Egypt: Rights Activists at Risk of Prison

Repressive Draft Law to Control Civil Society Groups

"(New York) – Egyptian authorities should drop all charges against unregistered nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and stop the criminal investigation of such groups, Human Rights Watch said today. Authorities should not take action against NGOs until Egypt’s new parliament proposes legislation consistent with international legal standards, Human Rights Watch said. The organizations under investigation are not registered under the Mubarak-era Associations Law, in many cases because the government failed to respond to their requests to register.

On February 5, 2012, the state-run MENA news agency announced that two investigative judges hand-picked by the government had referred 40 NGO staff to trial, both Egyptian and American nationals. Over the past several months, the judges interrogated staff from at least seven groups, and on December 29 military and police raided their offices. A new draft NGO law proposed by the government would actually increase restrictions on free association, Human Rights Watch said. Authorities have given the organizations until February 3 to provide comments on the law.

“The Egyptian authorities are using a discredited Mubarak-era law to prosecute nongovernmental groups while proposing even more restrictive legislation,” said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “The government should stop using the old law, halt the criminal investigations, and propose a law that respects international standards.”....."