Amnesty International: measures to ban torture in Egypt are not enough
Egypt, Politics, 11/25/2003

Amnesty International on Saturday called for fighting the "phenomenon of continued torture and mal-treatment of prisoners." The organization which is concerned in defense of human rights stressed in a statement that despite of the positive steps taken by the ( Egyptian) authorities in the field of human rights, during 2002, it however, failed in preventing this persisting phenomenon.

Amnesty International stressed that torture in Egypt is conducted systematically by beating and electric shocks which are banned according to the Egyptian and international law. Amnesty International added "that it is ripe time that the authorities have to move in a firm way to halt this phenomenon."

The organization considered that Egypt took during the past three months measures that will ban torture, including a decision in June to found the national council for human rights, and a study by the parliamentary committees to study a law aiming at separating adolescences from adults during preventive custody which precedes trial.

Egypt's higher council for human rights is in charge of submitting an annual report on the status of human rights and receiving complaints of victims and providing recommendations to the government to this effect.

The organization commended these measures but considered them as not enough to reduce the number of torture cases and maltreatment which is still "high and disturbing." It also recommended the Egyptian government to make neutral and independent investigations concerning torture complaints.

At least seven persons were killed in 2002 during their detention by the security department because of torture, according to Amnesty International. Among persons who were tortures were children, women and political activists as well as persons detained unjustifiably. However, the Ikhwan al-Muslimin (Muslim Brothers) group in Egypt denounced the death of one of its members due to torture at the headquarters of the state security intelligence in Cairo. It said in a statement that the deceased "was exposed to various types of torture."

On the other hand, an Egyptian judicial source announced that Cairo's criminal court started on Saturday the trial of an extremist called Anawar Hamid Abbas who was sentenced to death in Absentia, but he surrendered himself voluntarily following years he had spent in the USA.

Abbas who was sentenced to death in Absentia in 1996 on charge of "taking part in assassinating three senior security officials in 1995 in Qana ( the south of Egypt) fled to the USA.

Previous Stories:
  Mubarak receives message from Talbani   (11/24/2003)
  Jordanian Ambassador: Jordan won't support economic project damaging Egypt's interest   (11/21/2003)
  Mubarak's address to the Parliament: rule of law as a fundamental approach   (11/21/2003)
  Amnesty international urges Egypt to end torture   (11/21/2003)
  Egyptian woman activist: Torture in Egypt reached criminality   (11/17/2003)
  Egypt: One Muslim brother members died under torture   (11/8/2003)

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