 |
Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 23 - 29 November 2000 Issue No.509 
| ||
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
| ||
|
Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 23 - 29 November 2000 Issue No.509
| ||
| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
| ||
Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Focus Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters As long as it's fair
By Jailan Halawi
Last Saturday in the overcrowded and heavily guarded Supreme State Security court began the eagerly awaited trial of Saadeddin Ibrahim, a sociology professor and director of the Ibn Khaldun Centre for Developmental Studies, and 27 of his associates. As well as the family and friends of the accused, the opening session was attended by a large number of diplomats -- including many from the US embassy -- and observers from Amnesty International and the European Union. Ibrahim holds both Egyptian and American citizenship.
Saadeddin Ibrahim
Hearings began with prosecutor Hisham Badawi reading out the list of charges against Ibrahim and his fellow defendants, and asking the three-man court for the maximum penalty.
Ibrahim and 27 others face charges ranging from accepting foreign funds without government authorisation to compiling false reports about domestic conditions. They are also accused of attempting to embezzle money and making plans to bribe radio and television officials to broadcast programmes about the Ibn Khaldun Centre.
All but two of the defendants work for the Ibn Khaldun Centre and its affiliate, the Women Voters' Support Centre.
If found guilty, Ibrahim may be sent to jail for 15 years, according to defence attorney Ibrahim Saleh.
Addressing the court, Saleh said the case was "fabricated" and "politically motivated."
"What is wanted here is Ibrahim's head, his social and moral assassination, and not justice. In any country, a great scholar like my client would be praised, and not placed in a dock," he argued.
He requested the court to summon as defence witnesses the Ibn Khaldun Centre's board of trustees, which includes the ministers of youth and social affairs, a former prime minister, a former minister of communications and two ambassadors.
"This case is fabricated and full of loopholes that can be cleared up by members of the board of trustees, who are well-informed and regularly consulted regarding the centre's various activities," Saleh added.
Ibrahim was arrested on 30 June and remanded in custody for 45 days before eventually being released on bail. Police raided both the Ibn Khaldun and the Women's Centre, confiscating computers and numerous documents. Prosecutors subsequently ordered that the two centres be closed.
Saleh demanded that they be reopened because, he explained, documents needed by the defence were still inside. Furthermore, Saleh requested that all defendants be re-interrogated by the court and that the charge of "international bribery," a euphemism for espionage, be dropped.
In response, Badawi said the case should not be described as "politically motivated," and insisted that there is no such term in the Penal Code according to which the defendants could be charged. He also pointed out that the prosecution is still investigating the charge of espionage
On that final point, Saleh responded that the charge of espionage was like "a raised sword hanging over Ibrahim's neck."
In an interview with Al-Ahram Weekly shortly before hearings began, Ibrahim expressed his faith in the judicial system.
"I'll be acquitted if I get a fair trial," he said.
Shortly after his arrest, Ibrahim faced 30 accusations, but these were later watered down to four charges. "They are lame and will be refuted forcefully in the course of the trial," Ibrahim remarked.
Ibrahim, who pleaded innocent, said that the prosecutor's charges were a reaction to his political activities and his intention to set up a watchdog committee to monitor parliamentary elections, which ended on 14 November.
"I did nothing wrong -- that is, unless prosecutors believe that defending democracy and human rights is a crime," he insisted.
Ibrahim argued that when the government cannot beat its opponents logically and fairly, it resorts to smear campaigns.
"Even if they do not win the case," he stated, "they will have managed to undermine my personal credibility and tarnish my reputation."
On the eve of the opening of hearings, nine international human rights organisations issued a statement that expressed concern that the trial of Ibrahim and his colleagues by a state security court does not meet international fair-trial standards. "Egyptian law does not allow for a full review before a higher tribunal of the case of any person convicted in this court," said the report.
Indeed, the verdicts of state security courts cannot be appealed. They can, however, be challenged before the Court of Cassation on strictly procedural grounds.
"We are concerned that the charges against these men and women are politically motivated, and that the measures taken against them appear to be aimed at preventing them from exercising their legitimate right to freedom of expression," the report added.
All the defence attorneys requested the postponement of hearings in order to allow for time for a study of the case and for summoning witnesses. Presiding judge Mohamed Shalabi complied, and hearings were postponed until January.
All defendants are banned from leaving the country.
Related stories:
NGO case un-closed
Free at last 17 - 23 August 2000
Waiting on the facts 10 - 16 August 2000
Piling up the charges 20 - 26 July 2000
Prominent NGO figure arrested 6 - 12 July 2000
© Copyright Al-Ahram Weekly. All rights reserved
