Egypt rejects any attempt to influence investigations with EIPR staff: Foreign ministry
Ahram Online , Saturday 21 Nov 2020
Civil society work must be regulated by the relevant and applicable laws, and those who violate them must be held accountable, said the foreign ministry spokesperson


Egypt’s foreign ministry said on Saturday thatit“rejectsanyfalsespeculations orconclusions”regarding the investigationofa number of employees at the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), especially since the investigation has notyet concluded.

The ministry released the statement after a number of Western countries – including France, Sweden, Germany and the US – expressed concerns over the EIPR employees’ arrest over the past few days.

“With regards to the reported reactions and false conclusions circulatingin the media and social media platforms about the arrest of a number of employees at EIPR, which have been made before the conclusion of the investigations conducted by Egyptian judicial authorities,Egypt rejects any attempt tofalselyinfluence the investigations that thepublicprosecution conducts with Egyptian citizens who face charges," the Egyptian foreign ministry said inastatement.

Egyptian foreign ministryspokesperson Ahmed Hafez affirmed in the statement that the Egyptian state respects the principles of the rule oflaw and equality, adding that the freedom of civil society to operate is guaranteed by the Egyptian constitutionand thelaw.

Civil society work must be regulated by the relevantandapplicable laws, and those who violate them must be held accountable,said Hafez, adding thatnoone is exemptorimmune from the law.

Hafez alsomentionsthe need to respect the principles of national sovereignty andnon-interference in internal affairs, as stipulated intheinternational law that governs relations between states.

Mohamed Bashir, theExecutiveDirector of EIPR, was arrested on 15 Novemberon terrorism charges, according to local media.

On Wednesday, Karim Ennarah, the head of the group's criminal justice department, wasalsoreportedly arrested.

On Thursday, HeadDirector of the EIPR Gasser Abdel-Razek was arrested as well.

In a previous statementreleasedonWednesday, theEgyptian foreign ministry slammed the French foreign ministry’s condemnation of the arrest of the EIPR executive director, as the ministry said thatit“regrets” how the French ministry’s statement did not respect Egyptian lawandinsteaddefended an entity “operating illegally in the civil society field.”

“The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights is registered as a company and performs activities in violation of the provisions of the law no.149 for the year 2019,”said thestatement.

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