Egypt Daily Update: Trump Administration Reportedly Tables Brotherhood Terrorist Designation March 28, 2017 Trump Administration Reportedly Tables Brotherhood Terrorist Designation Parliament’s Human Rights Committee Discusses State Department Report Cartoon of the Day: Budget Top Stories Trump Administration Reportedly Tables Brotherhood Terrorist Designation According to a report from the Washington Times, the Trump administration is not currently considering moving forward with designating the Muslim Brotherhood as a foreign terrorist organization. The report is based on information from “U.S. officials close to [the] heated debate inside the administration over the status of the global Islamist movement.” The report adds, “While the White House has declined to comment publicly, officials speaking on condition of anonymity say the administration backed down from a plan to designate the Brotherhood last month after an internal State Department memo advised against it because of the movement’s loose-knit structure and far-flung political ties across the Middle East.” Numerous analysts and experts across the political spectrum, including outspoken Brotherhood critics, came out against the potential designation.This news comes as an Egyptian delegation, composed of a variety of public figures including current MPs, met with members of the American Coptic Association (ACA) in New York and New Jersey on Monday. According to delegation head Ahmed al-Fadaly, the group intends to lobby U.S. government officials and Members of Congress to designate the Muslim Brotherhood a Foreign Terrorist Organization. In other news, after discussing amendments to the 2013 protest law yesterday, Parliament postponed voting on the amendment due to the lack of a quorum. According to Ahram Online,Monday’s discussion of the amendment bill divided MPs into two camps: those who solely want to amend Article 10 of the protest law—which the Supreme Constitutional Court declared was unconstitutional in December 2016—and those who seek abolishing prison sentences for protesters entirely, which would also require amending other articles of the law. Parliament’s Human Rights Committee Discusses State Department Report Parliament’s Human Rights Committee discussed the Egypt section of the U.S. State Department’s 2016 Report on Human Rights Practices in its meeting on Sunday. Deputy Foreign Minister for Human Rights Laila Bahaaeddin claimed that the report “reflected the view of the former Obama administration which had always sought to tarnish the image of Egypt in any way.” Because Trump “has said he wants closer relations with Egypt… [the Egyptian government] decided not to make a lot of fuss in the media on a negative report which was issued by the outgoing administration of Obama,” Bahaaeddin added. Coptic MP Nabil Bolous felt that the section on sectarian tensions was particularly exaggerated and urged the Foreign Ministry to consider the report as a national security threat. Bolous claimed that, as a Coptic Christian, he “has never felt that there is a sectarian problem in Egypt… as the report alleges … By contrast we see that it is America which has been rife with sectarian tension, racial discrimination incidents and police brutality throughout the year 2016.” In response, Bahaaeddin defended the Foreign Ministry’s response to the report and emphasized that the government’s priority was to ensure “that President al-Sisi concludes a successful visit to the United States” and that there is no tension between Egypt and the United States during this time. Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, who will be accompanying President al-Sisi to Washington, will reportedly “be ready to respond to any accusations in this respect in a diplomatic and wise way [in order] to give the new administration a chance to change this negative view of Egypt.” Cartoon of the Day: Budget “How about that trillion pound budget? Ever hear of a number like that in your life?” Anwar Al-Masry Al-Youm – 03/27/2017 Also Worth Reading Sisi and the Businessmen Michael Young Carnegie Middle East Center Jordan: No Model for Others to Follow – LobeLog In an article for LobeLog, POMED Deputy Director for Strategic Development Arwa Shobaki responds to Shehab al-Mekahlah’s op-ed entitled “Jordan Attempts to Transform Challenges into Opportunities.” She argues that—far from being the model nation it seeks to be—Jordan’s stability is threatened by its repressive tendencies and diminishing public trust. After reading Shehab al-Mekahlah’s LobeLog post, “Jordan Attempts to Transform Challenges into Opportunities,” I felt compelled to respond. I am also a Jordanian that cares deeply for the country’s prosperity and stability, but my understanding and knowledge of the nation and its current challenges could not be more different from al-Mekahlah’s. He states that “King Abdullah II is presently building on the national ethos of the Jordanian people to develop their country as a model for others to follow in terms of pluralism, cohesion, modernity, and moderation.” Sadly, that’s simply not the Jordan that I see. Although Jordan remains an important ally of Western and regional powers, and has managed to maintain stability in a volatile neighborhood, this stability has been and will continue to be challenged. Jordan is not immune from public discontent, nor is it safe from terror attacks. The 2011 regional uprisings did provide Jordanians with a rare public platform to express long- suppressed social and political frustration linked to a struggling economy, allegations of widespread corruption, a weak and bloated public sector, and limited freedoms of expression and association. Continuing to gloss over a not-so-shiny record of human rights and reform with slick diplomacy neither quells dissent nor addresses the demands of a bulging youth population with limited future hope and vision. Censoring expression, curbing association, and denying due process do not foster the pluralism or modernity that al-Mekahlah describes, nor does it build trust between Jordan’s citizens and its rulers. And this is especially true when one-third of the population lives below the poverty line… To read the full article click here. Egypt Daily Update: Parliament Begins Discussing Protest Law Amendment March 27, 2017 Parliament Begins Discussing Protest Law Amendment Human Rights Watch Condemns Hijazi’s Verdict Postponement Mozn Hassan Honored by Right Livelihood Award Foundation in Cairo Cartoon of the Day: Empty Pockets Top Stories Parliament Begins Discussing Protest Law Amendment The Egyptian parliament began discussing amendments to the controversial 2013 protest lawon Sunday. In December 2016, the Supreme Constitutional Court ruled Article 10 of the protest law unconstitutional, as it allows the Interior Ministry to reject protest notifications arbitrarily. According to a joint report prepared by Parliament’s Committee on Legislative and Constitutional Affairs and Committee on Defense and National Security, the government-drafted amendment bill “changes Article 10 to be in line with the Supreme Constitutional Court ruling and make sure that citizens have the right to organize street protests.” Specifically, the amendment transfers protest- regulation authority from the Interior Ministry to the first circuit courts. Alaa Abed, Head of Parliament’s Human Rights Committee, stated that “the amended protest law aims to ensure that citizens exercise the right to protest without disrupting public life. Not only does this go in line with the Supreme Constitutional Court’s ruling, but it also reflects what happens in most countries … We have just seen how police in many countries—especially in the United States and Western Europe—imposed bans on certain protests and even move to disperse them by use of tear gas.” Abed also reported that the Human Rights Committee would discuss the Egypt section of the U.S. State Department’s 2016 Report on Human Rights Practices in their meeting on Sunday, which he claimed was “rife with lies and flawed statements.” HRW Condemns Hijazi’s Verdict Postponement After detained Egyptian-American Aya Hijazi’s verdict was postponed last Thursday, Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued a statement condemning the decision. HRW’s Deputy Middle East Director Joe Stork expressed that “the case of Aya Hijazi and her co-defendants has been nothing less than a travesty of justice. Defendants have been unable to meet privately with lawyers, hearings have been repeatedly adjourned for long periods, while the court has routinely rejected, without explanation, numerous requests for release on bail, resulting in what appears to amount to arbitrary detention.” The statement also urged U.S. PresidentDonald Trump and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al- Sisi to discuss Hijazi’s “unjust and lengthy detention” when they meet in Washington next week.Al- Masry Al-Youm reported [Ar] late last week that al-Sisi’s visit to Washington will be purely political in nature; Egyptian government sources told the newspaper that it is unlikely that President al-Sisi will be accompanied by a delegation of Egyptian investors. The two presidents are expected to discuss [Ar] counterterrorism measures, illegal immigration, and the situations in Libya, Yemen, Iraq, Syria, and Palestine. Mozn Hassan Honored by Right Livelihood Award Foundation After being prevented from travelling to Stockholm in November 2016 to accept an award at the Right Livelihood Award Foundation’s official ceremony, Mozn Hassan, Founder and Director of Nazra for Feminist Studies,