Misdemeanor Judge Orders Release of Shi’ite Suspects on LE10,000 Bail Each
The Marg misdemeanor court yesterday ordered the release on bail of five Shi’ites charged with showing contempt for religion; bail was set at LE10,000 for each suspect. State Security Investigations (SSI) had arrested several Shi’ites of various nationalities more than 35 days ago, after which the Supreme State Security Prosecutor charged them with showing contempt for the Sunni confession and other charges related to their sectarian affiliation.
28 December: Ruling on Mandatory Premarital Testing
A decision on the lawsuit requesting the abolition of a state policy that requires couples wishing to marry to undergo a medical exam is due to be delivered on 28 December, the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) said today. The case is being heard by the first circuit of the Court of Administrative Justice, headed by Judge Kamal Lamai.
EIPR Calls upon the Public Prosecutor to Immediately Release all Shi’ite Suspects... The Interior Ministry’s Custodianship Over Citizens’ Beliefs and Its Interrogation of Individual Conscience Must End
The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) expressed its dismay at the Egyptian government’s ongoing policy of punishing and discriminating against individuals because of their religious beliefs. Several media reports have reported in the past few days that a group of Shi’ites, both Egyptians and non-nationals, had been arrested and questioned by the Supreme State Security Prosecutor because of their religious beliefs, information confirmed by the EIPR.
EIPR Launches Anti-Sectarianism Campaign in Egypt... An Appeal for Collective Action to Strengthen Citizenship and Shared Existence
The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) launched a new advocacy campaign to combat sectarianism in Egypt under the slogan, "Reject Sectarianism". The organization said that the campaign is a joint movement and an appeal for collective action to eliminate sectarianism and strengthen the values of equal citizenship and shared existence in our common nation without religious or faith-based discrimination.
State Security Court Rejects Interior Ministry Appeal of Release Order for Shi’ite Detainees
The Supreme (Emergency) State Security Court rejected yesterday an appeal filed by the Minister of Interior challenging a lower court’s order to release Mohamed Farouq Mohamed al-Sayyed, who was detained because of his affiliation with the Shi’ite confession. The Supreme Court ordered the release of the detainee and upheld an order issued on 28 July by another circuit court.
State Security Court Orders Interior Ministry to Release Shi’ite Detainee... EIPR Calls for the Release of All Shi’ite Citizens, Asks Public Prosecutor to Investigate the Torture of One Detained Shi’ite
The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) today called upon the Interior Ministry to immediately release Mohamed Farouq Mohamed al-Sayyed and seven other Shi’ite citizens who have been detained arbitrarily for more than a year. The call follows a decision by the Supreme (Emergency) State Security Court on 28 July overturning an administrative detention order issued against al-Sayyed, who was detained because of his affiliation with the Shi’ite confession.
EIPR asks Public Prosecutor to Guarantee the Safety and Freedom of the Wife of a Deir Mawas Priest
The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) expressed its dismay with official reports that the security apparatus had “turned over” Kamilia Shehata, the wife of a Coptic priest, to her family pursuant to a request from church leaders. The EIPR asked the Public Prosecutor to intervene to guarantee the 25-year-old woman’s right to physical safety and personal freedom as guaranteed by the Constitution and the law.
After University President is Served with a Notice, Fayyoum University Implements Court Ruling Allowing Women Who Wear the Niqab to Take Exams
The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) welcomed today the decision of the president of Fayyoum University to comply with a court ruling issued on behalf of several female students who wear the niqab, or full-face veil, in their final year at the Faculty of Education. The court ordered the university to convene a special proctoring committee to allow the students to take their exams after the university initially cancelled them because they wear the niqab.
After 80 Days of Detention: State Security Prosecutor Releases All Ahmadi Detainees... EIPR: Article 98(f) of the Penal Code must be abolished and an investigation launched into the torture of the detainees
The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) welcomed the decision by the Supreme State Security Prosecutor yesterday, 7 June 2010, to release six citizens detained for more than 80 days because of their affiliation with the Ahmadi confession. The prosecutor’s decision came four days after a summary court judge issued an order releasing three other defendants in the same case.
Egyptian Government Urged to Immediately Release Detained Egyptian Ahmadis… Emergency Law Used To Detain Citizens For Two Months Because Of Their Religious Beliefs
The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) today urged the Minister of Interior to release immediately nine Egyptians detained under the Emergency Law for two months because of their affiliation with the Ahmadi confession.
EIPR Issues Analytic Study of Sectarian Violence over Last Two Years…53 Incidents in 17 Governorates: 14 Cases of Collective Retribution; 17 Clashes Escalate to Sectarian Violence; 7 Attacks on Churches
On 11 April, the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) issued an analytical study titled “Two Years of Sectarian Violence: What Happened? Where Do We Begin?” The study details the expanding geographic scope and increasing frequency of incidents of sectarian violence over the last two years, as well as the state’s failure to deal with the problem.
Press Conference Invitation to release EIPR New Study: Sectarian Violence in Two Years: What Have We Learned?
The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) is holding a press conference to release its new study Sectarian Violence in Two Years: What Have We Learned?. The study presents a brief analysis of incidents of sectarian violence investigated and documented by the EIPR between January 2008 and January 2010.
One Year After Sectarian Attacks on Baha’is in Shuraniya: No Accountability for Inciters or Assailants; No Justice for Displaced Baha’i Families
One year after the criminal attacks on Egyptian Baha’is in the village of Shuraniya in Sohag, the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) expressed its disappointment at the Public Prosecutor’s failure to bring the assailants and those who incited the attacks to justice. For one full year, state authorities have yet to bring justice to the victims of the attacks or enable Baha’is forcibly removed from their homes to return.
EIPR Researcher Wins AUC Gender Studies Award
The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) is proud to announce that EIPR researcher Noha Roushdy has received the annual award of the American University in Cairo (AUC) for best graduate dissertation in gender studies. Noha received the Magda El-Noweihy Graduate Student Award in Gender Studies at an award ceremony hosted by AUC on 16 March.
Live updates from the trial of suspects in the Naga Hammadi shooting of Copts
Today, 13 February, is the first hearing in the trial of the three suspects in the shooting of Coptic Christians in Naga Hammadi last month. The trial is held before an Emergency State Security Criminal Court in the southern city of Qena.
Niqab Ban in University Exams an Excessive Measure, Penalizes Students for their Beliefs
The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) today regretted the ruling on 3 January by an administrative court to uphold a new decision banning students who wear the niqab, or full face veil, from sitting for exams in public universities.
Court Decision Grants Long-Awaited Custody of Twins to Christian Mother: The decision is a welcome step forward but also a missed opportunity
The decision by the Court of Cassation to grant custody to Kamilia Lotfy of her sons Mario and Andrew Ramsis after their father converted to Islam is a welcome end to her five-year legal battle, the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) said today.
Court Upholds Decision to Release Detained Qur'ani Blogge
Egypt's Supreme State Security Emergency Court today issued a final ruling ordering the release of detained Qur'ani blogger Reda Abdel-Rahman, who has been in administrative detention under the Emergency Law since October 2008 on the grounds of his religious beliefs. The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) urged the Ministry of Interior to release the blogger without delay.
EIPR Calls for Detained Qur'ani Blogger's Immediate Release
The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) today called for the immediate release of Reda Abdel-Rahman, a 32-year old blogger who was detained by the Ministry of Interior on 27 October for being a "Qur'ani"*. EIPR lawyers filed a complaint yesterday calling on the Public