20 Rights NGOs call on President Macron to denounce Egypt's human rights record during the G7 meeting
It was a striking choice for Franceto invite Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi to attend the 24-26 August G7summit in Biarritz, for which the chosen theme is “the fight againstinequality”. The number of Egyptians under the poverty line hasclearly risen according to official Egyptian 2018 statistics, while theWorld Bank estimatesthat “some 60% of Egypt’s population iseither poor or vulnerable” in 2019. Egyptian social and economic rightsdefenders, trade union activists, journalists and whistle-blowers, as well asfeminist, LGBTQIA+ organizations and civil society at large have not beenspared in recent waves of state crackdown on dissent.
Public space has been virtuallyclosed down in Egypt in the midst of a worsening human rights crisis, with asevere rollback of the freedoms of expression, assembly, association and thepress. The political sphere is extremely restricted for opposition politicalparties.
Ahead of the fall 2019 review ofEgypt’s rights record at the United Nations Human Rights Council, 20 rightsgroups are calling on French President Emmanuel Macron to follow up on hisJanuary 2019 statements in Cairo by speaking out again on the continuing humanrights crisis in Egypt, and urging al-Sisi during his visit at the G7 to allowEgyptian rights defenders to document violations and travel to engage withmultilateral mechanisms. If these abuses are left unquestioned, the G7 summitwill de facto legitimize Presidental-Sisi’s utter disregard for Egypt’s human rights obligations.
More specifically, the 20organizations urge President Macron to call on President al-Sisi to drop all charges and unconditionallyrelease all arbitrarily-detained human rights defenders and journalists, anddrop abusive probation measures against them. Political prisoners detained forpeaceful activities should be immediately released, and those jailed afterunfair trial procedures or without trial should be tried or re-tried inproceedings that meet Egypt's international human rights obligations. Otherrecommendations include implementing an immediate moratorium onexecutions, promptly investigating all reported cases of enforced disappearance,and bringing an end to torture as well as to the persecution andcriminalization of LGBTQI+ people.
AdalahCenter for Rights & Freedoms
ArabNetwork for Knowledge about Human rights (ANKH Association)
Centre arabe d’études du droit et dela société
CIVICUS
Committeefor Justice
EgyptianFront for Human Rights
EgyptianHuman Rights Forum
EuroMedRights
InternationalFederation for Human Rights (FIDH)
FrontLine Defenders
HumanRights Watch
Initiative franco-égyptienne pourles droits et les libertés (IFEDL)
Andalus institutefor tolerance and anti-violence studies (AITAS)
CairoInstitute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS)
L'Action des chrétiens pourl'abolition de la torture (ACAT-France)
Ligue des droits de l’Homme (LDH)
MENARights Group
WorldOrganisation Against Torture (OMCT)
ReportersWithout Borders
TheFreedom Initiative
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