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Exhibition success

OVER the last three years the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) earned LE186,372,860 from 18 exhibits sent abroad. Within the framework of a new policy developed by the SCA for sending archaeological exhibitions abroad, Egypt earned a great deal of publicity value worldwide as well.

These exhibitions consist of selected artifacts that are distinguished but not unique, after ensuring the best security and safety measures to protect such objects. The exhibits are designed to educate others about Ancient Egyptian history. One such exhibit is "Tutankhamun and the Golden Beyond". This exhibit consists of magnificent artifacts from the tomb of Tutankhamun, as well as others from the 18th Dynasty, known as the Golden Age of Ancient Egypt. The exhibit travelled from the Cairo Museum to Basel, Switzerland, then to Bonn, Germany, and is now in Los Angeles, USA. The exhibition will travel to three other states while on tour in America.

Culture Minister Farouk Hosni stated that the money earned from these exhibitions would be used in the restoration and preservation of Egypt's monuments as well as building new museums to protect Egypt's heritage. He added that they have also provided a great opportunity to show the many faces of Egypt -- past, present and future.

Zahi Hawass secretary-general of the SCA pointed out that although Egypt is profiting from these exhibitions, hosting countries and museums are as well. Egypt will receive around $35 million for the exhibit of King Tutankhamun to tour America, which will share in the huge budget allocated to construct the Grand Museum of Egypt, overlooking the Pyramids of Giza. "This money is not even a drop of water in the bucket of the cash needed to build such a museum, which will cost billions of dollars," Hawass said.

Within the new policy, the SCA will also make money by selling official replicas in foreign museums during the period of exhibitions.

Kidnapped and extradited

ON MONDAY the Italian government denied reports published in its media that it was informed before the alleged CIA kidnapping of a militant Egyptian cleric two years ago. The daily Italian newspaper, La Repubblica, quoted the former head of the CIA's Osama bin Laden unit, Michael Scheuer, as saying that the CIA had received authorisation from Italy's secret service, SISMI, before the operation. Scheuer was quoted as saying the authorisation came from SISMI's director, Nicolo Pollari, and from one of his deputies.

However, a statement released by Premier Silvio Berlusconi's office denied "in the most absolute way" that the government, the premier's diplomatic aide, the SISMI director or intelligence and security offices ever received any kind of information from US authorities.

Italian prosecutors have accused 13 purported CIA officials of kidnapping Osama Mustafa Nasr, alias Abu Omar, on a Milan street on February 2003 and extraditing him to Egypt, where reportedly, he was tortured. Nonetheless, on more than one official occasion officials from both countries have denied that this incident has negatively affected relations between the US and Italy, saying that "friendship between the two nations has never been stronger".

Taba trial opens

AMID tight security the trial of three Egyptians charged in last October's Sinai bombings began on Saturday in Ismailia, north of Cairo, with the defendants pleading not guilty and alleging that confessions were made under duress. Mohamed Gayez Sabbah, Mohamed Abdallah Rubaa and Mohamed Salah Felaifel are charged with premeditated murder and the possession of unlicensed weapons and explosives. Three almost simultaneous explosions occurred at the Taba Hilton and two nearby beach camping sites killing 34 and injuring 157. Abdullah and Rubaa appeared at the State Security Emergency Court in Ismailia, and pleaded not guilty while Felaifel, who remains at large, is being tried in absentia. Six others implicated in the incidents are dead. Two died in the course of their operation while the other four were killed in clashes with police who pursued them. Representatives of the New York-based Human Rights Watch and London-based Amnesty International attended the hearing along with scores of local and international press. In the opening session the defence charged that Abdallah and Rubaa had been subject to torture while in detention, in order to provide certain confessions, hence Judge Ahmed El-Khashaab adjourned the court until 24 July and ordered physical examinations by forensic doctors.

According to domestic and international human rights organisations, around 2,400 people were detained in the wake of the attack, which sparked a wave of protests by families as well as activists in denunciation.

Verdicts issues by state security courts cannot be appealed and can only be overturned by presidential order.

Judicial report

A REPORT entitled "Egypt's conscience" issued by the Cairo Judges Club on Saturday revealed that the government and police forged results and turnout figures of the 25 May referendum on the amendment of Article 76 of the constitution, reports Mona El-Nahhas.

The report cited testimony made by judges who took part in supervising the referendum as well as photographs from polling stations, backing up the allegations.

Photographs and video shot by judges showed heads of polling stations who are government employees filling out ballots themselves -- checking "yes" and excluding ballots of voters who checked "no" -- while the polling station was empty of voters.

Following the referendum, the government stated that 54 per cent out of 32 million registered voters cast ballots in the referendum, of which 83 per cent approved the amendment.

But the report, which will be sent to the interior and justice ministers, challenged the turnout figure, saying it did not exceed three per cent at most of the polling stations.

The report also stressed that judges monitored only five per cent of polling stations, the rest run by government employees.

The report claimed that police officers threatened government employees -- in control of 95 per cent of polling stations -- with detention if they did not fabricate the results.

The report is part of a judicial campaign to press for full control of the upcoming presidential elections.

Under the new presidential elections law, only half of the higher committee supervising elections is made up of judges, the rest being public figures whose neutrality cannot be guaranteed, according to judges.

On 2 September, judges will finally determine whether or not they are going to supervise presidential and parliamentary elections. The decision will depend on government's response to their demands.