Associated Press
Police, protesters clash for 2nd day in Egypt
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Firing tear gas and rubber bullets, Egyptian riot police on Sunday clashed for a second day with thousands of rock-throwing protesters demanding that the ruling military quickly announce a date to hand over power to an elected government.
The police battled an estimated 5,000 protesters in and around central Cairo's Tahrir Square, birthplace of the 18-day uprising that toppled authoritarian leader Hosni Mubarak in February. Tear gas filled the air as protesters, many chanting "freedom, freedom," pelted the police with rocks.
Sunday's clashes, which come a day after two people were killed and hundreds wounded in similar violence in the capital and other cities, are stoking tensions eight days before the start of the country's first post-Mubarak parliamentary elections. Public anger has risen over the slow pace of reforms and apparent attempts by Egypt's ruling generals to retain power over a future civilian government.
"We have a single demand: The marshal must step down and be replaced by a civilian council," said protester Ahmed Hani, referring Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, Egypt's military ruler and Mubarak's longtime defense minister.
"The violence yesterday showed us that Mubarak is still in power," said Hani, who was wounded in the forehead by a rubber bullet. He spoke over chants of "freedom, freedom" by hundreds of protesters around him.
Rocks, shattered glass and trash covered most of the ground in and around Tahrir early Sunday, while a cloud of white smoke caused by the use of dozens of tear gas shells hung in the air. Several hundred protesters were camping out on the lawn of the square's traffic island, and protesters manning barricades into the square checked the IDs of anyone entering the plaza.
The windows of the main campus of the American University in Cairo, which overlooks the square, were shattered and stores were shuttered. "The marshal is Mubarak's dog," said one of a fresh crop of graffiti in the square.
Yahya el-Sawi, a 21-year-old university student, said he was enraged by the sight of riot police beating up protesters already hurt in an earlier attack by the security forces. "I did not support the sit-in at the beginning, but when I saw this brutality I had to come back to be with my brothers," he said.
Many of the protesters had red eyes and coughed incessantly. Some wore surgical masks to fend off against the tear gas. A few fainted, overwhelmed by the gas.
Sunday's clashes, which were mostly on a road leading from Tahrir to the Interior Ministry, appeared likely to grow.
Protesters were using social networking sites on the Internet to call on Egyptians to join them, and there were reports of several demonstrations headed to the square, including one from Cairo University.
The military, which took over from Mubarak, has repeatedly pledged to hand over power to an elected government but it has yet to set a specific date. According to one timetable floated by the military, the handover will take place after presidential elections are held late next year or early in 2013. The protesters say this is too late and accuse the military of dragging its feet. They want a handover to take place immediately after the end of parliamentary elections in March.
On Saturday, police fired rubber bullets, tear gas and beat protesters with batons, clearing the square at one point and pushing the fighting into surrounding side streets of downtown Cairo.
A 23-year-old protester died from a gunshot, said Health Ministry official Mohammed el-Sherbeni. At least 676 people were injured, he said. Another protester was killed in Alexandria, where clashes also took place, said a security official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to journalists.
After nightfall, protesters swarmed back into Tahrir in the thousands, and running battles with the police in the streets took place throughout the night. Acrid smoke of tires set ablaze mixed with the stinging white smoke of tear gas.
The government urged protesters to clear the square.
A member of the military council, Maj. Gen. Mohsen el-Fangari, said protesters' calls for change ahead of the election were a threat to the state.
"What is the point of being in Tahrir?" he asked, speaking by phone to a private TV channel. "What is the point of this strike, of the million marches? Aren't there legal channels to pursue demands in a way that won't impact Egypt ... internationally?"
"The aim of what is going on is to shake the backbone of the state, which is the armed forces."
In a warning, he said, "If security is not applied, we will implement the rule of law. Anyone who does wrong will pay for it."
Saturday's confrontation was one of the few since the uprising to involve the police, which have largely stayed in the background while the military took charge of security. There was no military presence in and around the square on Saturday or on Sunday. The black-clad police were a hated symbol of Mubarak's regime.
Some of the wounded had blood streaming down their faces and many had to be carried out of the square by fellow protesters to waiting ambulances. Human rights activists accused police of using excessive force.
Police arrested 18 people, state TV reported, describing the protesters as rioters.
***
BBC News
Cairo's Tahrir Square reoccupied by defiant protesters
20 November 2011
Thousands of Egyptian protesters have re-occupied Tahrir Square in the capital, Cairo, after a violent attempt by troops and police to evict them.
They returned less than an hour after the assault, chanting against Egypt's ruling military council.
Demonstrators earlier fled as security forces fired tear gas and beat them with truncheons. At least four people have died since Saturday, reports say.
There were also clashes in other cities including Alexandria, Suez and Aswan.
The demonstrators, some wearing gas masks, say they fear Egypt's military rulers are trying to retain their grip on power.
The violence comes a week before the country's first parliamentary elections since President Hosni Mubarak was overthrown in February.
Health officials say as many as 900 people have been injured, including at least 40 security personnel.
ARMOURED VEHICLES
A second day of violence began when stone-throwing protesters advanced from the square - focal point of February's uprising - towards the interior ministry.
Officers fired volleys of tear gas and drove the protesters back, before blocking the street leading to the ministry.
Armoured personnel carriers brought in reinforcements as the security forces tried to gain the upper hand.
Scores of soldiers and police poured into the square, beating protesters and dismantling a protest camp there.
But within an hour, protesters swarmed back into the square, usually one of Cairo's busiest traffic thoroughfares.
The BBC's Helena Merriman at the scene says there is tense atmosphere, with moments of calm punctuated by moments of panic and running.
The edges of the square are thinning out but the road to the ministry of interior is full of protesters, she says.
In recent weeks protesters - mostly Islamists and young activists - have been holding demonstrations against a draft constitution that they say would allow the military to retain too much power after a new civilian government is elected.
They have repeatedly tried to gain a foothold in Tahrir Square again, but until this weekend they had always been removed quickly by the police.
"The violence [on Saturday] showed us that Mubarak is still in power," one protester, Ahmed Hani, told the Associated Press news agency.
He said the leader of Egypt's military government, Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, should resign.
"We have a single demand: The marshal must step down and be replaced by a civilian council," he said.
The latest violence is some of the worst in months between the Egyptian authorities and demonstrators.
Parliamentary elections are due to begin on 28 November and take three months.
Earlier in November, Egypt's military rulers produced a draft document setting out principles for a new constitution.
Under those guidelines, the military would be exempted from civilian oversight, as would its budget.
This has angered protesters who fear the gains they have made during the uprising could yet slip away as the military tries to retain some grip on power.
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Thousands in Tahrir for 'Friday of Protecting Democracy'
Daily News Egypt
Thousands rally in Tahrir on Friday of 'Protecting Democracy'
November 18, 2011
Heba Fahmy
CAIRO: Thousands of protesters flocked to Tahrir Square on Friday, dubbed "Protecting Democracy," to call for the withdrawal of the controversial constitutional principles proposed by Deputy Prime Minister Ali El-Selmy.
They also called on the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) to hand over power to civilian rule no later than April 2012.
Following Friday prayers, protesters chanted "God is great" and "we want a civil state not a military one.”
Presidential hopeful Selim El-Awa took the main stage and addressed the masses, stressing the two demands.
"The people don't demand, they decide," he said.
"God will protect those who believe in Him," he added, chanting "God is great."
There were around six stages set up across the square.
The scene was dominated by Islamist and Salafi groups and parties, including the Muslim Brotherhood and its political wing, the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiya and its political party the Building and Development Party, in addition to Salafi parties including Al-Nour Party and Al-Asala Party, formerly known as Al-Fadila.
Hussein Shehata, member of the FJP went to the square with his wife and three children to denounce El-Selmy's charter.
"We will not surrender to a small group of officials who want to take over our revolution and write a constitution based on their own interests," Shehata told Daily News Egypt while carrying his four-year-old daughter on his shoulders.
Iman Bakir, member of the Brotherhood, was distributing flyers with morning supplications in the square alongside her two daughters.
"El-Selmy's charter gives more jurisdiction to SCAF than the People's Assembly (PA)," Bakir told DNE.
"The PA elected by the people is the only authority that has jurisdiction to elect those responsible for drafting the new constitution," she added.
The document proposed by El-Selmy gives SCAF jurisdiction over the constituent assembly which will be responsible for drafting the constitution and puts guidelines for electing it.
The document also guarantees the secret nature of the military budget, barring the PA from scrutinizing it.
Sayed Al-Wakil, member of the Salafi Al-Nour Party, said that the Cabinet should not impose its guardianship on the people.
However, there were a few calls by Salafi and Islamist groups demanding an Islamic state, saying that that was the main reason they rejected El-Selmy's document of constitutional principles.
Alaa Qutb, the spokesman of the Committee for Unifying the Islamic Front, said that Egypt was an Islamic country not a civil state.
Mohamed El-Sharqawy, a Salafi who doesn't belong to any specific party, said that democracy was the worst system to be implemented in the world.
"Islamic jurisprudence should be the only source used to rule this country," he said.
A few tents were set up in the middle of the square, members of the Brotherhood, Al-Nour and Al-Asala parties said the original plan was to stay in the square until 8 pm.
"However we might decide to hold a sit-in if the MB approves," MB member Yasser Borhamy said.
Other independent protesters said they would hold an open sit-in in the square until SCAF steps down.
Dozens of Azhar students also held a march in Tahrir making the same two basic demands of withdrawing the constitutional principles and handing over power to civilian rule.
"We are done with military rule," said Ahmed Nady, an Azhar student.
The April 6 Youth Movement entered the square at around 1:45 pm after marching from El-Sayyeda Zeinab to garner support for the protest.
The movement said its protest had nothing to do with El-Selmy document and their main demands were handing over power to a civilian rule and ending the military trials of civilians.
Mahmoud Afify, spokesman for the movement, said that several mass protests would be held in the coming period until SCAF announces that it will hand over power.
Other protesters who weren't affiliated with any political group had the same demands.
"El-Selmy was a pawn in SCAF's hands," Ramadan Aboul Wafa, 54, from Minya, said.
"It's against the law for SCAF to be ruling us in the first place," he added.
Egyptian flags fluttered across the square as national songs were being played, a few flags including the slogan of the Muslim Brotherhood and others saying "theirs is no God but Allah and Mohamed is his prophet” were also seen across the square.
*Photo by Hassan Ibrahim
Thousands rally in Tahrir on Friday of 'Protecting Democracy'
November 18, 2011
Heba Fahmy
CAIRO: Thousands of protesters flocked to Tahrir Square on Friday, dubbed "Protecting Democracy," to call for the withdrawal of the controversial constitutional principles proposed by Deputy Prime Minister Ali El-Selmy.
They also called on the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) to hand over power to civilian rule no later than April 2012.
Following Friday prayers, protesters chanted "God is great" and "we want a civil state not a military one.”
Presidential hopeful Selim El-Awa took the main stage and addressed the masses, stressing the two demands.
"The people don't demand, they decide," he said.
"God will protect those who believe in Him," he added, chanting "God is great."
There were around six stages set up across the square.
The scene was dominated by Islamist and Salafi groups and parties, including the Muslim Brotherhood and its political wing, the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiya and its political party the Building and Development Party, in addition to Salafi parties including Al-Nour Party and Al-Asala Party, formerly known as Al-Fadila.
Hussein Shehata, member of the FJP went to the square with his wife and three children to denounce El-Selmy's charter.
"We will not surrender to a small group of officials who want to take over our revolution and write a constitution based on their own interests," Shehata told Daily News Egypt while carrying his four-year-old daughter on his shoulders.
Iman Bakir, member of the Brotherhood, was distributing flyers with morning supplications in the square alongside her two daughters.
"El-Selmy's charter gives more jurisdiction to SCAF than the People's Assembly (PA)," Bakir told DNE.
"The PA elected by the people is the only authority that has jurisdiction to elect those responsible for drafting the new constitution," she added.
The document proposed by El-Selmy gives SCAF jurisdiction over the constituent assembly which will be responsible for drafting the constitution and puts guidelines for electing it.
The document also guarantees the secret nature of the military budget, barring the PA from scrutinizing it.
Sayed Al-Wakil, member of the Salafi Al-Nour Party, said that the Cabinet should not impose its guardianship on the people.
However, there were a few calls by Salafi and Islamist groups demanding an Islamic state, saying that that was the main reason they rejected El-Selmy's document of constitutional principles.
Alaa Qutb, the spokesman of the Committee for Unifying the Islamic Front, said that Egypt was an Islamic country not a civil state.
Mohamed El-Sharqawy, a Salafi who doesn't belong to any specific party, said that democracy was the worst system to be implemented in the world.
"Islamic jurisprudence should be the only source used to rule this country," he said.
A few tents were set up in the middle of the square, members of the Brotherhood, Al-Nour and Al-Asala parties said the original plan was to stay in the square until 8 pm.
"However we might decide to hold a sit-in if the MB approves," MB member Yasser Borhamy said.
Other independent protesters said they would hold an open sit-in in the square until SCAF steps down.
Dozens of Azhar students also held a march in Tahrir making the same two basic demands of withdrawing the constitutional principles and handing over power to civilian rule.
"We are done with military rule," said Ahmed Nady, an Azhar student.
The April 6 Youth Movement entered the square at around 1:45 pm after marching from El-Sayyeda Zeinab to garner support for the protest.
The movement said its protest had nothing to do with El-Selmy document and their main demands were handing over power to a civilian rule and ending the military trials of civilians.
Mahmoud Afify, spokesman for the movement, said that several mass protests would be held in the coming period until SCAF announces that it will hand over power.
Other protesters who weren't affiliated with any political group had the same demands.
"El-Selmy was a pawn in SCAF's hands," Ramadan Aboul Wafa, 54, from Minya, said.
"It's against the law for SCAF to be ruling us in the first place," he added.
Egyptian flags fluttered across the square as national songs were being played, a few flags including the slogan of the Muslim Brotherhood and others saying "theirs is no God but Allah and Mohamed is his prophet” were also seen across the square.
*Photo by Hassan Ibrahim
March commemorating Maspero victims attacked, 29 injured
Ahram Online
Coptic march to commemorate Maspero victims attacked, 29 injured
November 17, 2011
Yasmine Fathi
A march to commemorate the 40-day anniversary of the Maspero clashes has been attacked.
It is still unclear who attacked the protesters, who were marching through the Shubra district of Cairo, with various reports saying it was thugs, Salafists or local residents.
The Ministry of Health has reported twenty nine injured protesters. MENA quoted a spokesman for the Ministry of Health as saying the injuries varied between bruises, minor cuts and fainting. Of the injured, 24 were released after receiving medical care.
Mina Sabet, a member of the Maspero Youth Union, told Ahram Online the assailants were holding a Saudi Arabian flag and calling for an Islamic state. Police tried to peacefully separate the two sides but resorted to tear gas when this failed.
Magda Naguib, who is standing for the Shubra single seat in upcoming parliamentary elections, was told that groups of Salafists had attacked the march.
The march had been organised by the Free Copts Movement and the Blood of Martyrs Movement.
The march, which began in Shubra Square and was on its way to Maspero for a prayer service, was attacked with stones and Molotov cocktails.
A fight ensued and gunshots were heard, but it is unclear who fired the shots. Several cars were also reportedly damaged during the fighting.
Security forces were unable to contain the violence and side roads were blocked by local residents to stop protesters from entering.
According to Father Filopater Gameel, a leader of the Maspero Youth Union, Copts had received permits from the authorities to hold the march. The union did not participate in the march but fully supported it, added Gameel.
The protesters were commemorating the deaths of Copts killed during last month’s Maspero clashes with the army that left at least 26 dead and more than 300 injured.
It is common in Egyptian culture to commemorate the 40th day after a death.
The Maspero Youth Union has cancelled a service to commemorate the Maspero martyrs on a Nile cruise boat today as a result of the violence in Shubra. The boat’s owner refused them permission to rent the boat due security concerns, stating it would be vulnerable when travelling beneath bridges.
Some protesters arrived at Maspero unaware of the violent events that had taken place and organisers urged them to go home.
Coptic march to commemorate Maspero victims attacked, 29 injured
November 17, 2011
Yasmine Fathi
A march to commemorate the 40-day anniversary of the Maspero clashes has been attacked.
It is still unclear who attacked the protesters, who were marching through the Shubra district of Cairo, with various reports saying it was thugs, Salafists or local residents.
The Ministry of Health has reported twenty nine injured protesters. MENA quoted a spokesman for the Ministry of Health as saying the injuries varied between bruises, minor cuts and fainting. Of the injured, 24 were released after receiving medical care.
Mina Sabet, a member of the Maspero Youth Union, told Ahram Online the assailants were holding a Saudi Arabian flag and calling for an Islamic state. Police tried to peacefully separate the two sides but resorted to tear gas when this failed.
Magda Naguib, who is standing for the Shubra single seat in upcoming parliamentary elections, was told that groups of Salafists had attacked the march.
The march had been organised by the Free Copts Movement and the Blood of Martyrs Movement.
The march, which began in Shubra Square and was on its way to Maspero for a prayer service, was attacked with stones and Molotov cocktails.
A fight ensued and gunshots were heard, but it is unclear who fired the shots. Several cars were also reportedly damaged during the fighting.
Security forces were unable to contain the violence and side roads were blocked by local residents to stop protesters from entering.
According to Father Filopater Gameel, a leader of the Maspero Youth Union, Copts had received permits from the authorities to hold the march. The union did not participate in the march but fully supported it, added Gameel.
The protesters were commemorating the deaths of Copts killed during last month’s Maspero clashes with the army that left at least 26 dead and more than 300 injured.
It is common in Egyptian culture to commemorate the 40th day after a death.
The Maspero Youth Union has cancelled a service to commemorate the Maspero martyrs on a Nile cruise boat today as a result of the violence in Shubra. The boat’s owner refused them permission to rent the boat due security concerns, stating it would be vulnerable when travelling beneath bridges.
Some protesters arrived at Maspero unaware of the violent events that had taken place and organisers urged them to go home.
Yemen experiencing 2 revolutions, says female activist
CNN
Yemen is experiencing two revolutions, says female activist
November 17, 2011
Afrah Nasser
(CNN) -- It's hard not to become distressed, when I'm carefully following the situation in Yemen since violence got worse. It's even more troublesome not to become distressed thinking that there is a bleak future waiting for Yemen.
The fight by the security forces against unarmed protesters is indeed inhuman. More than 2,000 protesters have been murdered and more than 8,000 wounded by security forces across Yemen.
Admittedly, the uprising has a long way to go but one of its great merits so far is the exceptional participation of women.
I have been astonished by the growing numbers of female protesters as the uprising has proceeded. It started with just a few women; then day after day the number multiplied.
Thousands of female protesters have been actively participating in demonstrations across the country since February 2011. Female doctors have been playing an important role treating wounded protesters and female activists have been running seminars on political issues.
Mr Saleh's (Yemen's current president) security forces arrested four female doctors on 19 April 2011, while the doctors were marching along with a peaceful demonstration to provide medical help if needed. The female doctors were released after a huge condemnation and pressure from protesters.
Even female protesters were not immune from the savage killing by pro-government thugs. On the 16 October 2011, I was saddened to see a female protester being shot dead by a thug's bullets.
Aziza Othman was murdered in Taiz during an attack at a peaceful and unarmed protest by women. A very important recognition of women's participation in Yemen's uprising is the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Tawakkol Karman, one of the leading pro-democracy figures in Yemen.
I believe that there are several motives behind this amazing participation by women -- I myself joined the protests and rallies because I want to build and improve my country.
I wanted it to be a double revolution; a political one to topple President Saleh and a feminist one to ensure that women have equal rights in what Yemenis hope will be a new Yemen. It was a double political statement: First, that women have as much right to call for democracy as men, and an indirect message to lift gender apartheid.
Indeed, it's been hard to be a woman in Yemen. A woman's gender, by default, deprives her of rights enjoyed by men. Women in Yemen have been always marginalized in law. As in many developing countries, women in Yemen suffer from limited access to healthcare, economic opportunities and education.
I remember vividly attending a seminar in Sana'a by Amal al-Basha, one of the leading feminist and human rights activists in Yemen and founder of The Arab Sisters Forum for Human Rights in in March this year. I asked her, "Do you think that the uprising will serve women's rights?"
"We have been dealing with a state system that marginalised women for over three decades; unfairly snatching their rights," she said. "Women in Yemen have only a restrained degree of legal protection in regard to family matters such as marriage, divorce and inheritance.
"Many women in Yemen are forced to get married when they are still children. This corrupt system means women in Yemen have one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world. Seven women are raped every month in Yemen, with no concrete punishment from the state for rapists.
"Women in Yemen also suffer from illiteracy. The current system provides a relatively low degree of protection for women's physical integrity.
"There are no laws against domestic violence and the law does not recognize the concept of spousal rape. There is zero observation and accountability by the government to ban the practice of female genital mutilation. How can women not call for change! Of course the uprising will serve women's rights," she told me.
In a nutshell, the participation of women in the uprising has huge merit. What women have done so far embodies their civil and political liberty.
Bearing in mind that freedom for women in Yemen is usually subject to numerous limitations; their participation in the uprising is extraordinary. What they are doing is really a protest against socio-political norms that have always limited their freedoms.
Yemen is experiencing two revolutions, says female activist
November 17, 2011
Afrah Nasser
(CNN) -- It's hard not to become distressed, when I'm carefully following the situation in Yemen since violence got worse. It's even more troublesome not to become distressed thinking that there is a bleak future waiting for Yemen.
The fight by the security forces against unarmed protesters is indeed inhuman. More than 2,000 protesters have been murdered and more than 8,000 wounded by security forces across Yemen.
Admittedly, the uprising has a long way to go but one of its great merits so far is the exceptional participation of women.
I have been astonished by the growing numbers of female protesters as the uprising has proceeded. It started with just a few women; then day after day the number multiplied.
Thousands of female protesters have been actively participating in demonstrations across the country since February 2011. Female doctors have been playing an important role treating wounded protesters and female activists have been running seminars on political issues.
Mr Saleh's (Yemen's current president) security forces arrested four female doctors on 19 April 2011, while the doctors were marching along with a peaceful demonstration to provide medical help if needed. The female doctors were released after a huge condemnation and pressure from protesters.
Even female protesters were not immune from the savage killing by pro-government thugs. On the 16 October 2011, I was saddened to see a female protester being shot dead by a thug's bullets.
Aziza Othman was murdered in Taiz during an attack at a peaceful and unarmed protest by women. A very important recognition of women's participation in Yemen's uprising is the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Tawakkol Karman, one of the leading pro-democracy figures in Yemen.
I believe that there are several motives behind this amazing participation by women -- I myself joined the protests and rallies because I want to build and improve my country.
I wanted it to be a double revolution; a political one to topple President Saleh and a feminist one to ensure that women have equal rights in what Yemenis hope will be a new Yemen. It was a double political statement: First, that women have as much right to call for democracy as men, and an indirect message to lift gender apartheid.
Indeed, it's been hard to be a woman in Yemen. A woman's gender, by default, deprives her of rights enjoyed by men. Women in Yemen have been always marginalized in law. As in many developing countries, women in Yemen suffer from limited access to healthcare, economic opportunities and education.
I remember vividly attending a seminar in Sana'a by Amal al-Basha, one of the leading feminist and human rights activists in Yemen and founder of The Arab Sisters Forum for Human Rights in in March this year. I asked her, "Do you think that the uprising will serve women's rights?"
"We have been dealing with a state system that marginalised women for over three decades; unfairly snatching their rights," she said. "Women in Yemen have only a restrained degree of legal protection in regard to family matters such as marriage, divorce and inheritance.
"Many women in Yemen are forced to get married when they are still children. This corrupt system means women in Yemen have one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world. Seven women are raped every month in Yemen, with no concrete punishment from the state for rapists.
"Women in Yemen also suffer from illiteracy. The current system provides a relatively low degree of protection for women's physical integrity.
"There are no laws against domestic violence and the law does not recognize the concept of spousal rape. There is zero observation and accountability by the government to ban the practice of female genital mutilation. How can women not call for change! Of course the uprising will serve women's rights," she told me.
In a nutshell, the participation of women in the uprising has huge merit. What women have done so far embodies their civil and political liberty.
Bearing in mind that freedom for women in Yemen is usually subject to numerous limitations; their participation in the uprising is extraordinary. What they are doing is really a protest against socio-political norms that have always limited their freedoms.
Situation of free expression worsens in Egypt
REPORTERS WITHOUT BORDERS/RSF
International community urged to react as situation of free expression worsens in Egypt
Thursday 17 November 2011
Reporters Without Borders condemns the accelerating deterioration in the media freedom situation in Egypt in the run-up to the 28 November elections. In the latest development, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces ordered a 15-day extension to blogger and activist Alaa Abdel Fattah’s pre-trial detention on 13 November.
The Supreme Council has constantly restricted freedom of information ever since President Hosni Mubarak’s removal on 11 February. It has summoned journalists and bloggers before military courts and has convicted and jailed netizens.
Now that the country is about to embark on a series of elections that will continue until March, the Supreme Council is showing less and less ability to tolerate fundamental freedoms. The democratic transition that Egyptians desire will not be possible without media freedom, which is now in grave danger.
Reporters Without Borders would like to remind everyone that a free press and the free flow of information are essential for democratic elections.
The Supreme Council has not only perpetuated Mubarak’s methods of controlling news and information but has reinforced them. The trials of civilians before military courts are now the norm. Arrests and convictions on charges of disturbing public order, defamation or spreading false information are being used to censor articles on sensitive subjects such as poverty, women’s rights and, especially, the armed forces. Several media were attacked and prevented from broadcasting footage of the violence on 9 and 10 October in the Cairo district of Maspero.
Reporters Without Borders urges the international community to react and to do whatever is necessary to protect freedom of expression in Egypt. To this end, it sent a letter and the attached summary of freedom of information violations in Egypt since Mubarak’s ouster to prominent international political figures and representatives of international bodies on 7 November.
The recipients included Navanethem Pillay (United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights), Frank La Rue (United Nations Human Rights Council special rapporteur for the promotion and protection of freedom of opinion and expression), Catherine Ashton (European Union high representative for foreign affairs and security), Hillary Clinton (US secretary of state) and Sylvie Coudray (UNESCO director for freedom of expression, democracy and peace).
The letter and summary were also sent to the French foreign minister, the Arab League, the Human Rights Committee of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Egyptian embassy in Washington and the French embassy in Cairo.
International community urged to react as situation of free expression worsens in Egypt
Thursday 17 November 2011
Reporters Without Borders condemns the accelerating deterioration in the media freedom situation in Egypt in the run-up to the 28 November elections. In the latest development, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces ordered a 15-day extension to blogger and activist Alaa Abdel Fattah’s pre-trial detention on 13 November.
The Supreme Council has constantly restricted freedom of information ever since President Hosni Mubarak’s removal on 11 February. It has summoned journalists and bloggers before military courts and has convicted and jailed netizens.
Now that the country is about to embark on a series of elections that will continue until March, the Supreme Council is showing less and less ability to tolerate fundamental freedoms. The democratic transition that Egyptians desire will not be possible without media freedom, which is now in grave danger.
Reporters Without Borders would like to remind everyone that a free press and the free flow of information are essential for democratic elections.
The Supreme Council has not only perpetuated Mubarak’s methods of controlling news and information but has reinforced them. The trials of civilians before military courts are now the norm. Arrests and convictions on charges of disturbing public order, defamation or spreading false information are being used to censor articles on sensitive subjects such as poverty, women’s rights and, especially, the armed forces. Several media were attacked and prevented from broadcasting footage of the violence on 9 and 10 October in the Cairo district of Maspero.
Reporters Without Borders urges the international community to react and to do whatever is necessary to protect freedom of expression in Egypt. To this end, it sent a letter and the attached summary of freedom of information violations in Egypt since Mubarak’s ouster to prominent international political figures and representatives of international bodies on 7 November.
The recipients included Navanethem Pillay (United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights), Frank La Rue (United Nations Human Rights Council special rapporteur for the promotion and protection of freedom of opinion and expression), Catherine Ashton (European Union high representative for foreign affairs and security), Hillary Clinton (US secretary of state) and Sylvie Coudray (UNESCO director for freedom of expression, democracy and peace).
The letter and summary were also sent to the French foreign minister, the Arab League, the Human Rights Committee of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Egyptian embassy in Washington and the French embassy in Cairo.
The Palestinian Freedom Riders of Bus 148
Mondoweiss
The Freedom Riders of Bus 148
March 15, 2011
By Mariam Al-Barghouti and Deema Al-Saafin
The Palestinian Freedom Rides movement was inspired by the Civil Rights Act of 1961, when African Americans and Americans alike boarded buses and road throughout the south in order to break segregation marked by Jim Crow laws.This act branded them the name “Freedom Riders”.
Segregation of the 1960’s revolved around a direct schism between “blacks” and “whites” in every aspect of life imaginable; education, public eating, public transportation, and housing provinces. This began the Freedom Riders movement where Americans, “blacks” and “whites” alike, rode segregated buses .
Inspired by such a movement, six Palestinian activists decided to do the same regarding segregated Israeli buses, in which they would be non-violently defying illegal Israeli settlements, and Israeli segregation.
Earlier Tuesday November 15th, 6 Palestinian activists as well as people of the press headed to the illegal Israeli settlement of Kohav Yakov, where they attempted to board segregated Israeli buses headed to Jerusalem in defiance of Israeli apartheid and segregation. The first bus passes the activists however, the driver keeps driving on. The second bus, and the third pass, to no avail.
Five buses passed the activists without stopping to allow them to get in as passengers; instead they completely ignored their existence. Whilst they were waiting for a bus to stop, an IOF military jeep came to the location of the Freedom Riders. It wasn't until the sixth bus, bus number 148 that the Palestinian Freedom Rides activists were able to board.
Illegal Israeli settlers boarded the bus with the Freedom Riders. At this point, history had already been made, as Palestinians had physically got onto segregation buses headed to Jerusalem. Aboard the bus, the Palestinian flag was flown.
During the first and second Intifada, the waving of the Palestinian flag was an action enough to land a person in jail. During the weekly demonstrations in villages such as Nabi Saleh, Bil'in, Ni'leen and Walaja, waving the Palestinian flag can bring a person an arrest, or worse as in the case of Ashraf Abu Rahmah, administrative detention.
A settler aboard attempted to grab and confiscate the Palestinian flag, but his attempt was defied.
Bus 148 began its move to its perceived destination: Jerusalem. The driver of the bus was following an Israeli police vehicle, while the bus was accompanied by Israeli Occupying Forces from behind.
The bus was led to Hizmah checkpoint, which is one of 522 checkpoints that are spread throughout the West Bank. Upon arrival to Hizmah checkpoint, Israeli Border Police as well as Israeli soldiers boarded bus 148 which carried the six Palestinian Freedom Rides activists: Nadeem Al-Sharbate, Huwaida Arraf, Dr.Mazin Qumsieyeh, Fadi Qura'an, Basel Al-Araj, and Badee' Dwaik, as well as several journalists documenting the event.
The Police asked all the settlers on board and the driver to leave the bus, to which they obeyed but not before remarking to the activists still on board that "this is our land." The settlers were able to board another bus heading to Jerusalem without any harassment from the Border Police.
However the activists were asked for their ID's, and confiscated them in an attempt to get the Freedom Riders to exit the bus. "I will show them my Palestinian ID card and say I want to go to Jerusalem. We'll see what happens," said Dr Mazin Qumsiyeh. However the Freedom Riders were determined to remain on the bus, saying over and over again "We are headed to Jerusalem."
Journalists were then kicked out of the bus and fined 500 Israeli Shekels for "parking on the side of the road". This is merely an attempt to punish those who spread the word of Israel's apartheid regime and its racist implications to the rest of the world.
At this point, Freedom Riders had begun chanting, "We are not getting off, even if you throw us in jail". They knew that they could be arrested but remained defiant, and most importantly, non violent. Palestinian activist, Badee' Dwaik, resisted by nonviolently laying on the floor of the bus. He asked the Israeli Border Police "Why didn't you ask a settler for his permission slip into Jerusalem? Is his blood red and mine blue?"
When journalists and settlers were removed from the bus, only IOF and Israeli Border Police remained with the Freedom Riders. The bus then began its move to a police station.
Once at the police station, Israeli Border Police began forcibly removing Freedom Riders one by one. (Due to the camera shooting the live stream footage running out of battery, we were only able to see three arrests (Dr. Mazin Qumsiyeh, Huwaida Arraf and lastly Fadi Quran’s).
Israeli Border Police tried to negotiate with activists Huwaida Arraf and Fadi Quran, if negotiating meant saying "You are here illegally. Yallah, you will be taken off the bus." The Freedom Riders remained in their seats, staring straight ahead.
IOF and Border Police then began to violently grab these activists one at a time forcing them off the bus. Whilst being arrested, Huwaida and Fadi both introduced themselves as Freedom Riders and said "We are only trying to go to Jerusalem."
Alongside the activists, Fajr Harb was also arrested, even though he was not on board the bus, nor part of the Palestinian Freedom Riders group, he was merely arrested for showing support for the cause, and being Palestinian. As Fadi Quran said as he was being arrested "We only want our freedom, justice, and dignity." The activists and Fajr Harb were taken to the detention center of Atarot, where they remain now until further notice.
*This post originally appeared on the website WrittenResistance.
*Photos courtesy of Activestills.org
All the Freedom Riders have since been released from Israeli custody.
The Freedom Riders of Bus 148
March 15, 2011
By Mariam Al-Barghouti and Deema Al-Saafin
The Palestinian Freedom Rides movement was inspired by the Civil Rights Act of 1961, when African Americans and Americans alike boarded buses and road throughout the south in order to break segregation marked by Jim Crow laws.This act branded them the name “Freedom Riders”.
Segregation of the 1960’s revolved around a direct schism between “blacks” and “whites” in every aspect of life imaginable; education, public eating, public transportation, and housing provinces. This began the Freedom Riders movement where Americans, “blacks” and “whites” alike, rode segregated buses .
Inspired by such a movement, six Palestinian activists decided to do the same regarding segregated Israeli buses, in which they would be non-violently defying illegal Israeli settlements, and Israeli segregation.
Earlier Tuesday November 15th, 6 Palestinian activists as well as people of the press headed to the illegal Israeli settlement of Kohav Yakov, where they attempted to board segregated Israeli buses headed to Jerusalem in defiance of Israeli apartheid and segregation. The first bus passes the activists however, the driver keeps driving on. The second bus, and the third pass, to no avail.
Five buses passed the activists without stopping to allow them to get in as passengers; instead they completely ignored their existence. Whilst they were waiting for a bus to stop, an IOF military jeep came to the location of the Freedom Riders. It wasn't until the sixth bus, bus number 148 that the Palestinian Freedom Rides activists were able to board.
Illegal Israeli settlers boarded the bus with the Freedom Riders. At this point, history had already been made, as Palestinians had physically got onto segregation buses headed to Jerusalem. Aboard the bus, the Palestinian flag was flown.
During the first and second Intifada, the waving of the Palestinian flag was an action enough to land a person in jail. During the weekly demonstrations in villages such as Nabi Saleh, Bil'in, Ni'leen and Walaja, waving the Palestinian flag can bring a person an arrest, or worse as in the case of Ashraf Abu Rahmah, administrative detention.
A settler aboard attempted to grab and confiscate the Palestinian flag, but his attempt was defied.
Bus 148 began its move to its perceived destination: Jerusalem. The driver of the bus was following an Israeli police vehicle, while the bus was accompanied by Israeli Occupying Forces from behind.
The bus was led to Hizmah checkpoint, which is one of 522 checkpoints that are spread throughout the West Bank. Upon arrival to Hizmah checkpoint, Israeli Border Police as well as Israeli soldiers boarded bus 148 which carried the six Palestinian Freedom Rides activists: Nadeem Al-Sharbate, Huwaida Arraf, Dr.Mazin Qumsieyeh, Fadi Qura'an, Basel Al-Araj, and Badee' Dwaik, as well as several journalists documenting the event.
The Police asked all the settlers on board and the driver to leave the bus, to which they obeyed but not before remarking to the activists still on board that "this is our land." The settlers were able to board another bus heading to Jerusalem without any harassment from the Border Police.
However the activists were asked for their ID's, and confiscated them in an attempt to get the Freedom Riders to exit the bus. "I will show them my Palestinian ID card and say I want to go to Jerusalem. We'll see what happens," said Dr Mazin Qumsiyeh. However the Freedom Riders were determined to remain on the bus, saying over and over again "We are headed to Jerusalem."
Journalists were then kicked out of the bus and fined 500 Israeli Shekels for "parking on the side of the road". This is merely an attempt to punish those who spread the word of Israel's apartheid regime and its racist implications to the rest of the world.
At this point, Freedom Riders had begun chanting, "We are not getting off, even if you throw us in jail". They knew that they could be arrested but remained defiant, and most importantly, non violent. Palestinian activist, Badee' Dwaik, resisted by nonviolently laying on the floor of the bus. He asked the Israeli Border Police "Why didn't you ask a settler for his permission slip into Jerusalem? Is his blood red and mine blue?"
When journalists and settlers were removed from the bus, only IOF and Israeli Border Police remained with the Freedom Riders. The bus then began its move to a police station.
Once at the police station, Israeli Border Police began forcibly removing Freedom Riders one by one. (Due to the camera shooting the live stream footage running out of battery, we were only able to see three arrests (Dr. Mazin Qumsiyeh, Huwaida Arraf and lastly Fadi Quran’s).
Israeli Border Police tried to negotiate with activists Huwaida Arraf and Fadi Quran, if negotiating meant saying "You are here illegally. Yallah, you will be taken off the bus." The Freedom Riders remained in their seats, staring straight ahead.
IOF and Border Police then began to violently grab these activists one at a time forcing them off the bus. Whilst being arrested, Huwaida and Fadi both introduced themselves as Freedom Riders and said "We are only trying to go to Jerusalem."
Alongside the activists, Fajr Harb was also arrested, even though he was not on board the bus, nor part of the Palestinian Freedom Riders group, he was merely arrested for showing support for the cause, and being Palestinian. As Fadi Quran said as he was being arrested "We only want our freedom, justice, and dignity." The activists and Fajr Harb were taken to the detention center of Atarot, where they remain now until further notice.
*This post originally appeared on the website WrittenResistance.
*Photos courtesy of Activestills.org
All the Freedom Riders have since been released from Israeli custody.
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