ECRF: “No matter how dark is the moment, love and hope are always possible”

19 Apr 18 | Awards, Fellowship, Fellowship 2018

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_video link=”https://youtu.be/ShavP70VY4o”][vc_single_image image=”99812″ img_size=”full” add_caption=”yes” alignment=”center”][vc_column_text]The Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms is one of the few human rights organisations still operating in a country which has waged an orchestrated campaign against independent civil society groups. Egypt is becoming increasingly hostile to dissent, but ECRF continues to provide advocacy, legal support and campaign coordination, drawing attention to the many ongoing human rights abuses under the autocratic rule of President Abdel Fattah-el-Sisi. Their work has seen them subject to state harassment, their headquarters have been raided and staff members arrested. ECRF are committed to carrying on with their work regardless of the challenges.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I am honoured being with you this evening, no words can explain my gratitude to Index on Censorship for such an opportunity to speak in front of you and for having this valuable prize on behalf of the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms. Such international recognition makes us stronger.

No matter how dark is the moment, love and hope are always possible.

And when I speak of love and hope, I have to speak about Hanan Badeldin, the young lady whose husband Khaled Hafez disappeared five years ago, and she persistently kept looking for him all this time through visiting all prisons, asking forcibly disappeared people who reappeared if they saw her husband in any detention facilities they had been to. During one of these visits, almost a year ago, Hanan was arrested and detained on charges of smuggling an illicit item into prison. This illicit item was a paper with the name of her husband and the date of his disappearance, asking to be circulated among prisoners so that anyone who might have seen her husband could give her any information about him

Did Hanan surrender? No, in every renewal of her detention session, she took the photo of her husband with her, raising it in the hope that any other prisoner there might identify where he was.

And when I speak of love and hope, I have to speak about Ibrahim Metwally, whose son Amr disappeared in 2013. Ibrahim kept looking for him for more than four years and Ibrahim is now in jail. Why? Because he formed the association of the families of the forcibly disappeared, and this has been sufficient reason for the authorities to lock him up in solitary confinement in a cell full of garbage for more than a year.

And when I speak of love and hope, I have to speak about Paola Regeni and her son Giulio, an Italian PhD student who lived in Egypt, who disappeared and was killed in Egypt in 2016. For more than two years she has sparked waves of hope and persistence both in Egypt and Italy, speaking each and every time about enforced disappearances in Egypt, speaking out for the truth for Giulio and the disappeared in Egypt.

And when I speak of love and hope, I have to speak about the great lawyers who spend a lot of sleepless nights trying to help victims in Egypt and the wonderful researchers and campaigners who remain the voice of the voiceless victims.

Love and hope were my cell mates when I was kept in solitary confinement at this time almost two years ago in a dark cell where I was deprived of even having a pillow and let me tell you, they were the perfect companions.

Love and hope are our sole weapons against our greatest enemy fear. Together we will conquer it, and it is not an anticipation, it is a promise.

Truth for Giulio Regeni and every Giulio in Egypt.

Ladies and Gentlemen, it’s an honour to be here with you tonight. Thank you so much.

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Speech: Ildar Dadin: “Together, we can refuse to look away”

Profile: #IndexAwards2017: Ildar Dadin courageously defends the right to protest in Russia

For his one-man protests, Ildar Dadin was sent to prison in December 2015 where he was tortured, before his conviction was quashed in February 2017. Read the full profile.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”84888″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][vc_column_text]

Speech: Rebel Pepper: “I will continue working hard on creating new cartoons”

Profile: #IndexAwards 2017: Chinese cartoonist Rebel Pepper refuses to put down his pen

Despite the persecution he faces for his work, Rebel Pepper continues to satirise the Chinese state from a life in exile in Japan. Read the full profile

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Speech: Alp Toker, Turkey Blocks: “Online censorship is increasingly used to mask more severe human rights violations”

Profile: #IndexAwards2017: Turkey Blocks strives to win back the internet

Established in 2015, Turkey Blocks is an independent digital research organisation that monitors internet access restrictions in Turkey. Read the full profile.

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Speech: Zaheena Rasheed, Maldives Independent: “This award feels like a lifeline”

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Maldives Independent, the Maldives’ premiere English publication and one of the few remaining independent media outlets, was formed in exile in Sri Lanka in 2004. Read the full profile.

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#IndexAwards2018: Freedom of expression and the protection of journalists and human rights activists in Egypt

27 Mar 18 | Events

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Doughty Street International’s Media Defence Panel invites you to join a breakfast seminar on freedom of expression and the protection of journalists and human rights activists in Egypt. Hosted in association with Index on Censorship, we will be joined by a representative of the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms, Egypt (ECRF), nominees for this year’s Index on Censorship Freedom of Expression Award for Campaigning.

ECRF is one of the few human rights organisations still operating in Egypt. It provides advocacy, legal support and campaigning expertise to draw attention to human rights abuses taking place under the rule of President Abdel Fattah-el-Sisi. ECRF plays an important role in documenting cases of enforced disappearance and arrests during protests, which are not reported in the heavily censored local media, and in providing legal help for the families of those detained and disappeared. Twice last year ECRF’s headquarters was raided by security forces and two staff members were arrested.

ECRF says: “Our main goal to achieve in the future, which is stated in our mission, is to empower individuals to acquire their rights, promote a culture of democracy in the Egyptian society, and expand human rights to every home in Egypt.”

The seminar will involve a panel and roundtable discussion, including a representative of ECRF; Jodie Ginsberg, Index on Censorship; and Jeremy Dear, Deputy General Secretary of the International Federation of Journalists.[/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”74586″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”99393″ alignment=”center”][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”97988″][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

When: Tuesday 17 April 2018 8:15-9:45am
Where: Doughty Street Chambers, 54 Doughty Street, London WC1N2LS (Directions)
Tickets: Free. Registration required via Eventbrite.

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#IndexAwards2018: Egytian Commission for Rights and Freedom advocates for a democratic Egypt

26 Mar 18 | Awards, Fellowship, Fellowship 2018, News and features

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_video link=”https://youtu.be/7kseuuaARZQ”][vc_column_text]The Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms (ECRF) is one of the only human rights organisations still operating in a country increasingly hostile to dissent and in which countless civil society organisations have been forced to close. The commission coordinates campaigns for those who have been tortured or disappeared, as well as highlighting numerous incidences of human rights abuses.

“Our main goal to achieve in the future, which is stated in our mission, is to empower individuals to acquire their rights, promote a culture of democracy in the Egyptian society, and expand human rights to every home in Egypt,” ECRF told Index. “But in the end of the day we decide to carry out with our work regardless of the challenges because if everyone is silenced this would be the ultimate gain to the current regime, and the ultimate victory to Egypt’s state of fear.”2018 Freedom of Expression Awards link

Between August 2016 and August 2017, the ECRF documented 378 cases of enforced disappearance many of whom were students. The cases of the disappeared are not reported in the heavily censored local media, and the commission’s website and social media sites are some of the few places their plight can be publicised, reported and mapped. 

The highly restrictive and repressive environment Egypt has made it increasingly difficult for the organisation to do its work.

Their website was blocked in September in government measures designed to close the organisation down, but the ECRF managed to create a parallel website to maintain their presence and engagement with the public. Twice last year ECRF’s headquarters was raided by security forces with two staff members being arrested.  As a result, the staff need help dealing with the risks of being arrested, as well as dealing with the interrogation process and knowing how to protect information.

Over the past 12 months the ECRF has been fighting censorship and defending human rights in two ways. The first is through the criminal justice programme which tackles issues of torture and enforced disappearances in Egypt. It has been particularly focused on the arrest of activists who took part in demonstrations against Egypt’s agreement to cede two uninhabited islands in the Red Sea to Saudi Arabia.

Secondly, ECRF has worked on challenging censorship imposed on student associations in universities.  Recently the commission launched an online platform to bring students and practitioners online to discuss a student charter related to freedom of association in universities.  The platform was heavily criticised by the ministry of higher education in Cairo, which led to further condemnation of it in official media outlets.

As a direct result of the work ECRF has carried out over the past year, there has been an increased awareness of enforced disappearances, media censorship, the scale of torture, and violations of freedom of association and expression in media and universities.

“ECRF is honored to be shortlisted alongside three peer organizations/campaigns also facing severe human rights challenges in their own countries,” said ECRF. “The international recognition of ECRF’s efforts in campaigning for fundamental freedoms emboldens its members and staff in their resilience to strive for human rights and democracy in Egypt. Regardless of the winner, progress towards equal rights in Russia means progress in Egypt and progress in Kenya means progress in Iran and vice-versa.”

See the full shortlist for Index on Censorship’s Freedom of Expression Awards 2018 here.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row full_width=”stretch_row_content” equal_height=”yes” el_class=”text_white” css=”.vc_custom_1490258749071{background-color: #cb3000 !important;}”][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_custom_heading text=”Support the Index Fellowship.” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:28|text_align:center” use_theme_fonts=”yes” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.indexoncensorship.org%2Fsupport-the-freedom-of-expression-awards%2F|||”][vc_column_text]

By donating to the Freedom of Expression Awards you help us support

individuals and groups at the forefront of tackling censorship.

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