Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights

10 Sep 2020

Religious Institutions under the Pressure of COVID-19: Traditional Policies and Delayed Crisis Management

Since the beginning of the crisis, saving lives has relied on rapid and effective government intervention and the temporary restrictions on certain rights, including freedoms of religion, belief, and assembly. These legitimate restrictions are supported based on public health-related grounds. In this context, Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights states, “The right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion… is far-reaching and profound; it encompasses freedom of thought on all matters, personal conviction and the commitment/or not to religion or belief.”

11 May 2020

Religion and religiosity in the time of Covid-19 ... Absent Questions

As usual, discussions related to organizing religious affairs in Egypt occupy a significant part of public debate at times of various crises and developments. As soon as the Egyptian government began to impose partial closures to confront the Covid-19 pandemic, controversy erupted over decisions to close places of worship and prevent religious gatherings at the time of approaching important religious occasions for both Muslims and Christians. This becomes a fertile ground for settling political scores and faith one-upmanship between multiple parties in a scene that is not alien to the public discourse in Egypt.

EIPR calls on the "National Council for Women" to protect the complainants and witnesses in the "Fairmont Case" and for the Public Prosecution to clarify their legal position

EIPR had previously and repeatedly warned that the precedent of accusations being brought against a victim and survivor of rape and kidnapping sends a clear message to women and girls that reporting sexual assaults they are subjected to, may end up in them being charged as accused and lead them to prison, hindering any community efforts seeking to support women and girls in their quest to recover from the aftermath of sexual violence crimes that they may be exposed to.

Sentencing Bahey el Din Hassan: A fresh episode of criminalization of free expression of opinion in Egypt

The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) condemns the verdict passed in absentia by the Fifth Circuit of the Criminal Court (terrorism felonies) with 15 years’ imprisonment for Bahey El Din Hassan, founder of Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS), and one of the pioneers of Egyptian human rights work throughout its history.

After Referring The Attackers Of Menna Abdel Aziz To Criminal Trial, The Egyptian Initiative For Personal Rights Reiterates Its Demand For The Immediate Release Of Menna Abdel Aziz And Dropping All Charges Against Her

EIPR calls upon the Public Prosecution again to use its authority, and to take the decision best suited for the safety of the victim, Menna Abdel Aziz (Aya), to drop all charges against her and release her immediately, so that she can begin recovering from the psychological and physical effects of the attacks that she was subjected to at the hands of the accused.

EIPR renews its demands to drop charges against Menna Abdel Azziz and calls for her immediate release, while continuing to provide her with all the support she needs

In a statement yesterday, the Public Prosecution announced the transfer of Menna Abdel Aziz (Aya) to a Ministry of Social Solidarity shelter hosting victims of abuse, in what is considered a first step in the way o

After her detention for four days and Interrogation as a suspect, the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights calls for the immediate release of Menna Abdel Aziz and the dropping of all charges against her

EIPR Calls for the Immediate Release of Menna Abdel Aziz. Therefore, appeal to the Prosecutor General to immediately release- Aya- known as “Menna Abdel Aziz," and to drop all charges against her and to be cognizant of her position as a rape victim/survivor.We also demand the support of the National Council for Women to Menna Abdel Al-Aziz. In light of the attack she was subjected to and to ensure her legal right.

4 Aug 2020

More than numbers! As Egypt’s population topped 100 million this year

Population and development have historically been intertwined. For decades, economic growth and family size have been viewed as two sides of a single equation. Population policies and strategies are typically statistic-heavy, number-focused documents until initiatives from feminists and women’s rights groups introduced human rights principles to these endeavors (Samir, 2020). As Egypt’s population topped 100 million this year, the state is seeking to reduce the total fertility rate (TFR), which currently stands at 3.5.

The launch of a position paper titled "Despite expected continuity of the pandemic, Covid-19 is missing in government fiscal plans" at the beginning of the new fiscal year 20/21

In the year of the pandemic, as the World Health Organization called it last March, when millions lose their jobs and their basic living, the government chooses to cut spending on food subsidies. Despite the exhaustion of the health system, headed by doctors and nurses in government hospitals, the government chose to complete its neglect of the constitutional minimum spending on health.

Two young men in al-Sharqia sentenced to one-year imprisonment for promoting ideas belonging to Shi'ism

The court did not allow the lawyers to obtain the case file and only allowed them to see it quickly, and the case documents did not include any specific publications published by the defendants that would qualify as promoting Shiite doctrine, while the accusation articles included article 98 (f) of the Penal Code known as “contempt of religions” that punishes "promoting extremist ideas that ridicule divinely-revealed religions."