by ALESSANDRA BAJEC
March 19, 2014
Twenty-one women -including girls as young as 15- were handed down
heavy prison sentences by Alexandria Misdemeanour Court on Nov. 27,
after being arrested, end of October, for protesting against the military’s
July 3 ouster of President Morsi. The Egyptian court sentenced fourteen
women –most aged 18 to 22- to 11 years and one month in prison, and
seven female minors -15 to 17 years old- to juvenile detention until they
reach the age of majority. The tough verdict marks another setback for
freedom of expression in Egypt but also an unprecedented step by the
new leadership to take women out of the political scene.
Ahmed Shazli, head of the Alexandria branch of Egyptian Initiative for
Personal Rights (EIPR), couldn’t find the words to comment on the
verdict when he came out of the courtroom. For him, the sentence
essentially okays imprisonment of protesters for expressing dissent, and
hints at a comeback to Mubarak styled autocratic regime and oppressive
practices.
The 21 female defendants were convicted on several charges including
damaging public property and stirring violence.
In addition, six men –who are said to belong to the Muslim Brotherhood
leadership in Alexandria- were sentenced to 15 years in prison for
instigating violence during the protest.
Shazli decided to document the case after he heard about the arrest of
the 21 women, which he defined as a violation of personal, civil rights and
gender equality, moreover involving under age youth.
The young women are part of ‘7 am’, a youth movement launched last
month in Alexandria that holds protests in the early morning -before
school starts- against what members describe as the military coup that
led to Morsi’s overthrow.
The girls were arrested on Oct. 31 during a demonstration near Stanley
Bridge, on the Alexandria corniche, when protest participants formed a
human chain before they were attacked by security forces. They were
transferred to the Alexandria Security Directorate, where they were
brought before the Public Prosecution. The adult women were sent to
the Damanhour women’s prison while the minors were placed in the
Defense Care Facility in Muharram Bek.
One young man was also arrested but released soon after, as the police
reportedly established he had no connection with ‘7 am’ group.
Defence attorney Ayman Dally got involved in the case as one of the
detainees is his niece. He recollected from testimonies that security
forces intervened with six armed vehicles separating demonstrators
from the crowd – a well known military tactic- leading to police cruisers
to arrest the girls, some of them at gunpoint. Dally pointed out it was a
joint operation carried out by the police and army, inviting to watch
youtube videos that clearly show that.
The general prosecution charged the women with belonging to the
recently banned Muslim Brotherhood, promoting ideas of the group,
possessing and distributing flyers inciting violence, assembly,
threatening violence, obstructing public transport and vandalizing
properties.
A statement by the prosecutor general claimed the defendants denied
the charges against them.
As EIPR representative, Shazli condemned the arrest of 21 women
stressing that the right of peaceful assembly is a fundamental right of
every citizen. He dismissed the allegations as fabrication of reports by
the police, adding that such practices are aimed to exclude women from
the public space through direct targeting. EIPR’s director expressed
deep concern over the unprecedented mass arrest of female protestors.
Dally remembered bizarre incidents following the arrest such as the
quick transfer of the women from Alexandria police station to prison,
while lawyers were making appeal against their detention –which was
then rejected- the sudden appointment of a new judge –by the Minister
of Justice- who took over the case, the denied access of lawyers to court
at the juvenile facility, or the prolonged custody of the defendants.
Alexandria prosecution renewed detention of the women for 15 days on
Nov. 12 pending investigation.
Attorney Dally rebuffed the accusations considering them false. He
acknowledged the power of authorities to set measures of public order,
however he argued against the use of ‘illegal methods’, under the cover
of a ‘legal makeup’, to oppress citizens who gather peacefully and
express their opinion.
‘’In no circumstances, these girls can be seen as terrorists or criminals’’,
Dally stated.
The lawyer also lamented the repeated delays from the public attorney
office in providing copy of the case file to the court. The file was received
a day and a half before the trial on Nov. 20, which gave the defence team
a very limited time to review the case, the judge himself received the
case the morning of the trial. On the day, the police did not bring the
defendants to court citing ‘security reasons’. Unable to trial the girls in
their absence, the court finally decided to postpone for another week.
A plethora of lawyers from four human rights organizations, private
lawyers and lawyers assigned by parents of the detainees worked on the
case, standing for the right to freedom of expression for all.
In Dally’s view, detention of the women was a well planned ‘set up’,
designed by some high ranking security officers, to specifically target
women, to prevent other women from coming out and demonstrating.
‘’The outcome is, nevertheless, the opposite’’, the lawyer opined, ‘’we see
more women, not less, in the streets’’. He called the targeting of women
by security forces a ‘mistake’, suggesting there’s already some
resentment in the police department, since this case will spark a lot of
anger in Egypt, where women are a ‘red line’.
Hatem, an Islamist activist in Alexandria, is acquainted with the girls in
‘7am’. He apologized for not being able to bring any of them, saying they
were scared to go into town with the risk of being caught up by police
officers.
The fact that 21 women were arrested, and no man was detained, is
something new to Egyptians.
Hatem explained that women have played a big part in anti-government
protests since after the ouster of Morsi, their large participation has in
turn prompted security forces to respond with repressive methods.
Which has, instead, generated greater determination among women to
continue protesting.
In his opinion, female protesters were deliberately convicted to scare
women off, and thus silence an active part of the society.
‘’What’s shocking is that for the first time young women have been
detained in Egypt’’, the activist commented, ‘’it’s totally unacceptable’’.
The conviction of the 21 women comes amid other ongoing violations
committed by security forces against freedom of expression.
Earlier this month, 12 university students were sentenced to 17 years in
prison over riots at Al-Azhar University drawing criticism over the
harshness of the sentence.
Egypt’s authorities have cracked down hard on Islamist backers of
ousted President Mohammed Morsi. Security forces have recently
moved against secular youth activists opposed to the military and police.
ENJOYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!
And Blessed Are The Ones Who Care For Their
Fellow Men!
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