The Forum Requests Investigation To Be Run At The Prosecutor General’s Office

The Independent Human Rights Organizations Forum Demands The Prosecutor General To Inquire Into The Complaint Of A Judge Violation Of The Intellectual Property Of The Arabic Network For Human Rights Information. The Forum Requests Investigation To Be Run At The Prosecutor General’s Office

The Independent Human Rights Organizations Forum and the undersigned organizations said that the Prosecutor General has to start serious and impartial investigations in the complaint that a delegation of Egyptian human rights organizations will submit today. The complaint is regarding the decision of Alexandria East Prosecution to conclude the complaint of the executive director of the Arabic Network against the judge Abdel Fattah Mourad as the latter violated the intellectual property of the Arabic Network and reproduced tens of pages of ANHRI’s report without mentioning the source.

The delegation will also request to conduct the investigations at The Prosecutor General office in Cairo and under his personal supervision as the Attorney General of Alexandria Prosecution did not respond to the lawyers of the Arabic Network to pay the fees of civil prosecution against Mourad. As well , the Attorney General did not refer the complaint to the liaison point which is the intellectual property technical office according to the legal proceedings. Lastly , the Attorney General refused to reveal the reasons for concluding the communiqué against the judge.

The forum expresses worry that this unfair legal judicial dispute between a judge and three human rights defenders is a prelude to blow off human rights organizations and activists especially after the role they played in exposing the violations committed lately by the Egyptian authorities against human rights taking into account the forthcoming public and presidential elections.
These worries grow more serious now that the Egyptian government is preparing a new act that would impose more restrictions on civil associations and rights organizations. As well , media crackdown on rights organizations has stepped up in state owned newspapers with some officials taking part in that.

Also, ministry of social solidarity pressures rights organizations by rejecting activity and program funds having the Egyptian Organization for human rights , New Woman Foundation and the Association for Human Rights Legal Assistance as leading examples. This led to halting some projects of those organizations and the financial difficulties grew even more such that association for Human Rights Legal Assistance had to evacuate its premises lately.

Judge Mourad is persistent on pursuing activists and bloggers as they exposed his encroachment on the intellectual property of ANHRI. However , the Egyptian judiciary acquitted the activists in two earlier cases filed by the judge , the first was to close down and block 50 websites among which were Hisham Mubarak Law Center and the Arabic Network ‘s and the second was an insult and libel case against two bloggers and ANHRI’s executive director.

Khalifa court currently considers the third fabricated case filed by the same judge accusing Ahmed Saif AlIslam, founder of Hisham Mubarak Law Center , Gamal Eid ANHRI’s executive director and the blogger Amr Gharbeia of insult and libel and threat of defamation. The next hearing is on 4/9/2010. On the other hand , the complaint filed by the Arabic Network against the judge was arbitrarily concluded after unfair investigations and without declaring reasons.

The Independent Human Rights Organizations Forum and the undersigned organizations declare continued utmost support of the human rights defenders , Ahmed Saif , Gamal Eid and Amr Gharbeia and demand the Prosecutor General to assume their authority and start serious and transparent investigations in the crime of violating the intellectual property of Arabic Network for Human Rights Information.

Signatories
Forum Members
Hisham Mubarak Law Center
Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies
Andalus Institute for Tolerance and Anti-Violence
Association for Human Rights Legal Assistance
The Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights
El Nadim Center for Rehabilitation of Victims of violence
Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression
New Woman Foundation
The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights
The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information
The Egyptian Association for Community Participation Enhancement
Human Rights Association for the Assistance of Prisoners
Arab Organization for Penal Reform

Other Human rights organizations
AlHelaly institute for Freedoms.
The Arabic Institute for civil society and human rights Support
The Arabic Program for Human Rights Activists