This post was published originally on Horyetna Website
While today marks the third anniversary of the successful ouster of Mubarak, it also serves as a painful reminder of the failure to stop the violations of rights and freedoms in Egypt. After three years and two waves of uprisings, journalists are still jailed, media outlets shut, detainees tortured, vulnerable groups trafficked; peaceful protestors arrested arbitrarily, civil society organizations persecuted, civilians tried before military courts… and the list goes on and on. It is especially worrying to see that each Administration is so keen to break the record of its predecessor by committing more serious violations under nearly the same pretext; restoring security and maintaining stability.
While today marks the third anniversary of the successful ouster of Mubarak, it also serves as a painful reminder of the failure to stop the violations of rights and freedoms in Egypt. After three years and two waves of uprisings, journalists are still jailed, media outlets shut, detainees tortured, vulnerable groups trafficked; peaceful protestors arrested arbitrarily, civil society organizations persecuted, civilians tried before military courts… and the list goes on and on. It is especially worrying to see that each Administration is so keen to break the record of its predecessor by committing more serious violations under nearly the same pretext; restoring security and maintaining stability.
On 11th
Feb 2011, Former Vice President and Former Spy Chief, Omar Suleiman announced
that Mubarak had stepped down. The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF),
backed by the people who chanted “the people and the army are one hand”, was
all set to rule the country for a brief six month which miraculously extended
to almost a year and half. Egyptians celebrated in the streets and squares then
went home hopeful of a better future where their rights and freedoms are protected,
respected and safeguarded by Egypt’s interim rulers. On March 9th,
2011, the same Egyptians who cheered for the military woke up to the bitter reality
when the Military Police cracked down on a peaceful sit-in in Tahrir Square.
Not only protestors were beaten, but also several were arrested. Detainees were
tortured and women were subjected to the notorious dignity-stripping “virginity
tests”.
A
year later, when it was time to commemorate the first anniversary of Mubarak’s
ouster, Egyptians were in no mood to celebrate. Too many people had been killed
either by the Military or on its watch. The situation of freedoms and rights,
particularly freedom of expression and assembly was worsening. 50 assaults on and
detentions of journalists were reported by the Committee to Protest Journalists
in November and December 2011 alone in a bid to stop them from reporting on the
protests in Egypt. ” Reporters Without Borders ranked Egypt 166th in
its press freedom index in 2011, a steep decline from 127th in 2010,
because “the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces ... dashed the hopes of
democrats by continuing the Mubarak dictatorship’s practices.”[1]
Moreover, sectarianism
was on the rise and sexualized and gender based violence had become a tool used
to intimidate women from taking part in the public sphere.
On 11th Feb 2013, the growing frustration and oppression of
Egyptians under the deposed President, Muhammed Morsi gave them no reason to
celebrate. They realized that the only noticeable change from 2011 to 2013 is
the replacement of one dictator with an Islamist elected one. The violations of rights and freedom took a
new and more dangerous turn. By the end of 2012, Morsi’s government launched a
fierce attack against independent media outlets that dared to criticize Morsi
and his group, shutting down the privately-owned Dream TV. Muslim Brotherhood
supporters filed legal actions against media personnel including the Egyptian
Satirist Bassem Yousef and famous writer and editor Ibrahim Eissa, on allegations
of “spreading wrong information”, “disrupting peace”, “insulting the President”
and “insulting religion”. The Egyptian Organization for Human Rights reported
at least 600 defamation lawsuits were initiated under Morsi’s rule.[2]
The
Committee to Protect Journalist documented at least 78 assaults against
journalist from August 2012 until June 30th.
In order to tighten his grip on power, Morsi seemed unbothered by recurrent
human rights abuses committed by his allies and supporters, the frequent impunity
due to absence of a proper transitional justice mechanism or the indictment of
43 innocent NGO workers. While the
Islamist-dominated Constituent Assembly worked on a new constitution, the
Constitutional Court was besieged and assaulted by Muslim Brotherhood
supporters to prevent it from ruling on the legality of the Constituent
Assembly. Furthermore, the President’s constitutional declaration on November
21st, 2012 not only immunized himself against the judiciary but also
undermined the very notion of the rule of law and accountability. When people marched to protest Morsi’s power
grab, his supporters attacked them and reportedly tortured them inside the
Presidential palace.
To maintain the support he receives from his extremist Islamists, Morsi
turned a blind eye to hate speech against Jews, Christians and Shiia. As a
result, Copts were attacked in Khosous and Borj Al Arab and were forced to leave their homes. Later in
2013, Four Shiia Muslims were lynched in Giza by an angry Islamist mob.
An entire year of fear, violence, military trials for civilians and
restrictions of freedom of association and union led to Rebellion. One would
expect a different trajectory towards rights and freedoms under the post-June
30th interim government, yet all the signs indicate the otherwise.
On Feb 11th, 2014, Egypt’s rulers have proved to be anything but
different from their predecessors in dealing with rights and freedom. Since
June 30th, the Egyptian authorities adopted a more security-oriented
approach to systemically silence any opposition or critique.
A shameful record of violations committed by the interim authorities
includes the shutting down of media outlets, prosecution of journalists,
arbitrary arrest of peaceful protestors, excessive use of force to disperse
protests, defamation campaign against NGOs and prominent activists, exclusion
of representative groups from the political process, incitement and above all
government-triggered polarization.
On one hand, Egyptians have realized that regardless of the form of regime,
they all performed poorly on the rights and freedoms front. Driven by their
sense of insecurity, many are willing not only to accept constrained freedoms
but also to tolerate and sometimes justify flagrant infringement on fundamental
rights. In this charged political
climate, the majority of Egyptians care less about human rights and more
for stability and security, even if temporary.
The newly-adopted constitution provides a solid framework for rights and
freedoms. Nonetheless, the Egyptian transitional authorities seem reluctant to
put its provisions into effect. In December 2013, four Aljazeera journalists
were arrested and charged with “attempting to weaken the state's status,
harming the national interest of the country, disrupting national security,
instilling fear among the people, damaging the public interest, and possession
of communication, filming, broadcast, video transmission equipment without
permit from the concerned authorities”. If the constitutional provisions were
applied, they would’ve been acquitted on the same day. Now they together with
another sixteen allegedly Aljazeera journalists are standing trial before the
Criminal Court. One would expect the Egyptian public and media to condemn the
jailing of journalists even if they disagree with their opinion since this is
what freedoms of expression, media and opinion are all about. With few
exceptions, many seemed unsympathetic with their ordeal.
When people took to the streets on Jan 25th, “freedom” was their
main demand. Forced to go back to the street again on June 30th,
Egyptians reiterated their need for freedom. Watching the events unfold in
Egypt, I become more concerned about the future of rights and freedoms amidst
anger and vengeance. It is evident that
many Egyptians are growing more satisfied with the trigger-happy security
apparatus so long the bullets hit the “other camp”. They are calling for and
massively supporting a General, now Field Marshal, for President even though he
represents the very institution that has blood on its hands. As I am giving up
on the interim government to do the right thing, I am looking forward for the
next one to be less about national
security and more about freedom, bread and social justice.
