Egypt
14.08.00
Urgent Interventions
Egypt: release/investigation
URGENT APPEAL – THE OBSERVATORY
New Information
EGY 003 / 0008 / OBS 065.02
Egypt
Release/investigation
14th August 2000
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the FIDH and the OMCT, requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Egypt.
New Information
The Observatory was informed that Dr Saad El Din Ibrahim and Nadia Abdel Nur were released on Thursday 10th August 2000 from prison on bail at around 5 pm local time.
However, the investigation about Dr Saad El Din Ibrahim remains open which means that he is prevented from travelling.
The status of the Ibn Khaldun Center is still unknown and for the moment remains closed.
The Observatory wishes to thank all those institutions, organizations and individuals who intervened in favour of their release.
However, the Observatory calls on the Egyptian authorities to put an end to all harassment of Dr Saad El Din Ibrahim and any other members of the Ibn Khaldun Center.
The Observatory remains gravely concerned by what was a flagrant violation of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 9 December 1998 and views their arrest as an attempt to prevent these persons from carrying out their activities in favour of human rights and democracy in Egypt.
Brief reminder of the situation
Previously, the Observatory had been informed by the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights (EOHR), that Dr Saad El Din Ibrahim, professor of political sociology at the American University in Cairo and the director of the Ibn Khaldoun Center for Developmental Studies, was arrested on Friday 30th June 2000. His house was raided by state security forces and some of his documents confiscated.
Also on 30th June 2000, the state security investigation bureau raided the Ibn Khaldoun center and arrested two of the Center’s staff, Nadia Abdel Nour (Financial Director of the center, a Sudanese national) and Ossama Hamad. They confiscated some of the Center’s account files, computer disks, computers, a safe and some pamphlets.
Dr Saad El Din Ibrahim was firstly accused notably of receiving funds from abroad and falsification of election documents and dissemination of false information harmful to Egypt and on 6 August 2000 the Observatory was informed that Dr Saad El Din Ibrahim was accused, by the Public Prosecutor of the State Security Court of spying for the United States, in accordance with the law on the State of Emergency in 1981, and faced the possibility of being referred to a military tribunal. This accusation is believed to be linked to Dr Saad El Din Ibrahim’s participation in a seminar organised in 1994 by the American Defence Secretariat in cooperation with Egyptian intellectuals.
Actions requested:
Please write to the Egyptian authorities urging them to:
i. put an end to all investigations of Saad El Din Ibrahim and all harassment of members of the Ibn Khaldun Center;
ii. abide by the provisions of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 9th 1998 ("Declaration on the Rights and Responsibility of individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms ") and more particularly Article 1 which provides that "Everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to promote and to strive for the protection and realization of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels";
iii. generally, guarantee the effective respect of fundamental human rights and freedoms in accordance with the provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international and regional Pacts and Covenants ratified by Egypt.
Addresses :
His Excellency Mohammad Hosni Mubarak, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, Abedine Palace, Cairo, Egypt. Telex: 93794 WAZRA UN
His Excellency General Hassan al-Afly, Minister of the Interior, Ministry of the Interior, Al-Sheik Rihan Street, bab al-Louk, Cairo, Egypt. Telex: 21361 UN - Fax: +202 355 81 03
His Excellency Faruq Sayf Al-Nasr, Minister of Justice, Ministry of Justice, Midan Lazoghly, Cairo, Egypt. Fax: +202 355 81 03
Geneva - Paris, 18th August 2000
Kindly inform the Observatory of any action undertaken quoting the code number of this appeal in your reply.
The Observatory, an FIDH and OMCT venture, is dedicated to the protection of Human Rights Defenders and aims to offer them concrete support in their time of need. 1998 Human Rights Prize of The French Republic.
To contact the Observatory, call the emergency line: Fax : +33 (0) 1 55 80 83 92
Tel: FIDH +33 (0) 1 48 55 20 11 OMCT: +41 (0) 22 809 49 39 E-mail : observatoire@iprolink.ch
New Information
EGY 003 / 0008 / OBS 065.02
Egypt
Release/investigation
14th August 2000
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the FIDH and the OMCT, requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Egypt.
New Information
The Observatory was informed that Dr Saad El Din Ibrahim and Nadia Abdel Nur were released on Thursday 10th August 2000 from prison on bail at around 5 pm local time.
However, the investigation about Dr Saad El Din Ibrahim remains open which means that he is prevented from travelling.
The status of the Ibn Khaldun Center is still unknown and for the moment remains closed.
The Observatory wishes to thank all those institutions, organizations and individuals who intervened in favour of their release.
However, the Observatory calls on the Egyptian authorities to put an end to all harassment of Dr Saad El Din Ibrahim and any other members of the Ibn Khaldun Center.
The Observatory remains gravely concerned by what was a flagrant violation of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 9 December 1998 and views their arrest as an attempt to prevent these persons from carrying out their activities in favour of human rights and democracy in Egypt.
Brief reminder of the situation
Previously, the Observatory had been informed by the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights (EOHR), that Dr Saad El Din Ibrahim, professor of political sociology at the American University in Cairo and the director of the Ibn Khaldoun Center for Developmental Studies, was arrested on Friday 30th June 2000. His house was raided by state security forces and some of his documents confiscated.
Also on 30th June 2000, the state security investigation bureau raided the Ibn Khaldoun center and arrested two of the Center’s staff, Nadia Abdel Nour (Financial Director of the center, a Sudanese national) and Ossama Hamad. They confiscated some of the Center’s account files, computer disks, computers, a safe and some pamphlets.
Dr Saad El Din Ibrahim was firstly accused notably of receiving funds from abroad and falsification of election documents and dissemination of false information harmful to Egypt and on 6 August 2000 the Observatory was informed that Dr Saad El Din Ibrahim was accused, by the Public Prosecutor of the State Security Court of spying for the United States, in accordance with the law on the State of Emergency in 1981, and faced the possibility of being referred to a military tribunal. This accusation is believed to be linked to Dr Saad El Din Ibrahim’s participation in a seminar organised in 1994 by the American Defence Secretariat in cooperation with Egyptian intellectuals.
Actions requested:
Please write to the Egyptian authorities urging them to:
i. put an end to all investigations of Saad El Din Ibrahim and all harassment of members of the Ibn Khaldun Center;
ii. abide by the provisions of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 9th 1998 ("Declaration on the Rights and Responsibility of individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms ") and more particularly Article 1 which provides that "Everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to promote and to strive for the protection and realization of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels";
iii. generally, guarantee the effective respect of fundamental human rights and freedoms in accordance with the provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international and regional Pacts and Covenants ratified by Egypt.
Addresses :
His Excellency Mohammad Hosni Mubarak, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, Abedine Palace, Cairo, Egypt. Telex: 93794 WAZRA UN
His Excellency General Hassan al-Afly, Minister of the Interior, Ministry of the Interior, Al-Sheik Rihan Street, bab al-Louk, Cairo, Egypt. Telex: 21361 UN - Fax: +202 355 81 03
His Excellency Faruq Sayf Al-Nasr, Minister of Justice, Ministry of Justice, Midan Lazoghly, Cairo, Egypt. Fax: +202 355 81 03
Geneva - Paris, 18th August 2000
Kindly inform the Observatory of any action undertaken quoting the code number of this appeal in your reply.
The Observatory, an FIDH and OMCT venture, is dedicated to the protection of Human Rights Defenders and aims to offer them concrete support in their time of need. 1998 Human Rights Prize of The French Republic.
To contact the Observatory, call the emergency line: Fax : +33 (0) 1 55 80 83 92
Tel: FIDH +33 (0) 1 48 55 20 11 OMCT: +41 (0) 22 809 49 39 E-mail : observatoire@iprolink.ch