Tag: left

The revolt of the frogs

It is said when you throw a frog into boiling water, it jumps out right away. But when you put it in warm water, then heat the pan increasingly till the boiling point, the frog will not take notice, till suddenly it’s faced with a boiling situation and dies. The learned wisdom, the frogs have to revolt now, coz they have nothing to lose but their boiling pans.

With those words activist blogger 3alaa starts a funny posting titled, “Boiling the Frogs between Cairo and Tel Aviv,” where political activism meets his cyber-humour. Behind the cartoon and the Egyptian street slang humour however, there lies a lot in 3alaa’s message.
3alaa, an independent leftist, shares a belief upheld by many on the left in Egypt today: the local is connected to the regional. A blow struck against autocracy in Cairo, solidifies the resistance in Palestine and Lebanon, and vice versa.
During the 15 July demo in solidarity with Sharqawi and Sha3er before their release, 3alaa and his fellow bloggers were distributing a statement, brilliantly written in my view.
The statement affirmed the leftist bloggers’ support for Hizbollah and Hamas in their fight to liberate the Lebanese and Palestinian detainees, but drew the attention to the Egyptian fight to liberate our own detainees in the regime’s prisons. The statement is only available in Arabic, and could be found here. 3alaa did not forget to add his own humourous touch to it, signing the statement in the name of “30th of February Organization,” the name activist bloggers are jokingly referring to themselves by.
In his last posting, you can see a frog chanting against Mubarak, saluting the Lebanese and Palestinian resistance, and stating that “boiling” will not deter dissent.

Sharqawi’s lawyer calls for release of MB detainees

Gamal 3eid–lawyer for Sharqawi and Sha3er, and the leftist director of the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information–issued a statement today, welcoming his clients’ release, but called up on the newly appointed Public Prosecutor to investigate the Qasr el-Nil officers who are involved in Sharqawi’s torture and put an end to police brutality; to curb the powers of State Security officers; and to release the Muslim Brothers prisoners of conscience.

3alaa has posted a very nice picture of Sharqawi, Sha3er and some of their fellow released detainees from Youth for Change here…

Wael 3abass posted more pix of Sharqawi and Sha3er here, in addition to his account of the day in Arabic.

And here’s Malek’s account of the day of Sharqawi’s release.

Sharqawi and Sha3er are FREE

Sharqawi and Sha3er have been finally released by 12:50am, after a long odyssey of “paper work” pending their release.

The two were taken from Tora Prison on Wednesday 1:15pm, to State Security police HQ in Lazoughli Square, where they spent a couple of hours sitting in some corridor. They were then transferred to El-Khalifa Police Station, and then to the Cairo Security Directorate, from where the two walked out ten mins to 1am.

Mabrouk ya Sharqawi… Mabrouk ya Sha3er…

Here is a picture I took of Sharqawi, talking on a mobile phone and still dressed in white prison clothes, in Bab el-Louq shortly after his release. His friends, waiting outside the Directorate, took him and Sha3er together with some family members to a downtown coffeeshop.
Sharqawi

Sharqawi and Sha3er to be released!!!

I have just received news the State Security Prosecutor has ordered Sharqawi‘s and Sha3er‘s release!!!

The two are still in Tora, and won’t be released before tomorrow…

MABROUK! MABROUK!

Euphoria is sweeping across the activists’ circles. My mobile is getting flooded by SMSs about Sharqawi’s release. I spoke with several Kefaya activists and rights lawyers over the phone, and I could hardly hear what they were saying as they were shouting and screaming cheerfully. At least two broke down in tears of disbelief while speaking as they had almost lost hope in seeing the two young men free soon.

Let’s hope Sharqawi’s and Sha3er’s release will go through quickly and that they will be freed tomorrow, without facing the same treatment 3alaa got on his release.

I want to thank every Arabist reader who expressed his/her support and solidarity with Sharqawi, Sha3er and the rest of the pro-democracy detainees.

There are still hundreds of MB detainees, like Dr. Essam el-Erian, languishing in Tora, following their arrest in pro-democracy demos, just like Sharqawi and Sha3er. I hope their release will come soon…

Labor unions & the movement for change

The Center for Socialist Studies is to hold a forum on the “The Political Movements and Labor Unions Elections� on Thursday, 20 July.

There will be two sessions…

5pm to 7pm: Labor and Political Change, featuring labor unionist Fathallah Mahrouss, member of the Coordinating Committee for Unions Rights and Liberties, and Fatma Ramadan, a labor researcher with Center for Socialist Studies.

7:30pm to 10pm: The Current Political Forces and Labor Union Elections, featuring a group of labor union activists: Hamdi Hassan from The Afaq Ishtrakiya Center, Kamal Abu 3eita from Karama Movement, Mohamed Abu Samra from the Labor Party, Mohamed Hassan from Workers for Change, Mohamed 3abdel 3azim from the Coordinating Committee for Unions Rights and Liberties, and Mohammadi 3abdel Maqsoud, a Muslim Brothers Labor MP.

Democracy detainees’ ordeal continues…

Karim el-Sha3er (photo on the right) has been subject to a knife assault in prison, an activist source said. Karim el-Sha3erSha3er and Sharqawi are the only two remaining Kefaya detainees, after the release of their fellow secular activists. (Hundreds of MBs are still in Tora Prison.)

The two activists’ treatment in prison has been steadily deteriorating, and Sharqawi recently received death threats from a criminal with ties to security, and the two have been prevented from visits by lawyers.
The delegation of university professors which tried to meet the Public Prosecutor today, was received by his aide only, who promised Sharqawi and Sha3er would be released today, before their detention review tomorrow, Kefaya is saying. Kefaya has called for a demo tomorrow in front of the State Security Prosecutor‘s office in Heliopolis, if the Assistant Public Prosecutor’s promise turned out to be farce.
UPDATE: 3alaa published more details on his blog…

Prison authorities prevented Lawyer Gamal Eid from visiting his client Mohammed Al Sharkawy yesterday (Monday the 17th) even though state security prosecutor issued a visit permit, after much deliberation they allowed him to see Karim Al Shaer only.

According to Gamal Eid, Karim’s right Arm was injured by a switch blade after a criminal inmate attacked him, Karim suspects the attack was arranged by police officers. Karim is being detained in the infamous 12a cell, where acts of violence are quite common.

Today Lawyer Rajia Omran was prevented from visiting both Mohammed Sharkawy and Karim Al Shaer despite having another permit from state security prosecutor, she filed a complaint with Maadi district prosecutor accusing officer Ayman Ra’fat and the prison Sherif of denying the prisoners their basic constitutional rights and obstructing a decision taken by a judiciary body.

This comes directly after Sharkawy receiving several death threats, friends and colleagues are worried that prison authority might be trying to hide a violent crime against Sharkawy.

On the other hand a delegation of university professors, journalists, lawyers and activists went to the General Prosecutor office today to hand out a statement demanding the immediate release of Mohammed Sharkawy and Karim Al Shaer. hundreds had signed the statement in solidarity with the two torture victims. Judge Adel Said, the general prosecutors aid announced that the two will be released today.

When torture rules

Gamal 3eid–one of Sharqawi’s lawyers, and director of HRinfo–reflected on Sharqawi’s case in a very moving statement.

Mohammed El-Sharkawi is proof of the crime of Mubarak’s regime
“It’s either me or the Muslim Brotherhood… I might not be the best but I am the best of what is available… My alternative is another Algeria … the alternative are the Islamists”
The regime in Egypt used this statement at its best for many long years to extort not only the West but also many secularists and leftists here and there making this statement its justification whenever someone complained of brutal police practices against political activists. This statement is raised before the “democratic” west as if the regime in Egypt has to be oppressive to secure Western interests and maintain a civil state and protect it from the threat of Islamists.There are nearly 15 thousand political prisoners in Egyptian prisons. Many are co-opting against them as the justification is ready and logical. They are extremist Islamists. Who cares about them? Continue reading When torture rules

Sharqawi receives death threats in Tora

I have received troubling news from activist sources that Youth for Change detainee Mohamed el-Sharqawi has been subject to death threats in Tora prison, where he’s currently detained.

3alaa has posted on his blog some details about Sharqawi’s current ordeal.

Here’s an English translation:
Mohamed Sharqawi is subject to death threats from the police informer who supervises his prison cell at Mahkoum Tora Prison. Sharqawi has been banned from leaving his cell, unlike other prisoners. He was also told by a State Security informer in prison that “we can get rid of you by a dirty needle in the bathroom that will infect you with any lethal disease.� Sharqawi is increasingly coming under abusive treatment since the release of Kefaya detainees. He’s been separated from Karim el-Sha3er since they received another renewal of their detention.

Sharqawi said during a prison visit on 10 July, “I’ve been subjet to hassles from some criminals, motivated by the police officers. One of the criminals who sympathized with me was also punished, in a warning message to anyone who helps or sympathizes with me.�