Egypt after the “pager attacks”… Official and other “unmentionable” movements

The case of the imprisoned Egyptian-British political activist, Alaa Abdel Fattah, raises the issue of pretrial detention in Egypt, how it is implemented, and the laws governing it.

Lawyers and family members of the activist, who came to prominence during the protests against the rule of former President Hosni Mubarak in 2011, are calling for his release on the 29th of this month, as his five-year prison term will have ended. on this date, taking into account the time held beforehand.

Human rights lawyer Khaled Ali, who represents Abdel Fattah, told the Al-Hurra website that the Public Treasury did not count the two years of pre-trial detention he spent. in imposing the penalty of imprisonment in the case registered as No. 1228 of 2021 State Security Misconduct Fifth Emergency Settlement.

On Facebook, his mother, Laila Soueif, wrote: “They released Alaa Abdel Fattah on the day his sentence ends, September 29.”

And I wrote His sister Mona Seif: “On September 29, Alaa will have already spent 5 years in prison.

Abdel Fattah was one of the symbols of the 2011 revolution that overthrew Mubarak. He was arrested in 2019, and sentenced to five years in prison in 2021, on charges of spreading fake news related to publishing a tweet on Twitter (currently X) a ‘ celebrate the death of a prisoner.

Abdel Fattah, who received British citizenship while in prison, went on an open hunger strike that lasted 7 months, to emphasize his request to meet with officials from the British embassy to meet.

His lawyer, Khaled Ali, explains on his Facebook account that he was arrested on September 28, 2019 and then presented to the State Security Prosecutor General, who investigated him and who accused him of joining a terrorist group, publishing and broadcasting fake news, and misappropriation. social media sites.

According to lawyers, the misdemeanors mentioned in the case were canceled in a new misdemeanor case in which the names of two other activists, Muhammad Baqir and Muhammad Oxygen, were also named, in October 2021, and the new case was registered as No. 1228 of 2021 State Security Misconduct Fifth Emergency Settlement.

Ali said he was tried in the misconduct case because of sharing a post with an activist who spoke about the death of an inmate in Scorpion Prison under the influence of torture.

He spoke about legal violations that prevented the investigations in this case, namely the failure of lawyers to obtain a copy of the case papers, the failure of the court to respond to the request to allow Abdel Fattah a special power of attorney sent out to file a dispute. against the court, and a request to hear witnesses, including the family of the prisoner who died “under the influence of the torture.

He said in his post that the court did not respond to any request and decided not to listen to the arguments of the defense. Of course, not all lawyers were able to obtain a copy of the ruling. received after his release on December 20, 2021, sent to prison. five years with hard labor.

Since the trial was a serious state security emergency, the case was sent to the military governor to confirm the decision, which was confirmed on January 3, 2022.

On September 29, Al-Fattah’s contract will expire for five years, with a two-year prison sentence, according to the lawyer.

Article 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure states: “The period of imprisonment begins from the day the criminal is arrested based on the decision to be sent the act, including its reduction by the degree of pre-trial detention and the period of detention.”

Article 483 states: “If the accused is acquitted of the crime for which he was previously detained, the period of imprisonment must be deducted from the time he was convicted of the crime any other that he may have done or examined while in custody.”

Article 484 states: “When several custodial penalties are imposed on the accused, the prior custodial period shall be deducted from the lighter penalty first.”

Pretrial detention procedures for activists, journalists and politicians in Egypt draw complaints from human rights activists who believe there is a failure to enforce the law related to pretrial detention turned into a way for the authorities to “suppress opposition.”

On July 23, a session of the “National Dialogue” launched by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi discussed the issues of “pretrial detention,” amid a boycott by representatives of the “Civil Democratic Movement.” which indicated that no progress had been made. to do on the issue of rights and freedoms.

The session coincided with the release of 79 pretrial detainees and the extension of the pretrial detention period for at least 125 people, most of whom were arrested after calls to protest on 12 July against the economic conditions during the Sisi era, according to what was announced by the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms.

Abdel Fattah’s lawyer says in his post: “When we produced a certificate of the execution period, we were surprised that the beginning of the sentence was declared on him from the date of the sentence ratification on 3 January 2022.

This means he will remain in prison until January 3, 2027, after serving the period before the sentence is confirmed from September 29, 2019 to January 2, 2022.

Ali explains to the Al-Hurra website that this period was waived on the basis that the period of pre-trial detention was based on his arrest in criminal case No. 1356 of 2019, which ‘ including joining a terrorist group, spreading fake news, and social abuse. networking sites, before “plucking” the crimes of publication and making them rude, while they stayed The philosophy was not dealt with.

He told our website that he submitted a report to the prosecution to calculate the sentence period from the date of his arrest, and then released him on the 29th this month.

On Facebook, he refers to the text of Article 482 mentioned above, which stipulates that the length of the prison sentence will be reduced from the day the person was arrested, and Article 484 , which indicates that the period of detention is prior in the case of multiples. the accused’s prison sentence is reduced from the lighter penalty initially.

He says that the law states that the period of pre-trial detention must be deducted from the time served for the same offense or in any other offense committed by the accused or searched while in pre-trial detention, based on the fact that the accused had served the time. of pretrial detention for the benefit of the investigation at a time when he is still innocent, and taking his time from the sentence is a measure that justice requires.

However, Cassation lawyer Hassan Abu Al-Enein tells the Al-Hurra website that pretrial detention is excluded from the sentence period during the execution of the sentence, and this is one of the principles fundamental law.

This means that the period of pretrial detention is deducted from the sentence only in this case on which the sentence was convicted, which is a bad behavior, and not in any other issue.

But he explains that the case raises a problem because the original case also included some of the allegations in the misdemeanor case and that he remained in prison as a result however, he does not believe that the prosecutors will put him in the “trap”. any legal violation, especially since Abdel Fattah is a famous person.

Ali says on Facebook that no other legal decision has been issued against Alaa so far, nor has he been sent to any other trial, and that the basic rule for the person presumed innocent until proven guilty, and the accused has not been extradited. any new decision even if there is an investigation against it for a philosophy Five years ago.

Ali told the Al-Hurra website: “We don’t want an exception.

He said: “The rationale has not been dealt with. This means that the prosecution has not finished the evidence that he joined a terrorist group to send him to court.”

This means, according to his statements on our website, that the prosecution must close the case or issue a referral order.

He says: “She (wants) to put him in prison, put him in prison for her and wear a white uniform, as a pre-trial detention, but he gave the five-year sentence in the wrong case -conduct and no other decision has been issued against him… If so. a decision was issued, the case would remain clear, but a referral decision was not issued. “

He says that his sister Sanaa was released in a similar situation, because “her sentence was done from the time of her arrest, and the crime was not solved.”

Alaa’s sister was arrested and investigated for a crime carrying the same charges, which is joining a terrorist group and publishing and misusing social media, giving a- including publication offences, for which she was tried and sentenced.

The sentence was executed and she was released The length of the sentence was calculated from the date of her arrest and not from the date the sentence was issued , and was released although the crime remains under investigation and has not been solved. of, according to Ali.

Alaa Abdel Fattah’s lawyer asked in his post: “Why does he want to continue his imprisonment until January 2027 just because he “shared” the Post?”