At a glance-
Aiding Repression in Egypt: Why the United States Needs to Keep Human Rights Conditions on Military Aid
Civil society leaders in Egypt are urging the U.S. government to continue to condition and withhold military aid to Egypt until the Egyptian government makes meaningful reforms to its human rights practices.
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Trial at the Ministry: On the trials held at the Ministry of Interior's facilities rather than at the Ministry of Justice
In Egypt you can be detained, interrogated and tried in the same place without leaving or seeing a court.
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Freedom on the Net 2017: Egypt
Mohamed Ramadan, a human rights lawyer, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and a 5-year ban on using the internet, in retaliation for his political speech online
15 September 1997
Alert
Heavy sentences for Saudi daily journalists
Incident details
journalist(s)(RSF/IFEX) - On 15 September 1997, RSF expressed concern at the
very heavy penalties imposed on five members of the editorial
staff of the Saudi daily "Asharq Al-Awsat". According to RSF's
information, on 14 September, the Cairo criminal court sentenced
owners Hisham and Mohammad Ali Hafez, and editor-in-chief Osmane
al-Amir (three Saudis), along with two Egyptian staffers, managing
editor Fawziya Salama (f) and sub-editor Gamal Ismail. The five
were sentenced to one year of forced labour and fined 6,000 (US)
dollars for slandering Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's two
sons. Egyptian journalist Sayed Abdel Ati, who wrote the article
considered defamatory and was the only one present in court, was
sentenced to six months' imprisonment and fined 4,500 dollars.
Gamal and Alaa Mubarak, President Mubarak's sons, filed charges
against the Asharq Al-Awsat press group, which in May advertised
that its magazine "Al-Jadida" would carry an article accusing the
two of involvement in corrupt deals. Distribution of the magazine
was halted and the press group published apologies, which it again
made in court. However, the two sons pursued the charges.
On 11 September, the Asharq Al-Awsat group announced it was
closing its Cairo offices to protest what it felt was its unjust
treatment during the trial. The media group's London-based lawyers
argued the Egyptian court did not have jurisdiction over the Saudi
paper.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to the Egyptian President:
and asking that the journalists' sentences to prison and forced
labour be annulled
in Egypt
Appeals To
His Excellency President Hosni Mubarak
Abedine Palace
Cairo, Arab Republic of Egypt
Fax: +202 355 57 00
/APP>
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
Source
Reporters Without Borders
47, rue Vivienne
75002 Paris, France
rsf (@) rsf.org
Fax:+33 1 45 23 11 51
members working in this country
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- Most covered free expression issues in this country