AAAS Scientific Responsibility, Human Rights and Law Program

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AAAS Human Rights Action Network

FACTS OF THE CASE:

Veterinarian Mohammad Abdu, arrested on 17 June 1997, was released from prison on 25 September 1997. Mr. Abdu was arrested and tortured, along with three others, for publicly criticizing Law 96 of 1992, an agricultural law permiting land owners to evict tenants after a grace period. Other opponents of the law remain in detention and arrests continue.

Among those who remain in detention are Kamal Khalil Khalil, an engineer, arrested on 30 August 1997 after attending a public meeting about the law, and Akram Alfy Mikha'il, an economics and political science student at Cairo University, charged for distributing leaflets critical of the law. An estimated 180 people have been arrested for expressing their opposition to Law 96.

There is concern for the wellbeing of Mr. Mikha'il. He is being held under a fifteen-day detention order, and his whereabouts are unknown. Security officers have reportedly tortured individuals arrested under similar circumstances, including the four men released on 25 September.

Previously, Dr. Ahmad al- Ahwany, a professor of chemical engineering at Cairo University, was arrested and detained under similar charges. He was, however, released on bail from Istiqbal Tora Prison on 21 May 1997.

The arrest and detention of Mr. Khalil and Mr. Mikha'il for the peaceful expression of their opposition to Law 96 of 1992 constitute serious violations of international human rights standards, including those enumerated in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and the African Charter on Human and People's Rights (African Charter).

These rights include:

• the right to life, liberty, and security of the person ( Article 9 of the ICCPR and Article 6 of the African Charter);
• freedom from arbitrary arrest and detention (Article 9 of the ICCPR and Article 6 of the African Charter); and
• freedom of expression (Article 19 of the ICCPR and Article 9 of the African Charter).

(Source of information on this case includes Amnesty International.)

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Please send telexes, faxes, and airmail letters:

• welcoming the release of Mohammad Abdu and the three men arrested with him;
• expressing serious concern about their alleged torture while in detention and calling for an immediate investigation into the allegations;
• urging officials to bring those found guilty of torture to justice; and
• calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Mr. Khalil, Mr. Mikha'il, and any others arrested solely for the peaceful expression of their opposition to Law 96 of 1992;
• requesting information about the current whereabouts and legal status of Mr. Mikha'il; and
• urging the Egyptian government to assure that no one will be arrested or detained for exercising his or her right to peacefully oppose Law 96 of 1992.

APPEAL AND INQUIRY MESSAGES SHOULD BE SENT TO:

Mohammad Hosni Mubarak
President of the Arab Republic of Egypt
Abedine Palace
Cairo
EGYPT
telegram: President Mubarak, Cairo, Egypt
telex: 927 93794 WAZRA UN


General Hassan al-Alfy
Minister of the Interior
Ministry of the Interior
Al-Sheikh Rihan Street
Bab al-Louk
Cairo
EGYPT
fax: 011-202-355-7792
telex: 927 21361 MOICM UN
telegram: Interior Minister, Cairo, Egypt

COPIES SENT TO:

Ms. Nayla Gabr
The Human Rights Department
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Corniche al Nil
Cairo
EGYPT
fax: 011-202-574-9808


Dr. Fathi Sorour
Speaker
The People's Assembly
Magles al-Sha'ab Street
Cairo
EGYPT


Mr. Raga' al-'Arabi
Public Prosecutor
Dar al-Qadha al-'Ali
Ramses Street
Cairo
EGYPT


Ambassador Ahmed Maher El Sayed
Embassy of the Arab Republic of Egypt
3521 International Court, NW
Washington, DC 20008-2023

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