Cases faced by Egyptian bloggers have revived the recurring debate in Egyptian society regarding laws that human rights activists consider “suppressive of freedom of expression.”
Recently, an Egyptian court issued a decision to imprison the blogger, Sherif Gaber, for 5 years on charges of “incitement to atheism” after he published videos that “disdain the Islamic religion.”
Meanwhile, the authorities arrested the blogger, Hadeer Abdel Razek, after she was accused of “incitement to debauchery and debauchery” for posting clips on social media in which she showed off underwear.
Although some jurists insist on the need to “cancel” the legal articles criminalizing those acts that “fall within the framework of freedom of expression,” others see the need to “intensify” the penalties “in order to preserve the values of Egyptian society.”
“Strict judiciary”
Prominent lawyer and human rights defender, Negad El-Borai, spoke to Al-Hurra TV website, demanding the necessity of “reconsidering” the articles related to “contempt of religions” and “Egyptian family values.”
Al-Borai said that although the judiciary applies legal texts, it has “become strict in imposing penalties” in an “unjustified” manner.
He added: “The law on contempt of religion, which was drawn up by (former Egyptian President Mohamed Anwar) Sadat in the 1970s, must be reconsidered with the aim of eliminating sectarian strife at that time.”
After accusations of “immorality and immorality”, an Egyptian blogger defends herself
Egyptian blogger, Hadir Abdel Razek, denied the charges against her of “incitement to prostitution and immorality” after she was brought before the Public Prosecution, which ordered her imprisonment for 4 days pending investigation, according to local media reports.
He went on to say: “There was an origin and a reason for putting the law in place, and now there is no sectarian strife and the world has opened up with the presence of the Internet… A person who does not believe in our Lord is free to do so.”
According to Article 98 (f) of the Egyptian Penal Code, “Anyone who exploits religion to promote verbally, in writing, or by any other means shall be punished by imprisonment for a period of no less than 6 months and not exceeding 5 years or a fine of not less than 500 pounds and not exceeding 1,000 pounds.” “For extremist ideas with the intention of stirring up strife, degrading or disdaining one of the divine religions or the sects belonging to them, or harming national unity.”
Al-Borai said, “This article contradicts the Egyptian Constitution and its existence is constitutionally flawed and in terms of international law.”
He described the other article related to “Egyptian family values” as a “bastard” that has “no basis,” adding: “There is no such thing as Egyptian family values, because there are no common family values and they differ from one city to another in the country.”
Article 25 of the Law on Combating Information Technology Crimes in Egypt issued in 2018 stipulates that “anyone who assaults any of the Family principles or values in Egyptian society, or violated the sanctity of private life, or sent a large number of electronic messages to a specific person without his consent, or gave data to a system or website to promote goods or services without his consent, or by publishing via the information network or by any other technical means. Information, such as information, news, pictures, or the like, violates the privacy of any person without his consent, whether the information published is correct or incorrect.”
This article has caused widespread controversy in Egypt over the past years after many influencers who appear on social media were subjected to legal prosecution because of it, especially those girls who wear clothes that some consider “immodest.”
After videos on YouTube…an Egyptian blogger was imprisoned on charges of contempt of Islam
On Sunday, an Egyptian court ruled to imprison Egyptian YouTuber Sherif Gaber for 5 years, accusing him of publishing videos that disdain the Islamic religion and incite atheism.
Among those who were legally prosecuted because of this blogged material was Mawaddah Al-Adham, and before her, student Haneen Hossam, for publishing video clips that were considered “offensive.”
Al-Borai believes that “after entering the Internet, (Egyptian) society became open to the world and there is no such thing as a conservative society… Now any society in the world is open and has different opinions, and this is the characteristic of living societies.” He said that Egyptian families fear for their children because they “do not want to make an effort” to raise them and give them sound opinions.
“decay”
However, others support these legal measures and prosecutions “in order to preserve the values and principles of conservative Egyptian society.”
The Egyptian lawyer, Nabih Al-Wahsh, said in an interview with Al-Hurra website that he “wholeheartedly supports freedom of expression so that it does not harm the morals of society.”
He wondered: “Who says that contempt of religions falls within the framework of freedom of expression… We in the Arab countries lack the protection of morals, as they are more important than protecting borders.”
The arrest of Haneen, Sama and Mawaddah in Egypt… “immorality and pornography” or “other reasons”?
He added: “If we had a society that respected its morals, no one would be able to infiltrate us from the outside with a cultural invasion… We support globalization that does not harm constants because we are a conservative society.”
As for the aforementioned legal articles, Al-Wahsh believes that they “must be tightened and thickened,” considering that their “weakness” is one of the reasons for the spread of what he described as “degeneration.”
He said: “With regard to Article 98 (f), I demand that its penalty be increased to life with hard labor in order to protect morals… As for the article related to immorality and debauchery, it must be increased to 10 years in prison.”
In addition to weak laws, according to Al-Wahsh, “parents’ poor upbringing of their children, the market for morals, and the search for money are other reasons for the spread of these phenomena.”
He said, “When morals worsen in Egypt, it affects all Arab countries as well.”