28 Jun 2011 | Uncategorized
A journalist and outspoken critic of the military treatment of civilians, Rasha Azab, was summoned in front of a military tribunal last week for an article she wrote in the independent daily newspaper Al-Fagr.
Azab is the first journalist to be tried, in a military court no less, for an article published in the wake of the 25 January revolution that saw the ousting of Hosni Mubarak. Al-Fagr’s editor-in-chief, Adel Hammouda, was also called to the same court.
The prospects are extremely worrying for the Egyptian independent media, which could risk facing military trials for exercising their profession.
After her first investigation, on 21 June, Rasha described her conversation with the military interrogator:
“He sure had studied my article quite well, and had highlighted the parts he wanted to discuss with me (…) There are multiple charges but the main one is spreading misinformation about the armed forces.”
The lawsuit was filed, according to Azab, by General Hassan El Roweiny, the military authority mentioned in the article. “So it’s the military leadership that will determine the course of the lawsuit,” she said.
General El Roweiny is a familiar figure of the revolution, as commander of the Central zone and a member of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), which currently governs the State in the absence of a civilian president.
“This is the first lawsuit against a journalist for something they’ve written, not for a political action or demonstrating for example. The purpose is the terrorise journalists who plan on writing about the transgressions and the torture done by the Military Council”, said Azab.
Azab’s article, which remains available online, is essentially a narrative of the relationship between the army and activists, focusing on cases of army violence towards protesters. It is based on public information, as well as on discussions between volunteer legal groups and the army. Azab says she was able to present first hand testimonies of the events she described – acts of torture committed by the army – which had been collected by Egyptian Human Rights centres.
The lawsuit remains pending with the military court.
2 Jun 2011 | Egypt, Middle East and North Africa
In the first week of May, in what was essentially a domestic dispute, a Christian woman by the name of Abeer Fakhry, wanting to divorce her husband, announced her conversion to Islam. It was her only option for legal separation, divorce being a near-impossibility under the Egyptian Coptic church, but the incident turned into an armed battle, injuring scores of people and killing 12 in the Imbaba neighbourhood of Cairo.
A rumour spread that Abeer was being held against her will inside the Mar Mina church, which became the epicentre of sectarian fights. The case echoes the now infamous Kamilia Shehata saga, Shehata’s religious affiliation and whereabouts have remained a matter of speculation for nearly two years.
While accusations of interference by the last remaining members of the Mubarak ranks, by “foreign elements”, or even by imprisoned Mubarak staffers continue, the reality is that the recent violence represents years of sectarian tension. This strain regularly finds an escape valve in the form of violence, first between individuals, then later, escalating to engulf full communities.
The new player in the story is the Salafis, a hardline Islamist group which had, until the January 25 revolution, remained largely out of the public sphere and appeared not to have political ambitions. The Salafis deem the entire political system to be flawed and nursed dreams of a Caliphate through pamphlets they distributed in the aftermath of the revolution. They have, however, emerged in recent months as a political player — campaigning in favour of the constitutional amendments that Egyptians have voted upon in March — as well as an organised force, as demonstrated by their deployment of followers in Imbaba. Their political rhetoric during the Imbaba dispute was shrouded in religious language, they claimed they were acting in defence of Muslim converts being withheld against their will.
Salafis also made the headlines when they took over the Nour mosque in Cairo in April — preventing the regular sheikh from giving his weekly Friday sermon. Only a muscled intervention from the army regained control of the mosque several weeks later.
With fiery declarations and the occasional display of force, the Salafis — in no way a homogenous group — are likely to remain in the public eye. Whether they become a force for destabilisation and sectarian violence remains to be seen.
28 Apr 2011 | Index Index, Middle East and North Africa, minipost
Al-Jazeera suspended its Arabic services in Syria yesterday (27 April) in response to attacks on its staff and government restrictions. The authorities have pressured Syrian nationals into resigning from the organisation and have prevented journalists from entering and reporting in Daraa, the city where the Syrian uprising began on March 15. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, unknown assailants have attacked the Al-Jazeera offices with eggs and stones for the past three days. The events mirror those in Egypt, where Al-Jazeera journalists were also subject to abuse and intimidation.
12 Apr 2011 | Index Index, Middle East and North Africa, minipost, News and features
Maikel Nabil, a 26-year old blogger, has been sentenced to three years in jail for writing a negative article about the Egyptian armed forces. Mr. Nabil was arrested last month after publishing a blog in which he criticised the army’s role during anti-government protests in February. Mr Nabil’s lawyer has criticised the conduct of the military court after they allegedly chose not to consider the content of the blogs. An appeal is set to be launched later this year.
