Last hope

BELEAGUERED human rights activist Saadeddin Ibrahim seemed optimistic as his retrial -- on charges of receiving foreign funds without government permission, embezzling those funds, and spreading false rumours abroad -- began at the Court of Cassation on Tuesday. Ibrahim said he has tremendous confidence in the integrity and independence of this court, reports Jailan Halawi .

"This court has a reputation for integrity and independence," Ibrahim told Al-Ahram Weekly. "Its nine senior judges have given defence lawyers ample opportunity to present their case."

For almost seven hours, the court listened to the defence's arguments. After a brief comment from the prosecution, presiding Judge Fathi Khalifa, who heads the court, then adjourned the retrial until 18 March. Unlike previous trials, defence lawyers were allowed to finish their arguments in one session. "It was obvious that the judges had done their homework well," said Ibrahim. "I was genuinely impressed by the judges' knowledge of the details of the case, which gave me additional confidence and restored my trust [in the judicial system]."

Tuesday's session was the fourth trial 64-year-old Ibrahim has faced since he was first arrested in June 2000 along with 27 other co-defendants, mostly employees of the Ibn Khaldun Centre for Developmental Studies (ICDS). While a state security court has twice sentenced him to a seven-year prison term, the court of cassation has also previously overruled the verdict, granting him a retrial.

Again, last December, after his second conviction, the Court of Cassation accepted Ibrahim's second appeal, this time deciding that the second retrial would take place at the cassation court itself. This time, if he is found guilty, Ibrahim will have no further right of appeal; the verdict will be final, unless the president himself issues an amnesty.

An internationally renowned sociologist, Ibrahim's case has been very high profile, actively followed by the diplomatic community, international human rights organisations and the press. The case has been described by many of these groups as politically motivated.

According to Neil Hicks, the director of the New York-based Lawyers Committee for Human Rights, who was amongst those in attendance at Tuesday's session, "a full acquittal would be the best way for Egypt to silence critics who have called into question the independence of the judiciary as the result of this prosecution. But, if the court hands down a suspended term we will be disappointed. A prison term," he said, "would be a surprise."

Ibrahim, who suffers from a neurological problem that prevents sufficient oxygen from reaching deeper parts of the brain, has been banned from travelling abroad to receive medical treatment. His wife, Barbara, said that "so far requests we have handed to the prosecutor's office were completely ignored -- neither approved nor denied." Although Ibrahim's morale is high, she said, "he is a bit disturbed and worried about his deteriorating health."

Detained and deported

OUT OF 78 Egyptians detained in the US on immigration-related issues, 29 will soon be deported back to the country, reports Soha Abdelaty. Forty nine others are contesting the deportation orders, and seeking appropriate legal channels by which to do so, said US Ambassador to Cairo David Welch.

Welch pointed out that some of the 78 Egyptians had been detained before 11 September 2001, while the rest were arrested after the attacks. Both Egyptian and American officials insist that none of those in detention are being held on any terrorism-related issues. "These are people whose status in the US was illegal," Welch told reporters on Saturday. "They were there without a visa, over-stayed their visa or abused their visa in some way."

According to Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher, Welch had confirmed that none of the detainees are being held on terrorism-related issues.

Another retrial

A SEVEN year jail term received by former Giza Governor Maher El-Guindi in June 2002 was thrown out by the Court of Cassation on Sunday. The court ordered that El-Guindi be retried on the same charges of corruption the he was originally convicted on.

Retrials were also ordered in two related cases, one involving Ali Ismail Ibrahim, a top justice ministry beaurocrat who was jailed for five years at the original trial for covering up for El-Guindi, and the other involving Culture Ministry Spokesman Mohamed Fouda, who was acquitted.

El-Guindi stands accused of receiving LE1 million in bribes for selling state-owned land to a private construction company at discounted prices in late 1999. No dates have been set yet for the retrials.