اعتقال نائب مرشد الإخوان و خطف 180 طالبا ًمن المدينة الجامعية لجامعة الأزهر
الشاطر.. الرجل الحديدي في الإخوان و الممول الأبرز
كتب / علي زلط
في تطور خطير لتصاعد الأزمة بين الأجهزة الامنية وجماعة الإخوان المسلمين شنت قوات الأمن فجر الخميس 14-12-2006 حملة اعتفالات موسعة شملت المهندس خيرت الشاطر النائب الثاني للمرشد العام والمهندس أيمن عبد الغني زوج ابنة الشاطر والقيادي في قسم الطلاب بالجماعة، والمهندس ممدوح الحسيني من إخوان القاهرة و180 من طلاب الإخوان المسلمين المقيمين في مدينة الصفا الجامعية بينهم أمين الاتحاد الحر بجامعة الأزهر صهيب الملط ونائبه أحمد الصنهاوي ولم يتم حتى الآن حصر أسماء المعتقلين
و صرح مصدر مقرب من عائلة المهندس خيرت الشاطر بأن قوات الأمن صادرت 3 أجهزة كمبيوتر تخص عائلته و مبلغا ماليا يقدر ب60 ألف جنيه إضافة إلى أجهزة محمول زوجته و زوج ابنته المهندس أيمن عبد الغني الذي قبض عليه في نفس الوقت من منازلهم الكائنة في ضاحية مدينة نصر.
و على الصعيد ذاته أكدت مصادر طلابية في جامعة الأزهر أن عدد الطلاب المعتقلين وصل إلى 180 طالبا جرى اقتحام مبناهم السكني في مدينة الصفا الجامعية و تأكد ان بينهم الطالبي صهيب الملط أمين عام إنحاد الطلاب الحر بجامعة الأزهر و أحمد الصنهاوي الأمين المساعد .و آخرين .
و أضافت المصادر الطلابية بأن سلطات الأمن هاجمت ثلاثة شقق سكنية طلابية في الحي العاشر بمدينة نصر (شرق القاهرة) واقتادت 8 طلاب على الأقل ،بالتزامن مع حملة الإعتقالات الموسعة التي طالت ثالث رجل في الإخوان وعدد من الناشطين والطلاب .
و ترددت أنباء عن اعتقال طلاب آخرين أثناء قضائهم عطلة نهاية الأسبوع في محافظاتهم الأ صلية خاصة الشرقية و وردت أنباءعن اعتقال اثنين من اعضاءهيئة التدريس بجامعة الأزهر إلا أنه لم يتسنى حتى الآن التأكد من صحة هذه الأنباء
يذكر أن حملة الاعتقالات الجديدة تتم بعد حملة إعلامية واسعة شنتها وسائل إعلام وصحف مصرية على جماعة الإخوان المسلمين، متهمةً إياها بالعنف عقب استعراض شبه رياضي قام به طلاب ملثمون أمام مكتب رئيس جامعة الأزهر ضمن اعتصام نظم للاعتراض على فصل 5 طلاب من الجامعة ينتمون للإخوان المسلمين، وقال طلاب الإخوان أن اللقطات التي بثتها وسائل الإعلام على أنها عرض عسكري لملثمين لا تتعدى مشاهد تمثيلية قام بها بعض الطلاب في جامعة الأزهر.
وتأتي هذه الحملة في أعقاب ثلاثة أيام من الإفراج عن الدكتور محمد مرسي عضو مكتب الإرشاد والدكتور عصام العريان القيادي في الجماعة.
الشاطر.. الرجل الحديدي في الإخوان و الممول الأبرز
كتب / علي زلط
في تطور خطير لتصاعد الأزمة بين الأجهزة الامنية وجماعة الإخوان المسلمين شنت قوات الأمن فجر الخميس 14-12-2006 حملة اعتفالات موسعة شملت المهندس خيرت الشاطر النائب الثاني للمرشد العام والمهندس أيمن عبد الغني زوج ابنة الشاطر والقيادي في قسم الطلاب بالجماعة، والمهندس ممدوح الحسيني من إخوان القاهرة و180 من طلاب الإخوان المسلمين المقيمين في مدينة الصفا الجامعية بينهم أمين الاتحاد الحر بجامعة الأزهر صهيب الملط ونائبه أحمد الصنهاوي ولم يتم حتى الآن حصر أسماء المعتقلين
و صرح مصدر مقرب من عائلة المهندس خيرت الشاطر بأن قوات الأمن صادرت 3 أجهزة كمبيوتر تخص عائلته و مبلغا ماليا يقدر ب60 ألف جنيه إضافة إلى أجهزة محمول زوجته و زوج ابنته المهندس أيمن عبد الغني الذي قبض عليه في نفس الوقت من منازلهم الكائنة في ضاحية مدينة نصر.
و على الصعيد ذاته أكدت مصادر طلابية في جامعة الأزهر أن عدد الطلاب المعتقلين وصل إلى 180 طالبا جرى اقتحام مبناهم السكني في مدينة الصفا الجامعية و تأكد ان بينهم الطالبي صهيب الملط أمين عام إنحاد الطلاب الحر بجامعة الأزهر و أحمد الصنهاوي الأمين المساعد .و آخرين .
و أضافت المصادر الطلابية بأن سلطات الأمن هاجمت ثلاثة شقق سكنية طلابية في الحي العاشر بمدينة نصر (شرق القاهرة) واقتادت 8 طلاب على الأقل ،بالتزامن مع حملة الإعتقالات الموسعة التي طالت ثالث رجل في الإخوان وعدد من الناشطين والطلاب .
و ترددت أنباء عن اعتقال طلاب آخرين أثناء قضائهم عطلة نهاية الأسبوع في محافظاتهم الأ صلية خاصة الشرقية و وردت أنباءعن اعتقال اثنين من اعضاءهيئة التدريس بجامعة الأزهر إلا أنه لم يتسنى حتى الآن التأكد من صحة هذه الأنباء
يذكر أن حملة الاعتقالات الجديدة تتم بعد حملة إعلامية واسعة شنتها وسائل إعلام وصحف مصرية على جماعة الإخوان المسلمين، متهمةً إياها بالعنف عقب استعراض شبه رياضي قام به طلاب ملثمون أمام مكتب رئيس جامعة الأزهر ضمن اعتصام نظم للاعتراض على فصل 5 طلاب من الجامعة ينتمون للإخوان المسلمين، وقال طلاب الإخوان أن اللقطات التي بثتها وسائل الإعلام على أنها عرض عسكري لملثمين لا تتعدى مشاهد تمثيلية قام بها بعض الطلاب في جامعة الأزهر.
وتأتي هذه الحملة في أعقاب ثلاثة أيام من الإفراج عن الدكتور محمد مرسي عضو مكتب الإرشاد والدكتور عصام العريان القيادي في الجماعة.
UPDATE: Thousands of Al-Azhar students demonstrated today against the kidnapping of 180 student activists by State Security. Photographer Nasser Nouri was there.
