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Egypt's Youth Go from Protest to Prison

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Egypt's Youth Go from Protest to Prison GENERATION JAIL 1 EGYPT’S YOUTH GO FROM PROTEST TO PRISON Amnesty International © GENERATION JAIL EGYPT’S YOUTH GO FROM PROTEST TO PRISON Amnesty International June 2015 Index: MDE 12/1853/2015 2 GENERATION JAIL EGYPT’S YOUTH GO FROM PROTEST TO PRISON EXECUTIVE SUMMARY continue to contend that peaceful protests CONTENTS against their rule threaten Egypt’s “stability and security”. Executive summary................................ 2 A generation of young Egyptian Methodology.......................................... 3 activists that came to the fore While the authorities have not published official figures as to the numbers held, From protest to prison ............................ 4 around the ousting of estimates have run into the tens of Trumped-up charges and politically repressive ruler Hosni Mubarak thousands – with one group of human rights motivated prosecutions ...................... 8 in 2011 is today languishing activists estimating that over 41,000 had The rise of mass trials ........................ 8 behind bars. been detained or facing criminal charges as of last May (see box, “Scale of the The right to fair trial ............................ 9 crackdown”). Both the Egyptian authorities and the Protesters jailed, officials freed ............. 10 country’s international partners celebrated Those now held include youth from across The youth activists ............................... 11 the role of youth activists in the mass the whole of Egypt’s political spectrum. demonstrations of the “25 January Ahmed Maher, Mohamed Adel & These young men and women have played a Ahmed Douma ................................ 11 Revolution”. But today mass protests wide range of roles in the years since the have given way to mass arrests, as 2011’s Alaa Abd El Fattah ........................... 13 2011 uprising, from taking part in youth “Generation Protest” has become 2015’s movements and working for human rights Mahmoud Mohamed Ahmed “Generation Jail”. organizations to joining Mohamed Morsi’s Hussein ........................................... 14 short-lived administration. They range from Amid a crackdown on their political The human rights activists ................... 16 internationally known activists and human opponents that has seen sweeping rights lawyers, to students arrested simply Yara Sallam & Sanaa Ahmed Seif ..... 16 arrests, the authorities have been because the clothes they wore had political Mahienour El-Massry ....................... 18 ruthlessly settling the score with the slogans. prominent youth that challenged them Actual or perceived Muslim Brotherhood four and a half years ago in Cairo’s Tahrir supporters ........................................... 19 The Egyptian authorities have justified their Square and in the streets across the crackdown by claiming that they are Mohamed Soltan .............................. 19 country. At the same time, the authorities restoring “stability and security” to the Ibrahim Halawa ............................... 21 have been trying to ensure that youth will country, noting a rise in attacks targeting the not be able to challenge them in the Abrar Al-Anany, Menatalla Moustafa & army, security forces and ordinary future. Yousra Elkhateeb ............................. 22 Egyptians. Yet they have also shown zero tolerance for peaceful dissent. The Protest Hatem Ahmed Zaghloul Ali ............... 23 Young activists and opposition figures Law, passed in November 2013, has have been caught up in a crackdown on Conclusion .......................................... 24 become a fast-track to prison. The law dissent which began with President Recommendations .............................. 25 effectively makes protests subject to official Mohamed Morsi’s administration and authorization by the Interior Ministry, while leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood handing security forces the power to use movement after Morsi’s ousting in July excessive force to disperse unsanctioned 2013, but which rapidly expanded to demonstrations and arrest their participants. encompass anyone who has dared to challenge the authorities’ political With thousands now detained on copy-cat narrative. accusations of protesting without authorization, taking part in political violence The authorities have said that they didn’t and committing public order offences, mass come to power following a military coup, trials have become a staple of Egypt’s but were following the will of the Egyptian criminal justice system. In practice, such people after mass protests against Morsi trials have undermined the right to a fair and and the Muslim Brotherhood. They Amnesty International June 2015 Index: MDE 12/1853/2015 GENERATION JAIL 3 EGYPT’S YOUTH GO FROM PROTEST TO PRISON public hearing by a competent, independent the same time as resuming the transfers of No briefing could hope to capture every key and impartial tribunal – with courts handing military aid and equipment. At the very least, case, or to do justice to the numbers now down verdicts based on little to no evidence. a strong and unified message of concern is detained as part of Egypt’s crackdown on needed from states that say they care about dissent.1 While courts have jailed protesters by the human rights in Egypt, including in the dozens or hundreds, security forces United Nations Human Rights Council. responsible for gross human rights violations “And above all, we saw a new have largely walked free, with the Public Four and a half years after the “25 January generation emerge – a Prosecution failing to conduct independent Revolution”, Egypt is more than ever a generation that uses their own and impartial investigations into the killings police state. By jailing the country’s youth creativity and talent and of protesters, or reports of torture and other for protesting, for their political activities, or ill-treatment. their human rights activism, the authorities technology to call for a are crushing the country’s future. It’s time government that represented World leaders have broken promises made for world leaders and Egypt’s international their hopes and not their fears; after the “25 January Revolution” to support partners to stand by the promises they Egypt’s young activists in their calls for made to Egypt’s youth in 2011 and not let a government that is responsive bread, freedom and social justice. Instead, the authorities’ crackdown go unchallenged. to their boundless aspirations.” states have clamoured to seal lucrative trade deals and to provide arms and equipment to METHODOLOGY US President Barack Obama, February Egypt at the expense of human rights and 2011.2 the rule of law. This short briefing highlights the journey of 14 young Egyptians from protest to prison, Amnesty International is urging the Egyptian “I have come to Cairo to listen, to illustrate the wider crackdown. It focuses authorities to stop their relentless crackdown on the youth who took part in the political to hear the hopes and on dissent, and to immediately free anyone upheavals around the uprising in 2011 and aspirations of the Egyptian detained for peacefully exercising their rights in the years that followed. people… Together, you stood in to freedom of expression, association and assembly. The Protest Law, which has solidarity on Tahrir Square. You Some of those whose cases are detailed in become a symbol of repression, should be this briefing are prominent activists who organized on Facebook. Texted scrapped. were courted by Egypt's international on cell phones. Flashed partners, as well as policy and opinion- The organization is also warning that unless messages across the Internet...” makers, in the years that followed the 2011 Egypt’s international partners take action to uprising. But others are young Egyptians UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, March hold the authorities to account for their detained simply for being in the wrong place 2011.3 actions, there will be nothing to stop the at the wrong time. authorities from wiping out the very generation that they were lauding just a few The organization spoke with the detainees’ years ago. Amnesty International is representatives, including where possible concerned that, at the moment, Egypt’s their lawyers, friends and families. Where partners are welcoming the country’s available, it also reviewed the case files government back into the international fold against them. This briefing does not aim to with only mutterings of protest over provide a comprehensive list of cases of continuing human rights violations and, at concern to Amnesty International in Egypt. 1 For cases of journalists detained, see: 2 The White House, Remarks by the President 3 The UN Secretary-General, Speech at El Amnesty International, Egypt: Journalists jailed on Egypt, 11 February 2011: Sawy Culture Wheel Centre, entitled ‘Listening or charged for challenging the authorities’ http://1.usa.gov/1IliIVX to the People: A Changing Arab world and the narrative (Index: MDE 12/1573/2015), 2 May UN’ [as prepared for delivery], 21 March 2011: 2015: http://bit.ly/1DOLgUE http://bit.ly/1LiZraL Index: MDE 12/1853/2015 Amnesty International June 2015 4 GENERATION JAIL EGYPT’S YOUTH GO FROM PROTEST TO PRISON FROM PROTEST TO PRISON Young Egyptians have played a leading role backgrounds who have often paid the in mass protests. These young activists highest price for their activism – most of come from all walks of life and political those killed in the 2011 uprising were Protesters have returned to the streets time backgrounds. Some belong to the youth unemployed
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