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Cairo,19/6/2003
AHRLA celebrates the verdict of Alexandria Criminal Court issued on Wednesday 18 June 2003 that sentences each of Khaled Shalaby, the former chief of Al-Montazah investigations, Abdel Ghaffar El-Deeb and Haitham El-Kelany, assistants of Al-Montazah investigations one-year prison, three years suspension and paying an amount of 5001 Egyptian Pounds as a temporary compensation for the civil right plaintiff. The mentioned officers were accused by the General Prosecution of arresting the citizen Farid Shawqy Ahmed Abdel Aal for no legal reason, torturing him physically, causing him dangerous injuries in all the parts of his body and asphyxiating him to death -as mentioned in the anatomy report. On 16 May 2003, the Cassation Court in the Second Circuit of Alexandria had sentenced that the three accused should be trailed before another circuit, after the General Prosecution and the lawyer of the father of the aggrieved (from AHRLA) appealed the verdict of innocence issued by the Criminal Court on 2 April 2001. The Cassation Court indicated in its sentence that the appealed verdict issued by the Criminal Court lacks sight and insight and had been issued without enough knowledge for all the factors of the case and without knowing comprehensively all the evidences related to it, so it should be appealed, and both the two lawsuits, the civil and the criminal should be reviewed again without looking in the justifications of appealing on the civil right plaintiff. In this occasion, AHRLA while celebrating the condemning verdict and its alike verdicts, does not forget to praise and laud the role played by the evenhanded Egyptian Judiciary in protecting Human Rights and punishing the perpetrators of the violations. AHRLA also would like to greet and extol the General Prosecution for its distinguishing role in the case; its role was constituted in its insistence on following and punishing the violators, its adherence not to let them flee from justice. And what is really considered a spot of light in the history of the General Prosecution is that it appealed the innocence verdict before the Cassation Court, this action emphasizes its being the institution responsible for the rights of individuals and society, it also considered to be a step forward in fighting against torture. In this context, the Association for Human Rights Legal Aid would like to continue its adjuring the public opinion and all the civil society institutions to fight against torture inside police stations. AHRLA had been always working hardly in fighting this phenomenon both legally, through the available media tools, the letters sent to the Attorney General, providing free legal aid to the relatives of the victim and attending all the hearing sessions in these cases. In addition to shedding lights on these practices and using cruel inhuman and degrading treatment inside Al-Montazah police station in Alexandria. AHRLA published a booklet titled "Al-Montazah Empire" as an issue in the series of torture booklets the Association intends to publish. "Al-Montazah Empire" booklet showed that the violations monitored in the period from 1 July 2001 through 31 December 2001 in Al-Montazah police station are 176 violations, ranging from illegal detention, battery assault, whipping, and all the other forms of tortures. AHRLA is calling upon the Mr. Attorney General to soon give the orders to take actions in all the complaints and reports sent to him, in which police officers are accused of practicing torture, using cruel inhuman and degrading treatment, and misusing authority, AHRLA also calls upon the Attorney General to submit all the violators to the court immediately. Calling also upon Mr. Minister of Interior to suspend those who are charged with such charges till the court issues a final verdict in the lawsuits against them. Moreover, we call upon the legislator to review and amend all the legislations that could hamper submitting the perpetrators to trial. These legislations must be amended to allow the plaintiff the direct claim against the accused. All the Egyptian laws and legislations must consider any physical assault a crime of torture, and the perpetrator should be punished strictly. The Association for Human Rights Legal Aid would like to stress once again on its praising that verdict hoping that these verdicts issued by the glorious judiciary would be a strict deterrent for those who practice these inhuman practices breaking the law, the constitution, the international Human Rights instruments and principals. The public opinion and all the civil society institutions are called to unite and support the Association for Human Rights Legal Aid in facing the torture phenomenon. Any citizen might be facing assault or treated in a degrading way should call the Association, allowing us to continue its role in chasing and punishing the perpetrators. Finally, the Association for human rights legal aid invites all the interested in Human Rights issues to work on establishing more of Human Rights organization with which we assure that we are willing to cooperate in fighting against torture and torturers. |