New information:
The Observatory has been informed by reliable sources about the ongoing arbitrary detention and judicial harassment of Mr. Amr Imam, human rights lawyer at the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI).
According to the information received, on October 17, 2019, Mr. Amr Imam appeared before State Security Prosecution and was assigned to Criminal Case 488/2019 for “collaborating with a terrorist organisation having knowledge of its goals”, “spreading false news” and “misusing one of the social networking tools”. The Prosecutor ordered a 15-day pre-trial detention against Mr. Amr Imam, who is now detained at Tora Al-Mazraa, in which family visits and access to lawyer are severely restricted [1].
Mr. Amr Imam was abducted by police officers from his home in Cairo on October 16, 2019 and his fate and whereabouts remained unknown for almost 24 hours (see background information) before he appeared before the State Security Prosecution.
The Observatory emphasises that the arbitrary detention and judicial harassment of Mr. Amr Imam takes place in the context of a wide-range repression targeting several human rights defenders including blogger Alaa Abdel Fattah and his lawyer, Mohamed Al Baqer [2], women’s rights defender Asmaa Dabees [3], journalist Esraa Abdel Fattah [4] and human rights lawyer Mahienour El Massry [5]. It should be added that Msses. Esraa Abdel Fattah and Mahienour El Massry are both also being prosecuted under the same criminal case, Case 488/2019.
The Observatory expresses its utmost concern over the arbitrary detention and judicial harassment of Mr. Amr Imam and urges the Egyptian authorities to guarantee his physical integrity and psychological well-being under all circumstances. The Observatory calls on the authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Mr. Amr Imam, as his detention seems to be only aimed at punishing him for his legitimate human rights activities, and put an end to any acts of harassment against him and all human rights defenders in Egypt.
Background information:
On October 16, 2019 at dawn, Mr. Amr Imam was abducted by police officers from his home in Cairo. While Mr. Amr Imam managed to publish a brief post about his arrest on Facebook, the security forces then refused him his right to make a phone call to his lawyer or family members. Mr. Amr Imam’s fate and whereabouts remained unknown for almost 24 hours, despite attempts to locate him. In the previous days, Mr. Amr Imam had publicly announced his intention to start a hunger strike to denounce police abuses, including multiple cases of abduction and enforced disappearances, acts of torture and ill-treatment as well as the lack of accountability from the of police officers for their crimes.
Actions requested:
Please write to the authorities in Egypt, urging them to:
i. Guarantee in all circumstances the physical integrity and psychological well-being of Mr. Amr Imam as well as of all human rights defenders in Egypt;
ii. Allow Mr. Amr Imam an immediate access to his family members and lawyer;
iii. Immediately and unconditionally release Mr. Amr Imam, as his detention is arbitrary as it seems only aimed at punishing him for his legitimate human rights activities;
iv. Put an end to all acts of harassment, including at the judicial level, against Mr. Amr Imam and all human rights defenders in Egypt and ensure that they are able to carry out their activities without hindrance;
v. Conform in all circumstances to the provisions of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted on December 9, 1998 by the United Nations General Assembly, in particular its Articles 1 and 12.2.;
vi. Ensure in all circumstances respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with international human rights instruments ratified by Egypt.
Addresses:
• President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, H.E. Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Fax: +202 2391 1441. Email: p.spokesman@op.gov.eg, Twitter: @AlsisiOfficial
• Prime Minister, Mr. Mustafa Kemal Madbouly Mohamed. Email: pm@cabinet.gov.eg
• Minister of the Interior, Mr. Mahmoud Tawfik, Email: center@iscmi.gov.eg
• Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohamed Hossam Abdel-Rahim, Fax: +202 2795 8103
• Public Prosecutor, Counsellor Nabeel Sadek, Fax: +202 2577 4716
• Head of the Egyptian parliament’s Human Rights Committee, Mr. Alaa Abed, Email: humanrightscomplaints@parliament.gov.eg
• Mr. Mohamed Fayeq, President of the National Council for Human Rights, Fax: + 202 25747497 / 25747670. Email: nchr@nchr.org.eg
• H.E. Mr. Alaa Youssef, Ambassador, Permanent Mission of Egypt to the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, Email: mission.egypt@bluewin.ch
• Embassy of Egypt in Brussels, Belgium, Fax: +32 2 675.58.88; Email: embassy.egypt@skynet.be
Please also write to the diplomatic missions or embassies of Egypt in your respective country.
***
Paris-Geneva, October 22, 2019
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (the Observatory) was created in 1997 by FIDH and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT). The objective of this programme is to intervene to prevent or remedy situations of repression against human rights defenders. FIDH and OMCT are both members of ProtectDefenders.eu, the European Union Human Rights Defenders Mechanism implemented by international civil society.
To contact the Observatory, call the emergency line:
• E-mail: Appeals@fidh-omct.org
• Tel and fax FIDH +33 (0) 1 43 55 25 18 / +33 1 43 55 18 80
• Tel and fax OMCT +41 (0) 22 809 49 39 / +41 22 809 49 29
[1] According to the law, access to family and lawyer is not allowed in the first ten days of pre-trial detention.
[2] See Observatory Urgent Appeal EGY 004 / 0919 / OBS 075.2, published on October 10, 2019.
[3] See Observatory Urgent Appeal EGY 005 / 0919 / OBS 076.1, published on October 4, 2019.
[4] See Observatory Urgent Appeal EGY 006 / 1019 / OBS 079, published on October 15, 2019.
[5] See Observatory Urgent Appeal EGY 003 / 0919 / OBS 074, published on September 23, 2019.