Egypt activists' meeting with diplomats oversteps the mark

Egyptian authorities arrested three human rights advocates last week in apparent retaliation for a meeting with senior Western diplomats – in an "unprecedented escalation", according to Egyptian and international rights groups.

"This is the first time we have faced arrest for talking to foreign diplomats," said one civil rights lawyer in Egypt, who did not want to be named for security reasons. "Egyptian people always talk with European delegations, the U.S. and British embassies, on a whole range of subjects including human rights, but this has not happened before."

The latest arrest came on the evening of 19 November, when Gasser Abdel Razek, director of one of Egypt's most prominent civil rights bodies, the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), became the third senior member of his organisation to be detained within a week.

Human Rights Watch researcher Amr Magdi said on Twitter that the campaign of arrests was "a spit in the face of diplomats who met with the EIPR."

The previous Sunday, authorities arrested Mohamed Basheer, the office manager of the organisation. The EIPR released a statement last Monday saying security forces questioned Basheer on the group's work and a meeting it held with 13 mainly European diplomats on 3 November, where members discussed human rights in Egypt.

Abdel Razek told local media before his arrest that Basheer's detention was a direct response to that meeting, which included representatives from Canada, Germany, the UK and France, seen as important allies to Egypt. Then on Wednesday, authorities arrested Karim Ennarah, the director of criminal justice at the EIPR, and took him to an unknown location before he faced prosecutors in Cairo on Thursday.The EIPR's most recent report, on the subject of criminal justice, was also published on 3 November. It found an alarming rise in the use of the death penalty in Egypt, including 53 executions in October, where the carrying out of such sentences is often not made public.

Accused of undermining the state

The arrests come against the backdrop of a sustained crackdown on all forms of dissent and criticism of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's government, with many facing charges relating to what authorities see as attempts to destabilise the state. Basheer is accused of "joining a terrorist organisation" and spreading "false news" that "undermines public security", and is being held in a 15-day pre-trial detention. The EIPR said the prosecution has not produced any evidence.

Moments before Ennarah's arrest, media close to state security published reports claiming the EIPR aimed to "overthrow the Egyptian state". "They hold dozens of conferences and meetings with decision-making circles in America and Europe, with the aim of tarnishing the reputation of the Egyptian state," online outlet Youm7 quoted one researcher as saying.

Stephan Roll, the head of research at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs' Middle East division, confirmed that for the Egyptian authorities, the meeting with Western diplomats was also an escalation, given they had made clear that the state regards organisations such as EIPR as "absolutely harmful". "The arrests hoped to signal to Western embassies that they should even stop communicating with independent NGOs," Roll said.

'Direct challenge' met with 'deep concern'

Although Western and Egyptian officials traded barbs following the arrests, experts say that years of European and U.S. tolerance of rights abuses, while maintaining trade and military relations with Egypt, have produced a situation where Egypt expects little real pushback. France, the UK and U.S. have expressed their "deep concern" over the arrests in recent days, while Egypt's foreign ministry responded on Wednesday, rejecting France's "interference in Egyptian internal affairs".

"I would like to think that the Europeans will take a tough line on this, because it seems to be in some ways a direct challenge to them," Anthony Dworkin, a senior fellow at the European Council of Foreign Relations, commented. "But this comes against a background where European countries feel they need to do business with Egypt and that it's very difficult for them to really have any impact on the human rights situation in the country."

Back channel pressure and clear warnings of consequences have worked to overturn particular detentions in the past, Dworkin said. While such pressure may have worked in some high-profile cases, there are some 60,000 political prisoners in Egypt, according to Human Rights Watch. Diplomats may now also have to adjust how they engage with Egyptian civil society and the regime, Dworkin said.

Escalation comes as no surprise

Breaking: Supreme State Security Prosecution informed @EIPR defense team a hearing has been scheduled for our leaders *tomorrow* Monday morning at the New Cairo court building#freeEIPRstaff pic.twitter.com/qplJ2Uwc54

— EIPR المبادرة المصرية للحقوق الشخصية (@EIPR) November 22, 2020

Egypt is also anticipating a changing of the guard in the United States, Egyptian political scientist Taqadum al-Khatib emphasised. After U.S. President-elect Joe Biden promised "no more blank checks for Trump's 'favourite dictator'" – the second biggest recipient of U.S. military aid – Sisi also wants to signal he will not bend on political freedoms, fearing a repeat of the 2011 revolution, al-Khatib said.

The arrests are a "strong message to European ambassadors that they will not be able to practice any potential pressure over the regime under Biden's presidency," al-Khatib said. "I think the Egyptian regime will close the EIPR."

The U.S. and Europe have been far too cautious in denouncing human rights violations and linking co-operation with demands, Stephan Roll said. "We do exactly the opposite," the analyst added. "At every opportunity, we even boost the standing of the Sisi administration. So, we should not be surprised if the Egyptians escalate the situation further and further."

Tom Allinson

© Deutsche Welle 2020