30 November 2022
To:
the Embassies of Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany,
Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United
Kingdom, and the United States of America to Egypt, and the European
Union Delegation to Egypt
We, the undersigned Egyptian and international
non-governmental organizations, urge you to take action to end the
restrictive and arbitrary measures imposed on members of the Egyptian
Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR). These measures, which include
travel bans, asset freezes and unreasonably prolonged judicial
investigations, constitute serious violations of the right to freedom of
association, and reflect Egypt’s broader attempts to stifle independent
civil society.
The
EIPR, established in 2002, is one of Egypt’s most prominent human
rights organizations. Its work to document, and advocate against human
rights violations has made it a target for the repressive policies of
the Egyptian authorities.
Two years ago, in November 2020, the crackdown on EIPR escalated with the arbitrary arrest of Mohammed Basheer, the organization’s Administrative Manager, followed by the arrest of Karim Ennarah, the Director of EIPR’s Criminal Justice Unit, and finally that of Gasser Abdel-Razek,
EIPR’s former Executive Director. The three men were arbitrarily
detained by the Egyptian security forces and interrogated about a
meeting EIPR had held days earlier with diplomats from 13 western
countries including the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Canada.
International condemnation of their detention led to authorities
releasing them after 15 days.
However, the three soon discovered that they were subject to
arbitrary travel bans and asset freezes and that investigations into
unfounded “terrorism” accusations against them had not been dropped. The
EIPR staff under travel bans and asset freezes, which are still in
place, report that these restrictive and arbitrary measures have had a
devastating impact on their personal and professional lives, and have
led to a range of human rights violations, including of their right to a
family life and to work. The lack of a clear legal basis for the travel
bans and freezes, and any means to challenge them, underscores their
arbitrary nature.
Before his arrest, Karim Ennarah was set to move to London to join
his wife, a British filmmaker. Because he cannot leave Egypt, and she
cannot move there because of her work, the ban has forced them to live
apart, violating their right to a family life. An Egypt-based university
and a number of other organizations have retracted job offers they made
to Ennarah, because they would not or could not pay him outside of the
Egyptian banking system. Gasser Abdel-Razek was passed over for a senior
post with a major international organization after they learned he was a
“terror suspect” in an open ended criminal case, in violation of his
right to work. The asset freeze even prevented him from renewing the
licence for his car. Meanwhile, Mohammed Basheer’s asset freeze means he
is unable to access his life savings in order to pay for his children’s
university education.
One of the most difficult aspects for those affected by the bans is
their open-ended nature and their inability to challenge them in front
of a competent, independent and impartial judicial body. Despite
multiple requests, the three men have yet to be given a hearing to
appeal the asset freezes, and the courts have refused to grant them an
appeal against their travel bans. They live with the constant risk of
re-arrest, which, in turn, threatens their ability to carry out
independent civic and human rights work.
EIPR’s founder and current Executive Director, Hossam Bahgat, has also been under a travel ban for seven years and an asset freeze since 2016, while one of the organization’s researchers, Patrick Zaki,
has been banned from travel since his release from prison in December
2021, after 22 months of arbitrary detention. Zaki is a graduate student
at the University of Bologna, and the ban has severely disrupted his
studies and professional commitments in Italy. He is also currently
standing trial before the Emergency State Security Court on a bogus
charge of “disseminating false news”.
Travel bans have effectively sidelined members of EIPR and at least
14 directors or staff of other Egyptian civil society organizations, who
had previously been able to engage regularly with policymakers outside
Egypt, including officials at the United Nations. The holding of COP27
in Sharm el-Sheikh provided a rare opportunity for Egyptian human rights
defenders, including Hossam Bahgat, to share their perspectives with a
broad range of international actors, highlighting the importance of such
interactions.
Two years ago, your governments were part of efforts to secure the
release of EIPR staff, after their meeting with western diplomats which
appeared to trigger their arrests. The effects of those arrests are
still being felt. We are asking that your governments publicly
demonstrate support for civil society and free expression in Egypt, and
we call on you to use your influence, including at the UN Human Rights
Council, to urge the Egyptian authorities to:
- Unconditionally lift all restrictive and arbitrary measures imposed on EIPR staff;
- Unconditionally
lift travel bans, asset freezes and criminal charges imposed on human
rights defenders, as part of case 173 and other cases, which are plainly
designed to hinder the work of members of civil society; and
- End the practice of imposing arbitrary travel bans and assets freezes.
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