Egypt emergency law expansion erodes human rights: Amnesty

CAIRO: Amnesty International called on Egypt’s military authorities Thursday to end the state of emergency, slamming a recent expansion of the law as a “serious erosion of human rights.”

Last week the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces widened the scope of the emergency law – restricted in 2010 by ousted President Hosni Mubarak to narcotics and terrorism – to strikes, traffic disruption and the spreading of rumors.

“The military authorities have essentially taken Egypt’s laws back to the bad old days,” said Philip Luther, Amnesty’s deputy director for the Middle East and North Africa.

“These changes are a threat to the rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly, and the right to strike,” Luther said. “We are looking at the most serious erosion of human rights since Mubarak stepped down.”

“Not only must SCAF repeal these amendments, they need to end the state of emergency altogether, as they promised back in February,” Luther said.

Activists have called for a protest Friday to denounce the expansion of the 30-year-old emergency law.

“We are urging the Egyptian authorities to respect the rights of demonstrators to protest peacefully tomorrow,” Luther said.

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Daily Star on September 16, 2011, on page 9.


(2011-9-16/TheDailyStar)