EGYPT Communications sent

150. On 11 January 2001, the Special Representative sent an urgent appeal regarding Law 153 of 1999, "Law on Civil Associations and Institutions". This law was allegedly found to be null and void for procedural reasons by the Egyptian Supreme Constitutional Court on 3 June 2000. According to the source, the Government intended to reintroduce the law in accordance with the constitutional requirements. It was alleged that Law 153 of 1999 violated the right to freedom of opinion and expression and the right to peaceful assembly as guaranteed by various international instruments. Several of its articles were allegedly hampering or prohibiting the work of NGOs in their function as human rights defenders. Concerns have also been expressed regarding sanctions against individuals who engage in human rights work without the approval of the Government.

151. On 15 January 2001, the Special Representative sent an urgent appeal concerning Saadeddin Ibrahim, an independent human rights activist, professor of Political Sociology at the American University in Cairo and director of the Ibn Khaldoun Centre for Development Studies. On 30 June 2000, the State security investigation bureau allegedly arrested him and some of his documents were confiscated. At the same time, another force from the state security investigation bureau reportedly raided the Ibn Khaldoun Centre and the Women's Voters' Support Centre and confiscated a number of account files, computer disks, computers, pamphlets and a safe. Mr. Ibrahim and 27 other individuals reportedly faced charges ranging from accepting foreign funds without government authorization to compiling false reports about domestic conditions. Concern has been expressed that if found guilty, Mr. Ibrahim may be sent to jail for 15 years. It has been alleged by the source that the case against Mr. Ibrahim was "fabricated" and "politically motivated" since the charges reportedly resulted from his work as a human rights defender and his intention to set up a watchdog committee to monitor parliamentary elections.

152. On 18 May 2001, the Special Representative sent another urgent appeal concerning Saadeddin Ibrahim. According to the sources, Saadeddin Ibrahim's defence counsel had been denied copies of the documents containing the prosecution's case, and was only allowed to see these documents for three hours in April 2001. It was reported that the prosecution's case had

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almost 300 pages, and therefore Mr. Ibrahim's lawyers could not adequately prepare their defence. According to the information received, Saadeddin Ibrahim has been charged under article 80 (d) (1) of the Penal Code with "disseminating tendentious rumours with the purpose of undermining Egypt's reputation". It was reported that this matter is being brought before a Supreme State Security Court, whose verdicts can only be challenged before the Court of Cassation on procedural grounds, but not before a higher appeal court on the substance of the case. It was further reported that some of the charges against Saadeddin Ibrahim, in particular those alleging the acceptance of foreign funds without government authorization, relate to projects funded by the European Commission aimed at promoting participation in the elections.

153. On 22 May 2001, the Special Representative sent an urgent appeal, jointly with the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, concerning the conviction

on 21 May 2001 of Saadeddin Ibrahim to seven years imprisonment. It is further reported that 27 co-defendants, most of whom are members of the Ibn Khaldoun Centre or the Egyptian Women Voters' Support Centre, received prison terms ranging from one to seven years. According to the information received, the charges against Saadeddin Ibrahim relate entirely to his activities as a human rights defender. On 25 May 2001, the Special Representative, jointly with the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, issued a press release in which they expressed their deep concern to the Government of Egypt over the trial and conviction of Saadeddin Ibrahim and 27 co-defendants by the Supreme State Security Court on 21 May 2001.

154. On 6 June 2001, the Special Representative, together with the Special Rapporteur on violence against women and the Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, sent an urgent appeal regarding Nawal El Saadawi, a writer and eminent defender of women's rights. According to the information received, legal proceedings have been launched in order to annul on the grounds of apostasy the 37-year marriage of Nawal El Saadawi and her husband, Sheriff Hetata, reportedly on the basis of an interview with Nawal El Saadawi published by the Egyptian weekly newspaper "Al Midan" on 6 March 2001, according to which she was critical of certain religious practices. It has been reported that Ms. El Saadawi's statements, which related to historical facts and to her views on the wearing of the veil by women, polygamy and the inequality of women with regard to inheritance law, were misquoted by the newspaper. According to the source, a lawyer named Nabih El Wahch lodged a complaint before the General Prosecutor and the Cairo Court for Personal Status Affairs, accusing her of contempt of Islam and asking for her separation from her husband.

155. On 8 August 2001, the Special Representative sent an urgent appeal concerning the alleged harassment of Mrs. Sammah Hamid Ali and of members of her family by the Egyptian police in Helwan. According to the information received, they have been the target of a series of abuses,

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including threats, beatings, arbitrary arrests and detention, committed by members of the Helwan police investigation station. Fears have been expressed that these incidents have been motivated by Mrs. Hamid Ali's involvement in the ongoing trial of the policeman accused of having tortured to death her husband, Mr. Fathi Abd El Monem, in the Helwan police station in 1994. For instance, on 4 May 2001, the police reportedly went to Mrs. Hamid Ali's house in order to arrest her and confiscated pieces of furniture and ordered the men to take off all of their clothes except their underwear. The police reportedly took Mrs. Hamid Ali to her son's house, where they arrested him, ordered him to strip down to his underwear and made Mrs. Hamid Ali and her son walk down the street without their clothes on, in order to humiliate them. According to the information received, Mrs. Hamid Ali visited the Helwan prosecutors' office on 12 May, in order to register a complaint about the aforementioned abuses. She was told to return the following day, at which time the prosecutor ordered her to go to the police station, in order to retrieve some of the items confiscated from her home by the police. However, when she went to the police station, the prosecutor's order was ignored and she was detained at the police station for three days, until 15 May.

156. On 10 August 2001, the Special Representative transmitted an allegation jointly with the Special Rapporteur on torture regarding Carsten Jurgensen, a researcher at the International Secretariat of Amnesty International in London. He was reportedly assaulted by four plainclothes men, believed to have been security police officers or to have been acting with the complicity of security police officers. This occurred when he was visiting the polling station of the Khalid Ben al-Walid school in the parliamentary election district of

Shubra al-Khaima/Da'irat al-Ula on 14 November 2000 as part of a fact-finding mission to Egypt. His belongings, including a video camera, were said to have been initially seized but were later returned to him, with the exception of his mobile phone, videotape and camera film.