Final Statement of Brussels Meeting on Egypt ’s Human Rights
The Belgian capital Brussels hosted on Thursday March, 20th, 2008, a conference about freedoms in Egypt . The conference, entitled " Human Rights In Egypt Uncertain Future ?!", was organized by the London Based Justice International, the Paris based Arab Commission for Human Rights and the Coalition for Freedom and Dignity in Brussels in addition to "Release40", the international campaign calling for releasing the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) leaders referred for the military court.
The participants included:
-Lawyer Sobhi Saleh, a member of the MB parliamentary bloc
-Violette Daghere, chairperson of the Arab Commission for Human Rights
-Dr. Abdul Raouf Wazzani, chairman of the Coalition for Freedom and Dignity
-Ahmed Abdul Ati, a human rights activist and one of those referred to the military court in Egypt
-Dr. Ibrahim Al Zayyat, a Germany-based Islamic leader who is also referred to the military court.
The one day conference drew delegates of a number of non-governmental organizations, human rights agencies and European Union media figures.
The meeting covered the following items:
- Activating the role of civil society institutions in defending human rights issues .
- Human rights situation in Egypt in light of International laws, covenants and standards.
- The Egyptian regime"s practices that included a complete violation to citizens" political, health, educational and economic rights.
- The package of international human rights laws and covenants in which Egypt is a signatory.
- The complete violation to citizens" dignity in all sections of the Egyptian society, including judges, teaching staff members, journalists, unionists, businessmen, workers and students.
- Constitutionalizing laws that increase political tyranny and violating the citizen"s dignity and constitutional rights in the latest constitutional amendments.
- The phenomenon of not implementing court rulings.
- People"s continuous falling into the abyss of illiteracy, disease, price hikes and unemployment and the recent deaths while scrambling to get a few loaves of bread in the crowded queues of bakeries.
- The current situation in the run-up to the local council elections in which 831 potential candidates have been detained and other 4511 potential candidates have been denied the right to submit candidacy papers. Not implementing court rulings of allowing more than 3500 potential candidates to be listed in the final candidates lists.
The flagrant violation to the principle of not separating between the three authorities in the country in a way that feeds tyranny, corruption and dictatorship and monopoly of power.
- Maintaining the emergency laws for 27 years, the longest period in human history, and plans for replacing this state of emergency with a permanent anti-terrorism law.
Recommendations of the Meeting
1- Greeting and appreciation are sent to all prisoners of conscience and freemen behind bars, who face repression, persecution and unfair trials, along with their families.
2 – Calling on the Egyptian regime to stop the military trials against Muslim Brotherhood leaders and immediately releasing them along with the former 2005 presidential candidate Ayman Nour and every one facing politically motivated harms or detentions including the 831 who were detained against the backdrop of the municipal elections scheduled to be held on April, 8th.
3- Urging all free men in Egypt and all over the world to give a priority to human rights issues and to oppose violations committed by the Egyptian regime including its settling political scores with political critics.
4- Calling on all international and Arab human rights organizations to exercise pressure on the Egyptian regime by all peaceful means to improve the human rights situation in Egypt .
The organizing committee