Int'l labor unions petition Egypt to release jailed unionists

Ahram Online 
International trade union groups write to Sisi demanding release of 8 Egyptian union members

Monday September 25, 2017 

Two international trade union confederations sent an open letter on Sunday to Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and Prime Minister Sherif Ismail calling for the release of several Egyptian union members detained in the past week.

The letter was signed by the general secretaries of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and Public Services International (PSI), which represents 669 public services unions in 154 countries.

The letter was also sent to Egypt's Center for Trade Unions and Workers Services (CTUWS), which provided a copy to Ahram Online.

"We are deeply concerned about the unprecedented and unjustified escalation of retaliation against independent trade unionists over recent days, and we demand their immediate and unconditional release," the letter reads.

According to news reports, eight members of Egyptian independent trades unions were arrested last week following union training events and attempts to organize protest actions.

Two of those detained work for the Egyptian Electricity Holding Company, while another four are employed at the Real Estate Taxes Authority (RETA), including the president of RETA's independent union. Finally, two workers with the Public Taxes Authority were also detained.

All those detained were apparently members of independent trades unions, the legality of which is still a matter of dispute in Egypt.

The taxation union members were arrested after several tax workers applied to the interior ministry for permission to hold a protest demanding pay rises. Egyptian law requires all protests to be authorized by the ministry before going ahead.

The members of the electricity union, meanwhile, were arrested after providing training to members of syndicates representing government administrative workers.

The detainees are facing a range of charges, including inciting strikes and demonstrations, misuse of social media and affiliation to a group banned by law.

"The blocking of a legitimate sit-in and strike action, as well as the arrest of trade unionists on security and anti-terrorism grounds, are a violation of the principle of freedom of association enshrined in the constitution and ILO convention 87," the letter said.

The Egyptian government introduced a law in 2013 that severely restricts protests and strikes, requiring prior notice from the interior ministry, which is rarely given. Thousands have been jailed for violating the law, including workers.

However, in December the Supreme Constitutional Court ruled that Article 10 of the 25-article law was unconstitutional.

In April, the parliament approved an amendment to the protest law, according to which authorities have no right to prohibit protests once all documents have been submitted, except through a court order.

According to the annual report of the Egyptian Center for Social and Economic Rights, issued in December, the governmental sector witnessed almost 478 “industrial actions” during 2016, while the public sector saw 133 actions and the private sector witnessed 107 actions.

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*UPDATE: Following domestic and international efforts, along with global solidarity campaigns - the aforementioned jailed workers and unionists were all released on October 17.

 

Court reduces 3-year sentences issued against 32 cement workers, to 2 months

Mada Masr
Appeals court reduces 3-year sentences for 32 Tourah Cement Company workers, upholds obstruction of justice charge

Monday, 19 June 2017

Jano Charbel

The three-year prison sentences handed to 32 Tourah Cement Company security workers earlier this month were reduced on Sunday to two months in a ruling by the Maadi Appeals Court.

Maadi Criminal Court announced the initial prison terms on June 4 on charges that asserted the workers had assaulted a police captain, obstructed justice and used violence to resist authorities.

According to the findings of the Maadi Appeals Court published by the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANRHI), the court dismissed all criminal charges leveled against the 32 workers in its Sunday ruling, except the charge of resisting authorities, as it found them guilty of obstructing police efforts to apprehend a wanted worker by collectively assisting in his escape.

Lawyer Gamal Eid, the director of the ANRHI, stated that the appeals court’s Sunday ruling represented a move “from grave injustice, to lesser injustice.”

The appeals court’s Sunday ruling was based on Article 375 of Egypt’s Penal Code. “Anyone who uses force, violence, terrorism, threats or illegal measures to attack or attempt to attack authorities is liable to imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years and a fine not exceeding LE 100,” the article asserts.

The workers are currently being held in the 15th of May prison, located on the outskirts of Cairo.

Those implicate in the case were among the 75 full-time security personnel that initiated a sit-in in March, demanding full-time contracts and retroactive payment of wages, as some had worked full time at the company for up to 10 to 15 years on temporary or part-time contracts.

Police arrested 32 workers of the workers on the Tourah Cement Company’s grounds on May 22. The prosecutor referred them to trial the following day, and the court proceedings commenced on May 28.

The Tourah Cement Company – which had requested the deployment of police forces to disperse the workers’ sit-in protest – has not stated whether it will meet workers’ demands for full-time employment and benefits and reinstate those that have been arrested.

Lawyer Haiytham Mohamadein expressed skepticism that those who had been involved in the sit-in would be allowed back into the company, let alone be reinstated to their former jobs with full-time contracts and benefits. Mohamadein said that the Tourah Cement Company is seeking to employ new security workers through a private contracting company.

A host of organizations and individuals, both in Egypt and abroad, have expressed solidarity with the imprisoned Tourah Cement Company workers in a petition calling for the release of the 32 detainees.

Messages of international solidarity also have poured in from dozens of trade unionists and labor activists from Australia, Austria, Canada, Spain, UK, USA, among other countries.

The Tourah Cement Company workers are the latest labor group to be arrested and referred to trial for industrial action. In April, police arrested 16 protesting Telecom Egypt Company workers in Cairo, while in January police forces forcefully dispersed a sit-in at the IFFCO Oils Company in the Suez Governorate, briefly arresting scores of workers.

In December 2016, police were deployed to disperse two sit-ins at the privately owned Egyptian Fertilizers Company (EFC) and the Egyptian Basic Industries Corporation (EBIC), both of which are owned by the billionaire Nassif Sawiris.

In September 2016, police conducted dawn raids at the apartments of bus drivers from the Public Transport Authority who had been planning a partial strike, detaining six drivers, two of whom may still face trial. In May 2016, military police surrounded a sit-in led by Alexandria Shipyard Company workers and imposed a lockout on the company. Twenty-six civilian workers were referred to military trial.

Syndicates mobilize against handover of Tiran & Sanafir islands

Mada Masr
Syndicates mobilize against Tiran and Sanafir agreement

Monday, 19 June 2017

Hundreds of members of professional syndicates have signed statements in opposition to Parliament’s recent approval of the Tiran and Sanafir agreement, brokered by Egypt and Saudi Arabia in April 2016.

Eight hundred and fifty journalists issued a statement on Sunday announcing that they reject the agreement, which concedes sovereignty over the two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia, describing it as invalid and “demanding that state institutions respect the Constitution and the law, and the blood of martyrs who defended Egyptian land.”

The Journalists Syndicate announced that it would launch an investigation into the sit-in held in its headquarters on Wednesday, protesting the agreement.

Hatem Zakareya, a member of the syndicate’s board, told Mada Masr that no request was submitted before the protest, in violation of the syndicate’s bylaws. He added that investigations will also be launched into footage aired on Al Jazeera and other pro-Muslim Brotherhood channels from inside the building and its entrance showing non-syndicate members attending the protest.

Gamal Abdel Rehim, one of four syndicate board members who signed a statement rejecting the agreement, told Mada Masr that allegations that Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated channels entered the syndicate are untrue, arguing that it is not necessary to submit a request before initiating sit-ins at the syndicate.

“Never in the history of the syndicate has any group submitted a request to start a sit-in,” he said, adding that it is common for non-syndicate members to join political action taking place within the syndicate.

A statement was also signed by 620 members of the Engineers Syndicate’s general assembly denouncing the deal, labeling it unconstitutional. The statement criticized “attempts to pressure opposition and the blocking of websites that attempt to reveal the truth of the matter.”

The statement mirrors that issued by the Journalists Syndicate, calling on citizens to exercise their constitutional right to express their opinions peacefully “in defense of the blood of the martyrs who died to defend the unity of Egyptian land.”

Head of the Engineers Syndicate Tarek al-Nabarawy said last Friday that in his personal opinion the islands are Egyptian, adding that the syndicate should not be involved in politics.

Akram Ismail, member of the Engineers Syndicate and the Bread and Freedom Party told Mada Masr: “Major national causes cannot be separated from syndicate work,” adding that syndicates, parties and social media are the only remaining platforms for political action following the crackdown on the street movement and blocking of websites.

Ismail said that the fact that three leading figures in the syndicate expressed their opposition to the agreement on their personal Facebook pages indicates the syndicate’s position, even if no official statement was made.

Members of the Cinema Syndicate also released a statement inviting people to protest the transfer of the islands “using all peaceful and legal means.”

They called for a protest at their headquarters on Saturday to oppose the agreement, however the protest was canceled due to the heavy security presence in the area.

Six members of the Doctors Syndicate board also announced their opposition to the agreement in a statement. However Mona Mina, the syndicate’s secretary general, wrote on her Facebook page: “As a vocational institution, the syndicate has nothing to do with this important political and national cause.”

Members of the Lawyers Syndicate also held a protest inside syndicate headquarters on Tuesday to express their objection.

Since discussions of the maritime border agreement reached Parliament, security forces have carried out an extensive arrest campaign across several governorates, targeting activists and protesters opposing the deal.

32 Cement Workers Sentenced to 3 yrs in Prison - For Peacefully Protesting

Mada Masr
Court sentences 32 workers from Tourah Cement Company to 3 years imprisonment for protesting

Sunday June 4, 2017

Jano Charbel

Thirty two Tourah Cement Company workers were sentenced to three years in prison by the Maadi Misdemeanors Court on Sunday. They were arrested after security forces broke up a sit-in at the company in May.

The workers faced charges of assaulting a police captain, obstructing justice and using violence to resist authorities. All defendants are currently being held in at the 15th of May prison.

According to lawyer Haitham Mohamedein the defense team will appeal against Sunday’s verdict within 10 days of the verdict.

He told Mada Masr that although the trial was held before justices from the Maadi Misdemeanors Court, they convened at the Tourah Police Academy. The trial, which took place over two sessions was initially scheduled for May 28, however it was adjourned until Saturday after police personnel failed to transport the defendants to the trial.

“The workers’ families and friends were not allowed to attend these trial, and there were no journalists present during,” he added.

They were arrested after staging a sit-in in March that lasted several weeks before it was forcefully dispersed by security forces on May 22. Seventy five security personnel initiated the protest to demand full-time contracts and the retroactive payment of wages as some have worked full-time at the company for up to 15 years on temporary or part-time contracts.

Mohamedein criticized the court for issuing the harshest penalties against the protesting workers. He told Mada Masr last week that the charges are trumped-up and baseless, adding that “the Interior Ministry appears to have decided that it wants to extend the legal proceedings.”

The workers’ defense team and media reports claim that the judge presiding over this trial condemned them for initiating the sit-in, even before the conclusion of the court’s hearings. “A judge should only express their decision while issuing a verdict,” Mohamedein told Mada Masr.

The judge is also reported to have claimed that labor strikes are criminal, despite the fact the none of the charges were related to striking as there had been no work stoppages or slowdowns, and even though Article 15 of the Constitution safeguards the right to strike.

A petition protesting the workers arrests has been endorsed by 12 labor unions, political parties and groups and over 250 individuals. It claims that the detainees were physically abused, treated in a degrading manner and had their personal belongings stolen while in custody.

A worker who had been protesting at the company told Mada Masr last week, on condition of anonymity, that four of the detained workers had been hospitalized. They could not confirm the exact reasons for this, “as we have not been able to speak directly with our detained coworkers since their arrests, and because they were not brought to their court session.”

Mohamedein said that the workers had been “entirely peaceful and nonviolent” and, responding to accusations that they assaulted an officer, he explained that no medical report had been filed or evidence filed.

The protest followed the company’s refusal to compensate the family of a security guard who was killed during an altercation with people thought to be stealing property from company grounds. The company board claimed the deceased security guard was not entitled to any compensation or insurance because he was a part-time employee.

The board’s claim flouted a previous court verdict. In May last year, the workers filed a lawsuit against the company before the Appeals Court, which ruled that they were entitled to the company’s profit-sharing scheme, healthcare and other employment rights.

The recent crackdown on labor-related protests in Egypt has seen security forces break up several sit-ins and protesting workers stand trial. In April police arrested 16 protesting Telecom Egypt workers and December 2016 saw security break up sit-ins at two of billionaire Nassif Sawiris’ companies.

In an ongoing case 26 Alexandria Shipyard Company workers are currently standing military trial, accused of inciting workers to strike. The military trial of these civilian workers has been adjourned 12 times, and is currently scheduled to take place on June 20.

Police arrest 32 workers following dispersal of sit-in at Tourah Cement Company

Mada Masr 
Police arrest 32 workers following dispersal of sit-in at Tourah Cement Company

Wednesday May 24, 2017


Jano Charbel

Security forces dispersed a sit-in held by workers demanding full-time contracts, as per a previous court ruling, at the privately owned Tourah Cement Company in southern Cairo on Monday. They detained 22 workers during the dispersal, arresting 10 more that evening and issuing warrants for an additional three.

Lawyer Haitham Mohamedein told Mada Masr that the 32 arrested workers were detained overnight, and are currently being held at the Maadi and Dar al-Salam police stations. They have been referred to trial, set for May 28, on charges of assaulting a police captain, obstructing justice and using violence to resist authorities.

The workers did not resist arrest or assault police, nor was the sit-in dispersed violently, Mohamedein explained, adding that they should not have been detained for peacefully demonstrating.

Dozens of police personnel, including Central Security forces, were deployed to raid the sit-in on company grounds at 2 am Monday morning.

Mohamadein said they were deployed following allegations that the protesting workers assaulted an officer. The lawyer asserted that the sit-in was entirely peaceful and did not obstruct work at the company.

According to local news outlets defense lawyers attending interrogations have also questioned the allegations that the officer was collectively assaulted by the workers as he allegedly showed no signs of bruising.

“There was no medical report indicating that the officer had been assaulted, nor was there even evidence presented to show that his clothes had been torn apart, or anything of the sort,” Mohamadein added.

Several workers went to the prosecutor’s office after the arrests to express solidarity with their colleagues.

One of the protesting workers told the privately owned Al-Mal newspaper on Monday that despite the arrests the sit-in was ongoing. However, according to Mohamadein it was called off after the second round of arrests as there aren’t enough staff to stage protests between shifts.

A total of 75 full-time employees, all employed as security personnel, have been protesting for 55 days demanding full-time contracts, and the retroactive payment of wages. Some have worked full time at the company for up to 10-15 years on temporary or part-time contracts, which don’t carry the same benefits or employment rights as full-time contracts, with wages calculated on a different basis.

The sit-in was initiated following the murder of a security guard at the company earlier this year. He died during an altercation with thieves on company grounds, however the board declined to provide his family with compensation or insurance, claiming he was a part-time employee.

It also follows the company administration’s refusal to uphold a previous court verdict. The workers filed a lawsuit against the Tourah Cement Company’s administration, and, in May 2016, a Cairo Appeals Court ruled in their favor, determining that they were entitled to the company’s profit-sharing scheme, healthcare and other employment rights.

There is a local workplace labor union for Tourah Cement Company employees, affiliated to the state-run Egyptian Trade Union Federation (ETUF), however without full-time contracts the protesting workers are not eligible to join, Mohamedein said. He added that no local or ETUF union members have expressed support of the workers.

A number of labor-related protests nationwide have been dispersed by security forces in the last few months.

In January, security forces forcefully dispersed a sit-in at the IFFCO Oils Company in Suez, and in April police arrested 16 protesting Telecom Egypt workers. In December 2016, police were deployed to disperse two sit-ins at billionaire Nassif Sawiris’ companies — the Egyptian Fertilizers Company and the Egyptian Basic Industries Corporation.

In September 2016, police forces conducted dawn raids on the apartments of bus drivers who had been planning a partial strike, detaining six of them. In May 2016, military police surrounded a sit-in led by workers at Alexandria Shipyard Company, and imposed a lockout on the company. Twenty-six of the civilian workers were subsequently referred to military trial.

Amnesty International issued a statement in April denouncing Egypt’s “relentless assault on rights of worker and trade unionists,” adding, “Demanding your labor rights and expressing your grievances should not be a criminal offense.” The right to strike and peaceful assembly are enshrined in both Article 15 of the Constitution and international human rights conventions that Egypt is party to.

In February, Human Rights Watch also issued a statement criticizing security forces’ heavy handed response to non violent labor protests, calling on Egyptian authorities to either drop charges against detained workers, or change domestic laws restricting the right to organize and strike.

Nationwide bread protests as gov't moves to cut subsidies

Middle East Eye
Egypt bread riots: Protests erupt after subsidy cut hits poor

Crowds take to streets in Alexandria, Giza and other areas after government cuts supply of subsidised bread amid economic crisis

Tuesday 7 March 2017

Egyptians took to the streets in several cities on Tuesday in angry demonstrations at government cuts to bread subsidies in the face of a deep economic crisis and food rationing.

Reports and videos on social media showed crowds in central Alexandria protesting after bakeries refused to take paper subsidy cards, which many poor Egyptians use to gain a government ration of bread. Protests were also reported in Minya, Desouk, and the Imbaba suburb of Cairo.

They come days after the minister of supplies, Ali Moselhy, cut by two thirds the number of subsidised loaves bakeries were allowed to dole out per day to cardholders. A separate electronic card scheme was not affected.

Protesters clashed with police and blocked the main street in Imbaba as they demonstrated against the government decision.

Montaser Awad, who was protesting in Giza, told Middle East Eye: "Most of the families in poor areas have paper cards. We have been trying for years to get the electronic card, but you have to bribe the employees to follow up.”

Somaya, a housewife from Imbaba, said that by 10am, all 500 of the subsidised loaves had been handed out, meaning she could not get her daily 20 loaves for her family.

"The government is trying to limit the spending, so they apply pressure on the poor. I get 20 loaves for a family of five," she said.

Somaya said people expressed their frustration at those in control, and then turned their attention to police when they arrived.

Social media reports suggested police had fired warning shots over the heads of demonstrators in Imbaba, although Middle East Eye is unable to verify the reports.

Said, who works at the Monera al-Gharbiya government supplies office, said that the problem has been taking place for two days now. He added that several people from the ministry and the province came here to negotiate with the locals but in vain.

The office where Said works was stormed by the citizens while chanting against the government. "There were about a hundred, men and women. I cannot blame them. But we are just servants at the government. We face the same problems at our houses.”

Said explained that the orders were to stop dealing with the paper cards. “We used to distribute 1,500 loaves but now we only do 500 now," he said.

"These types of cards are called the golden cards, which include the paper cards and the poor who don't have any cards."

“The reason why the government is doing this is because they saw that the amount of bread consumed by these golden cards are huge. They decided to cut it.”

Abdel Sabour, another protester, managed to get five of the 20 loaves he had hoped for. "I haven't had breakfast. The government has to withdraw this decision."

Police officials and national security agents have asked protesters to return home, saying their demands would be satisfied if they stopped protesting, according to tweets from protesters.

Social reports said the rail link between Cairo and Minya in Upper Egypt had also been blocked by protesters.

Protesters also blocked railway station in Desouk, 80km east of Alexandria in the Kafr el-Sheikh province.

"We want to eat! We want bread!" protesters chanted in what appeared to be peaceful protests, according to Egyptian journalists on the ground.

The government recently lifted subsidies on staple foods, and has suffered shortages of other basic foodstuffs, as Egypt faces a currency crisis and rampant inflation that has hit more than 20 percent.
Moselhy replaced Major General Mohammed Ali el-Sheikh as minister of supplies in February following widespread shortages of sugar.

The Egyptian minister of foreign affairs, Sameh Shoukry, was in Brussels on Monday to discuss the social and political situation of the country with EU member state foreign ministers.

Shoukry said he hoped the EU would understand "the nature of the reform process undertook by Egypt" and said he understood the existing political and security challenges.



*Read also: Supply Ministry rescinds cuts in bread subsidies following protests

Judiciary grants Mubarak final acquittal; Counter-revolution complete

The Guardian
Mubarak acquitted in final ruling on Egypt's Arab spring deaths

Former Egyptian president cleared of involvement in death of protesters during 2011 uprising that ended his reign

Egypt’s top appeals court has found Hosni Mubarak innocent of involvement in the killing of protesters during the 2011 uprising that ended his 30-year rule, marking the final ruling in a landmark case.

Mubarak was the first of the leaders toppled in a wave of Arab uprisings to face trial. In scenes that captivated Egyptians, he appeared in a courtroom cage on charges ranging from corruption to complicity in the murder of protesters.

The case has traced the trajectory of Egypt’s Arab spring, with Mubarak originally sentenced to life in prison in 2012 for conspiring to murder 239 demonstrators during the 18-day revolt – an uprising that sowed chaos and created a security vacuum but also inspired hope for an era of democracy and social justice.

But an appeals court ordered a retrial that culminated in 2014 in the case against the former president and his senior officials being dropped. An appeal by the public prosecution led to Thursday’s final retrial by the court of cassation.

The 88-year-old ailing former leader resides in a Cairo military hospital, where he served a three-year sentence for a separate corruption case. The military overthrew Mubarak’s successor, the Islamist Mohamed Morsi, in 2013.

After a hearing that took most of the day, Judge Ahmed Abdel Qawi announced to cheers of approval from the Mubarak supporters who filled the courtroom: “The court has found the defendant innocent.”

 
The court also rejected demands by lawyers of the victims to reopen civil suits. That left no remaining option for appeal or retrial, according to a judicial source.

The families of those killed, who had attended the trial early on, were not present on Thursday. Their lawyers condemned the verdict as politically motivated.

“This ruling is not fair and not just. The judiciary is politicised,” said Osman al-Hefnway, a lawyer for the families.

Mubarak’s supporters cheered “long live justice” as the verdict was read out and unfurled posters of the former leader.



*Photos courtesy of Reuters and the Associated Press

IFFCO Oils Co. workers launch boycott of company products to protest sackings, arrests & police raids

Mada Masr
IFFCO workers launch boycott campaign to protest sackings, arrests and sit-in dispersal

January 31, 2017

Workers at the International Foodstuffs Co (IFFCO) in Suez have launched a campaign calling for a boycott of the company’s products after 27 workers were sacked, and a sit-in at the company was forcefully dispersed by police forces on January 2.

The campaign to boycott the company’s products, over 100 of which are produced in Egypt, was announced during a labor conference held at the office of the Center for Trade Union and Workers’ Services (CTUWS) on Friday. It is a response to the implementation of measures which violate workers’ rights by the local administration.

According to Ahmed Bakr, the secretary general of IFFCO’s local union committee, 27 workers have been barred from entering the company since police forcefully dispersed a sit-in in early January. Among those sacked are all nine members of the local union, including Bakr.

Workers launched the sit-in to demand the augmentation of their wages in line with increasing inflation rates, and the payment of overdue bonuses.

Bakr told Mada Masr that prosecutors referred criminal charges of instigating strike action to trial, “even though the right to strike is protected by law, and is safeguarded in the Egyptian Constitution.”

Twenty one of the 27 workers stood trial at the Suez Criminal Court for their involvement in the industrial action, and were acquitted on Sunday. They described the verdict, which has cleared them of any wrongdoing, as a victory which upholds their rights as workers.

The privately owned United Arab Emirates-based company, which produces oils, foodstuffs and other consumer goods, has 37 production plants worldwide. It is owned by the Allana family, listed among the top five wealthiest Indian families in the Gulf Cooperation Council in 2016.

Regarding the potential for the boycott to negatively affect wages of IFFCO workers, Bakr said that his fellow workers are overwhelmingly in favor of the campaign, until the rights of all employees and unionists are restored.

He told Mada Masr: “The company is implementing punitive measures against our coworkers, many of whom are afraid to speak up for their rights, especially since the administration sacked the entire union committee.”

According to Bakr, 200 striking workers, many of whom were briefly arrested during the sit-in dispersal, were prevented from entering company grounds until they signed an agreement with administrators pledging to refrain from pursuing industrial action again. “They were forced to sign these papers, and if they refused they were threatened with the loss of their jobs.”

Additionally, administrators at IFFCO’s branch in Suez claimed that the workers’ sit-in had cost the company LE4 million in losses, and accordingly deducted LE500 from each of its 600 workers for going on strike.

The workers have been demanding the reinstatement of the local union committee, and the 27 employees who are currently prevented from returning to their jobs at the company, he said.

The company’s administration could not be reached for comment.

In addition to the alleged infringements on labor and union rights, Mohamed Saeed, president of the local union committee, claimed that he was blindfolded, threatened and summoned for questioning by National Security Agency (NSA) officers in Suez regarding the strike.

He said that during the strike, he was “told to return to the company, to call off the strike, or return to the NSA to face subsequent measures against me.” Saeed added that his apartment was repeatedly raided by police forces.

The CTUWS’ legal consultant Rahma Refaat commented that “boycott campaigns in Egypt may be more symbolic and promotional, whereas they tend to be more successful abroad.”

She suggested that IFFCO’s workers “focus on a boycott centering on your most popular product. Fern Butter, for example.”

Bakr asserted that the boycott is not an open-ended action against the Allana family. “If our boycott does succeed in upholding workers’ rights at the company, then we will call it off.”

The union has requested international solidarity from labor unions and federations, and consumer rights groups. He argued that an effective boycott campaign in the UK or USA could have a great impact on IFFCO’s distribution centers there, saying Allana and IFFCO “would be afraid to lose customers and investments, or even afraid to have their name was tarnished.”

Recent years have seen a crackdown on industrial action in Egypt’s public and private sector, and the state has increasingly turned to the deployment of security forces to arrest workers and impose exceptional legal measures to punish those detained.

State responds to recent labor protests with heightened repression & exceptional legal measures

Mada Masr
State responds to recent labor protests with heightened repression and exceptional legal measures

January 24, 2017

Jano Charbel

 
Recent nationwide labor protests have found themselves confronted by extraordinary measures of repression as the country continues to weather economic struggles, austerity measures and rising inflation.

The Egyptian government has deployed security forces to quash any suggestion of labor action in the public or private sector, arresting workers and subsequently imposing exceptional legal measures to punish those detained.

Since 2016, the state has increasingly moved toward suppressing labor protests. According to an annual report published by the Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights (ECESR), there were 726 labor protests over workplace demands, claims of administrative mismanagement and corruption in 2016. These protests have particularly been driven by grievances over working conditions and demands for increased wages and bonuses in light of recent economic reform policies.

However, the ECESR report also noted that 2016 saw a decline in the total number of labor protests compared to 2015, in which there were 933 labor protests. In 2014, there were 1,609 labor protests, while, in 2013, there were 2,239.

The latest ECESR report states that the 726 labor protests in 2016 made up the majority of the 1,736 protests witnessed throughout the year. This report attributes the decrease in the total number of protests to restrictive legislation regulating the right to demonstrate and security crackdowns on dissent.

The state’s crackdown has prompted solidarity campaigns and petitions — in Egypt and abroad — demanding that the criminal charges against dozens of workers be dropped. Addressed to executive authorities, the petitions have been signed by hundreds of rights workers, labor unions and federations, denouncing the deployment of security forces to suppress protesting workers.


ALEXANDRIA SHIPYARD COMPANY WORKERS

“Undoubtedly, Egypt has been witnessing increased repression against workers protests since 2013,” says ECESR lawyer Mohamed Awwad.

According to a report issued by the Center for Trade Union and Workers Services (CTUWS), security forces have forcibly dispersed seven labor protests over the past year, while 28 workers have been prosecuted and nine others are standing trial. The report adds that corporations have also dismissed 271 workers, union members and labor leaders due to their involvement in labor action.

The state’s initial response to a potential problem in the cog of military production — the Alexandria Shipyard Company has been managed by the Defense Ministry since 2007 — was particularly extreme, Awwad says, as the workers had not forced a work stoppage but had organized a sit-in on May 23 and 24, 2016. They were demanding an increase in salary to align with the national minimum wage, payment of overdue bonuses and for work at stalled production lines to recommence.

Military police forces were deployed to the shipyard on May 24, where they surrounded the workers’ sit-in.

The military trial commenced in June 2016 and, due to a series of adjournments, has become an ongoing spectacle that has extended into the new year.

Of the Alexandria Shipyard Company’s 2,300 workers, some 1,200 have still not been allowed to recommence work with the company since its management imposed a lockout on May 24 and therefore cannot collect their full salary. Awwad says that 32 workers, including the 26 standing trial, remain barred from entering the company’s premises. The state has also moved to force 19 of the workers standing trial to tender their resignations in exchange for bail.

“There is increasing pressure from military officials upon the remaining workers to submit their resignations,” says Awwad.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT AUTHORITY WORKERS

Another significant case centers on the ongoing trial of six Public Transport Authority (PTA) workers who had planned to strike on September 24, the first day of the academic year, but were arrested in dawn raids.

The public bus drivers had prepared to strike to demand increased bonuses and for the PTA to be placed under the authority of the Transportation Ministry.

The six PTA workers were jailed and are being prosecuted on charges of inciting unrest within a state institution, instigating protests against the state, obstructing public transport, forming a terrorist cell within the PTA and belonging to an outlawed organization, a reference to the Muslim Brotherhood.
After being detained for over three months, four of the six workers were released on bail, while two remain jailed in Tora Prison pending investigations.

“My father was arrested at home,” says Seif, the son of jailed PTA worker Abdel Khaleq. “They came for him even though the strike never took place. There wasn’t even a protest. Why is my father in prison when strikes are a legitimate and legally stipulated right?”

IFFCO OILS COMPANY

The latest crackdown took place in the Suez Governorate on January 2, when police forcefully dispersed a sit-in at the privately owned IFFCO Oils Company, a subsidiary of the Dubai-based IFFCO Group, arresting scores of workers, 21 of whom are now standing trial for “instigating a strike,” while two remain jailed pending investigations.

Security forces were deployed in response to a complaint filed at the local police station in which the company’s management accused the workers of striking and obstructing production, a charge which is increasingly being leveled against workers who embark on industrial action.

Seoud Omar, a Suez-based trade unionist and regional labor organizer, says these kinds of industrial action are staged over “‘bread and butter”’ issues and are typically apolitical in nature. “Labor strikes are not criminal actions,” he asserts. “There is no terrorism, political conspiracy, or plots against the ruling regime in these non-violent labor protests.”

While Omar has seen violence used to suppress labor movements in the past, the recent developments add a new dimension. “The use of violence on the part of Ministry of Interior is not new,” he says. “But the increased use of its police forces in so many different locations is.”

Omar argues that “police are clearly acting on behalf of business interests and against workers’ basic rights,” a fact, he argues, is clearly illustrated in the raid of the IFFCO Oils Company.

Ahmed Bakr, the secretary general of the Independent Union of IFFCO Employees, says that since January 2, 27 workers have been barred from entering the company, of which 21 are standing trial, including all nine elected members of the company’s trade union committee. Bakr himself is among those facing prosecution.

The initial court hearing before the Suez Criminal Court is scheduled for January 29, which is the same day that the court is expected to issue a verdict in the case. Bakr calls this unprecedented, asking why he and his co-workers are not being granted an opportunity to defend themselves in court. “It appears that the authorities are sending a message that they won’t tolerate strikes or any labor union organization in the Suez area.”

According to Bakr, the crackdown was not limited to the 12 workers arrested at the factory, as security forces arrested three others in dawn raids. He adds that several of his co-workers were interrogated by National Security Agency representatives.

“Are protests over bonuses now a threat to national security?” he asks. “We were arrested and are now on trial like criminals because we exercised our legally protected rights.” 

EGYPTIAN FERTILIZERS COMPANY

Another notable security crackdown took place on December 5, when police raided the Egyptian Fertilizers Company (EFC) and Egyptian Basic Industries Corporation (EBIC), both of which are owned by business magnate Nassif Sawiris — Egypt’s richest man, worth an estimated $US6.1 billion.

Workers at both of Sawiris’ fertilizer companies were striking to demand higher wages in light of the flotation and devaluation of the Egyptian pound. The coordinated police raids resulted in the arrests of around 200 striking workers, who were released within hours. Two other EFC workers were taken to Attaqa Police Station and released the following day after paying LE 10,000 bail each. A total of six EFC workers — all of whom have been sacked in light of this strike — will appear before the Suez Criminal Court on January 28 on charges of “instigating a strike” and “halting production.”

Following the forced dispersal of these strikes, a half-page notice was published in the December 25 issue of the state-owned Al-Ahram newspaper under the headline, “Message of thanks and appreciation from workers at EFC.” The notice asserted that, “all workers at the Egyptian Fertilizers Company express their utmost sorrow and pain regarding recent incidents,” a reference to the strike. “Workers consider themselves to be strategic partners with the owners of capital.”

Yasser al-Geneidy, who was arrested in the raid, points out that he wrote this apology together with a co-worker, under pressure from company administrators. “We were told to formulate this apology as a precondition to being reinstated,” he says.

A management official is said to have paid for this ad, which cost around LE133,000. “Many workers objected to the wording of the statement, but we did so in hopes of keeping our jobs,” according to Geneidy. “We have apologized but have not been reinstated, and now we are standing trial.”

Geneidy concludes, “Nassif [Sawiris] is much bigger and stronger than us. What can you do with a billionaire who is actually helping to fund the state? Who do you think they are going to side with?”

Omar predicts that rising inflation rates and stagnating wages, coupled with the state’s austerity measures and crackdown on workers’ protests, will result in significant labor unrest across Egypt.

“Take it from me,” Omar says. “After all these years in the labor movement, I can safely tell you that there will be a massive wave of worker protests affecting the country soon.”
___
*Seoud Omar passed away just a few days after Mada Masr conducted this interview with him.

Egypt: 1,736 social, economic & labor protests in 2016

Mada Masr
1,736 social, economic and labor protests across Egypt in 2016: ECESR

Monday December 26, 2016

According to a report published by the independent Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights (ECESR) on Monday, a total of 1,736 protests took place in Egypt over the course of  2016. This figure represents a decrease in the number of protests that the ECESR reported in 2015, when a total of 1,955 protests took place nationwide.

The ECESR report outlines that in 2016 the state’s new austerity measures, tax hikes and associated economic policies contributed to increased pressures and hardships on Egyptians, pushing many citizens to protest. However, the continued imposition of restrictive legislation regulating the right to demonstrate – along with security crackdowns on dissent – have likely contributed to a decrease in the total number of protests this year.

According to the ECESR acts of protest can be divided into three distinct categories: social, economic and labor protests. Based on this breakdown, the ECESR reported that the majority of protests which took place this year can be categorized as labor protests, numbering 726.

The second highest category was social protests, with 633 taking place across the country. The report also states hat 377 economic protests took place nationwide.

LABOR PROTESTS

February saw the largest number of recorded labor and workplace protests, with 108 taking place.

Government employees carried out the greatest number of labor actions throughout the year, engaging in 478 acts of protest, followed by the public then the private sector, which witnessed 133 and 107 protests, respectively.

According to the ECESR report, the high number of protests among government workers and employees was largely triggered by the passing of the controversial Civil Service Law, a revised version of which was approved this year. The law and imposes a caps on wages and bonuses.

Employees from the Health Ministry were at the forefront of labor protests in the governmental sector this year, engaging in 159 demonstrations. This was followed by the Education Ministry’s employees who took part in 74 protests.

Looking at the specific grievances, the greatest number of industrial actions (379) were in protest against working conditions. This was followed by protests over demands for financial compensation, amounting to 368, followed by 367 protests over claims of corruption and financial irregularities. 

Protests over demands for employment amounted to 153, while 139 protests took place over disputes pertaining to contractual agreements.

Cairo was the governorate that accounted for the largest number of labor protests in 2016, with 454 industrial actions taking place, followed by Sharqiya with 128, and Gharbiya with 119 labor protests.

SOCIAL PROTESTS

According to the ECESR, the category of social protests are those which are not based on, or motivated by, economic factors. Accordingly ‘social protests’ include actions organized by members of residential communities, students, and others.

Of the 633 social protests witnessed across Egypt this year, the majority took place in September – with 86 recorded that month.

The main motivating factors behind social protests this year were corruption and negligence, with citizens organizing 366 such protests. Education-related protests followed, with 218 taking place this year, as well as 77 protests organized over security-related demands.

ECONOMIC PROTESTS

Out of the 377 economic protests recorded this year, May saw the highest incidence with 59 taking place.

According to the ECESR, economic protests are those triggered primarily by the government’s monetary and fiscal policies, which directly impact the economic interests of different categories of people, particularly small business owners.

Within all three categories, the most common form of dissent this year was the protest rally, which included protests and marches, reaching a total of 1,210. This was followed by labor strikes or work stoppages, of which 282 incidents were reported, followed by 134 sit-ins or sleep-ins. Finally the ECESR reported  84 incidents where participants inflicted self harm, including suicides and attempted suicides.

Local residents were the demographic which carried out the highest number of protests this year (457.)

Manual workers and laborers partook in 359 industrial actions, civil servants participated in 167 protests, students in 160, transport workers and drivers were involved in 132, teachers participated in 75, doctors in 67, nurses in 71, shopkeepers in 41 while the unemployed and graduates were collectively involved in 62 protests.

The ECESR’s monthly and annual protest figures are based on information published on news websites and portals. They have been issuing periodic and annual reports on protests in Egypt since 2012.

The latest report covers the period from January 1 until December 20. The ECESR will follow up this publication with a more detailed annual report on 2016 protests in February 2017.

*Photo of Public Transport Authority workers by Jano Charbel

Supreme court upholds law restricting street protests

REUTERS
Egypt's top constitutional court upholds law restricting street protests

Sat Dec 3, 2016  

Egypt's Supreme Constitutional Court upheld on Saturday a law that effectively bans protests, settling a years-long court battle and protecting the law from further challenges.

The law was passed in 2013 amid persistent demonstrations calling for the reinstatement of Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Mursi after the military overthrew him following mass protests against his rule.

It requires would-be protesters to notify the interior ministry of any public gathering of more than 10 people at least three days in advance, imposes jail sentences of up to five years for those who violate a broad list of protest restrictions, and allows security forces to disperse illegal demonstrations with water cannons, tear gas and birdshot.

The court's ruling keeps all of these elements of the law intact and there is no further appeal.

Egyptian rights organizations have said the law criminalizes all forms of peaceful assembly and gives the state a free hand to disperse peaceful gatherings by force.

Its strict enforcement has largely succeeded in ending the kind of mass demonstrations that helped unseat two presidents in three years as activists who have held even small, peaceful gatherings were detained.

The ruling means that hundreds of protesters arrested under the law will remain in prison.

"It was a surprise. We were hoping that the constitutional court would come down on the side of rights. There isn't a court in Egypt that has mercy on the people," prominent human rights lawyer Gamal Eid told Reuters.

The case was first brought to an administrative court in 2014 when a group of lawyers challenged parts of the law they said violated article 73 of the constitution.

The article allows the "right to organize public meetings, marches, demonstrations and all forms of peaceful protest while not carrying weapons of any type, upon providing notification as regulated by law."

But the court ruled on Saturday that only article 10, which grants the interior ministry authority to deny protest requests, was unconstitutional.

It upheld three other articles being challenged, including one which requires protesters to submit detailed information on the location and purpose of their gatherings and another stipulating jail sentences and hefty fines for illegal demonstrations, which the law defines broadly.


*Reporting by Haitham Ahmed, Mostafa Hashem and Mohamed Abdellah; Writing by Eric Knecht; Editing by Clelia Oziel

11/11 protests fail to take off in Cairo, scores arrested nationwide

Mada Masr
11/11 protests fail to take off in Cairo, scores arrested nationwide

Friday November 11, 2016 

Mass demonstrations planned for November 11, promoted as the“Revolution of the Poor,” largely failed to materialize in Cairo on Friday. Some minor protests, marches and clashes took place in other governorates including Giza, Alexandria and Beheira, among others.

Dozens of protesters were reportedly arrested on Friday, with mainstream media outlets reporting that nearly all those arrested were associated with the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood group. The Reuters-affiliated Aswat Masriya reported that security forces arrested 45 protesters nationwide on Friday, although the total number of detainees may actually be higher.

The state-owned Al-Akhbar news portal reported that 33 protesters were arrested while taking part in three protest marches in the town of Kafr al-Dawwar in Beheira. Those arrested were described as “elements of the terrorist Brotherhood” by Al-Akhbar, which also reported that police officers fired tear gas canisters to disperse demonstrations.


Four protesters were also arrested in Tahrir Square on Friday, according to the state-owned Al-Ahram news portal. Another four were reportedly arrested in the governorate of Minya, also said to be members of the Muslim Brotherhood.


Five people were detained in Beni Suef, and another 10 were reported to have been arrested in Suez City.

The so-called 11/11 demonstrations were planned to protest ongoing austerity measures, including price hikes and subsidy cuts. The government implemented economic reforms to meet the conditions of a deal brokered with the International Monetary Fund for a US$12 billion loan, which is expected to be finalized on Friday.

The identities of those behind the calls for the demonstrations remain unknown with little indication as to who the organizers are. The Muslim Brotherhood endorsed the protests, and announced that they would be attending. Egypt’s state-owned Nile News channel reported on Friday that security forces were placed on high alert amid “the calls for chaos issued by the terrorist Muslim Brotherhood.”

Tahrir Square was sealed off by the police and the Armed Forces on Friday, and the Ministry of Interior ordered authorities to shut down the Sadat Metro station, which leads up to the square, until further notice.
 
Photos of small protests and marches were circulated on social media platforms, particularly those in the city of Balteem in Kafr al-Sheikh. These demonstrations, along with those which took place in Suez, became a trending topic on Twitter.

Other notable protests were reported to have taken place in the town of Nahiya, in Giza, and in Alexandria around Al-Qaed Ibrahim Mosque where police are reported to have fired tear gas canisters to disperse the demonstrations.

Armed police units were deployed across Egypt’s towns and cities late Thursday night, and patrols and checkpoints were also established.

A correspondent told Mada Masr that there is “a very heavy security presence” in Cairo’s populous working class neighborhood of Matareya, stating “officers and troops are out in force in Matareya Square, and they are preventing anybody from taking photos, even those attempting to do so using their cellphones.”

The pro-regime, partisan Al-Wafd news portal reported on Friday that the “Revolution of the Poor” can only be found in Google searches, not in Egypt’s streets.

The top trending social media hashtags in Egypt on Friday were #محدش_نزل  (“Nobody took to the streets”) along with #افتحوا_الميادين (“Open up the public squares”.)

A photograph of a young man holding up a poster of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in one hand and waving an Egyptian flag with the other, was widely circulated on social media.



*Photo courtesy of Reuters

Labor protests on the rise, bus drivers remain jailed for attempting to strike

Mada Masr
Agriculture Ministry workers, postgraduates demand employment & transport strike organizers remain jailed

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Jano Charbel

Egyptians from various labor sectors across Egypt have mobilized in the past few days to pursue improvements in labor conditions and gainful employment in accord with previous government decrees.

Protests have been organized by tree planters outside the Agriculture Ministry in Giza, while demonstrations by postgraduates demanding employment opportunities have been held outside the Cabinet’s headquarters in Cairo.

This while authorities continue to jail six Cairo Public Transport Authority workers - in undisclosed locations - who had planned a strike which was forcefully aborted by police units.

 

TREE PLANTERS

Dozens of tree planters who had been hired by the Agriculture Ministry on temporary contracts protested outside the ministry’s headquarters in the Dokki district of Giza on Tuesday, demanding full-time contracted employment and livable monthly wages.

Camelia Saeed, a tree planter from the Gharbiya Governorate who traveled by bus to Giza with her coworkers, told Mada Masr that she and the other protesters are only paid LE 40 per month, just over $US 4.

“That is all we get paid per month. That is our total wage. There are no bonuses. Some of us have been employed on part-time contracts for over a decade with the ministry, with this same monthly wage,” Saeed said.

The Agriculture Ministry employs around 2,000 tree-planters on temporary contracts in at least six different governorates. Over the past few years, many of these precarious laborers have been promised full-time contracts and a monthly wage of LE 500, which is still less than half the national minimum wage of LE 1,200 per month.

With her current salary, Saeed is unable to pay for her basic needs. “I am 50 years old, but my family still has to support me. I cannot provide for myself, even with LE 500 per month, let alone LE 40, which is a joke," she said.

Similar protests occurred in March, with temporary laborers calling for many of the same demands. According to Saeed however, the history of the labor struggle has a longer trajectory that has been met with continued intransigence.

“This is not the first time we’ve protested outside the ministry to demand full-time contracts and realistic wages and bonuses. I have protested several times outside the ministry’s gates over the past three years, to no avail,” she said.

“Like the host of ministers who have come and gone over the years, since the 2011 revolution, [Agriculture Minister] Essam Fayed doesn’t do anything about our demands. It’s like playing the same old broken record, where they promise to grant us full-time contracts and yet do nothing about it.”


Photos and videos documenting Tuesday’s protest show dozens of temporary laborers sitting on the road outside the ministry, with some partially blocking traffic around the building.

Ministry officials and delegates representing groups of tree planters from different governorates reportedly were in negotiations until late Tuesday evening. However, the results have yet to be announced.

 

POSTGRADUATE PROTESTERS

 

Between 200 and 300 postgraduates from across Egypt descended upon the Cabinet’s headquarters in downtown Cairo on Tuesday to protest for employment opportunities with the state.

The gathered protesters chanted and carried signs with slogans such as, “Postgraduates are unemployed and on the sidewalk,” “Egypt’s postgraduates are jobless” and “Employ us!”

The protesters were demanding that the Egyptian state uphold a 2002 Cabinet decree that allocated administrative posts in the government to public university postgraduates. Thousands of postgraduates have demonstrated to enforce the decree since it was issued, subsequently succeeding in landing government jobs but not  guaranteeing employment for future graduating classes.

Mahmoud Abu Zeid, 25, participated in Tuesday’s protest outside the Cabinet. Afterward, he told Mada Masr that the protesters “want to land jobs in the state’s administrative authorities. We want to help the state with our skills, qualifications and expertise, wherever our field of expertise is required.”

Abu Zeid is a Kafr al-Sheikh Governorate resident and was awarded a Master’s degree in law in 2015. Exasperated, he questioned why postgraduates must protest every year to ensure the state upholds its own decree regarding employment.

Delegates representing postgraduates met with the assistant to the Prime Minister Sherif Ismail’s chief of staff, according to Abu Zeid.

“We were told that our demands are being examined, and that we are listed to be employed. As for where or when we will actually be employed? We have not yet been informed,” he said.

The young unemployed lawyer said he had been arrested while on his way to a rally outside the Cabinet’s headquarters in November 2015, subsequently being held in detention for four days in the Qasr al-Nil Police Station. Three other postgraduate protesters were arrested the following month, similarly demanding government employment.

“However, we’ve had no trouble from police forces today” Abu Zeid said, expressing a sense of relief.

CONTINUED DETENTION OF SIX PUBLIC TRANSPORT STRIKE LEADERS

Sixteen political parties and rights groups signed and jointly issued a statement on Tuesday, demanding the release of six Cairo Public Transport Authority (PTA) bus drivers and workers, whom police arrested from their homes on Friday, a day before a planned strike.

The six workers were the principal organizers of a Saturday PTA strike that would have coincided with the first day of the new academic year.

However, the planned PTA strike was reportedly obstructed, according to several local media outlets, by the arrest of the six strike leaders and the noticeable presence of police forces and officers who had been deployed to the PTA’s many garages across Cairo and who pressured workers not to strike.

On Sunday, the independent Center for Trade Union and Workers’ Services (CTUWS) announced that it had filed a complaint with the office of the general prosecutor, demanding that authorities disclose the whereabouts of the six jailed PTA workers and inquiring into the charges being leveled against the labor organizers.

The CTUWS is also calling on the Interior Ministry and the state-appointed National Council for Human Rights to identify the police station or detention center where the six PTA workers are being held.

Hundreds of Cairo’s PTA workers have been threatening to strike to further their demands that include that the PTA be under the auspices of the Transport Ministry rather than local governorates, increases in production bonuses by up to 17 percent of current rates and wage parity with Alexandria’s Public Transport Authority.

The public transport sector has witnessed repeated strikes over the last five years around the same demands, leading to continual negotiations between striking workers and the Transport Authority. 

*Archived photos courtesy of Vetogate & Al Arabya News, Video courtesy of Masr Al Arabia