17 - 23 May 2001
Issue No.534
|
Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 17 - 23 May 2001 Issue No.534 |
||
| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 | Current issue | Previous issue | Site map | ||
The circus is in town
"Devil worshippers" are back? Well, that was the story as it first hit front page headlines early this week. It's been mutating, however. Rana Allam tries to find out the facts
In the early hours of Friday, 11 May, security forces arrested 55 men at the Queen Boat floating restaurant in the upper class district of Zamalek. The arrests, accompanied by a host of leaked accusations, seemed heaven-sent for a sensation seeking press, which moreover does not seem to pay much attention to the legal principle that an accused person is innocent until proven guilty.
For several days, press stories were brim-full of "revelations" on the case, though official charges were announced only on Tuesday, when the State Security prosecutor's office issued a statement explaining the reasons for the arrests. The statement alleged that one of the men in custody, previously identified as 32-year-old Sherif Marei, a computer science expert, was the leader of a group that is derisive of religion and promotes immoral sexual practices. The statement was silent, however, on whether anyone else among those arrested in the Queen Boat raid was a member of Marei's alleged group. Earlier, press reports had asserted that all those arrested in the raid were cult members.
According to the statement, investigations revealed that Marei has been propagating his "deviant beliefs" among an unidentified "circle of friends".
The statement claimed that Marei had "confessed" to interrogators that the source of his ideas was a prophetic dream. In a surprisingly detailed account, the dream is said to have involved a Kurdish boy who disappeared in southern Lebanon, who will reappear in the year 2011 to take revenge on Muslims, Christians and Jews. The "leader" is said to have identified his group as the "Agency of God's Soldiers" and claimed that their aim is unify the three religions in order to prepare for a future confrontation with the boy of his vision.
The statement charged that the group performed rituals and prayers that went against the precepts of religion.
Stories published in the press before the prosecutor's statement gave elaborate, and often conflicting reports of a gay wedding, a public orgy involving same-sex and heterosexual acts, nudity and the performance of Satanist rituals.
The prosecutor's statement was keen to rule out claims of foreign involvement or that the arrest was part of a crackdown on gay haunts. Under Egyptian law, deriding religion is punishable by between six months and five years imprisonment.
Press reports claimed that the men arrested were mainly upper-middle-class gay men, including doctors, engineers and students, as well as employees in the tourism industry.
An eyewitness present at the scene of the arrest told Al-Ahram Weekly that those arrested have "no religious affiliation whatsoever". The eyewitness, who requested anonymity, said that the arrests were made at random, targeting single males, but were careful to exclude foreigners and heterosexual couples. Although the witness confirmed that the club at the Queen Boat is known as a gay hangout, he insisted that "we [those present] did not know each other, and we do not belong to any group."
According to prosecution sources, one of the suspects denied having any connection with religious cults of any kind, but insisted that "It is my personal right to be homosexual."
The eyewitness claimed that he was able to escape arrest by pretending to be a foreigner. "Three or four straight men were taken, just because they had no women with them, which proves that the police didn't know who they were arresting."
Investigators were quoted earlier as having said that they determined the floating restaurant to be the headquarters of the "deviant cult's" activities, although apartments in various districts of Cairo are also used. The club was said to be the scene of the group's "deviant activities", which included "wild Thursday night parties," investigators said. The group was also claimed to have been keeping a shrine, built on the roof of a house owned by a member. The prayers for the "God of Soldiers" were said to be an amalgamation of distorted Islamic, Christian and Jewish prayers. Group members reportedly read out incomplete verses from the Qur'an, which are then followed by recitations from other religious texts.
These claims were denied by the eyewitness who spoke to the Weekly. "I do not deny that we are gay, but we do not have any religious rituals. At least half of those held in custody have no religious affiliation whatsoever, much less perverse religious beliefs."
Marei, the supposed "group leader" is said to have travelled to Israel 10 years ago, where he learned Hebrew. He is said to have a special interest in the Star of David, calling it "the Shield of David" and the group's ideas and rituals are said to be spelled out in their Web site, created by Marei.
Investigators told the Weekly that the "confessions" of the suspects showed that the all-male group has great contempt for women, whom they consider to be worthless except for begetting children. "They have a direct and clear message to convey, namely that people should enjoy sex eternally and, since it is impossible to have a positive relationship with a woman, homosexuality is the solution," sources said.
A human rights activist told the Weekly that "according to Egyptian law, homosexuality is not a crime, and if the group is arrested for that, then they must have legal aid as soon as possible." The prosecution has ordered the arrest of the owner of a studio which allegedly printed pornographic photos and tapes of the group's activities, as well as the owner of the boat -- incidentally, a woman -- for interrogation.
A much similar case took place in January 1997, when state security arrested a group of teenagers and the press filled the papers with accusations of "devil worship". The majority of the "cult" members between the ages of 18 and 25, and were said to come from the upper-middle class. Investigation records leaked to the press accused the teenagers of performing Satanic rituals, indulging in drug abuse and engaging in group sex. The press had a blast with the story and the coverage was sensational. The group was later released for lack of evidence and the press lost interest.
© Copyright Al-Ahram Weekly. All rights reserved
 |
|
|||||||||||||||||
| ARCHIVES Letter from the Editor Editorial Board Subscription Advertise! |
WEEKLY ONLINE: www.ahram.org.eg/weekly Updated every Saturday at 11.00 GMT, 2pm local time weeklyweb@ahram.org.eg |
 Al-Ahram Organisation |
Recommend this page