GENEVA – The Geneva Council on Human Rights and Justice has condemned the escalation of arresting political activists and bloggers in Egypt and called for international intervention with Egyptian authorities to end these abusive practices.
Geneva Council criticized in a press statement, the Supreme State Security Prosecution’s decision to imprison political activist Shadi al-Ghazali Harb for 15 days on remand into charges against him, including joining a terrorist group and spreading rumors as lawyers said.
The council noted that Al-Ghazali is known for his harsh criticism of the Egyptian government, which is trying to convict him of charges including insulting Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi and spreading rumors that would affect the national security of the country. Moreover, he is accused of joining an illegal terrorist group.
The Council also denounced the decision of the Egyptian Public Prosecutor’s Office to detain the satirical blogger Shadi Abu Zeid for 15 days in custody on charges of publishing false news and joining a banned group after he was arrested and taken to a secret place after confiscating computers, telephones and other things.
Shady is a young blogger who publishes sarcastic videos on YouTube and Facebook, entitled “Rich Content.”
Geneva Council for Human Rights and Justice denounced the increasing arbitrary arrests in Egypt and considered it as a sign of the authorities’ policies of cracking down on opponents and suppressing public freedoms.
