Since Abdel Fattah al-Sisi took power in 2014, Egyptian citizens’ rights have been systematically denied. Not only his political opponents, but people from across society have been harassed, prosecuted, and detained merely for expressing their opinion.
Yesterday, Tuesday 22 February, an Egyptian judge renewed the detention of government employee and poet Mohamed Farid for a period of 15 days.
Farid is being charged with “publishing false news that disturbs public peace and incites violence.”
Security forces arrested Farid on 13 February following several posts on his Facebook account discussing the rising cost of living in the country. The public prosecutor considers the posts “evidence of incitement against public agencies.”
Farid, who is a senior official at the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation, suffers from several diseases, including live cirrhosis.
And, Egypt’s State Security Prosecution has extended the detention of journalist Ahmed Abdel Meguid for a period of 15 days, as part of a case investigating the posting of similar discussions through Abdel Meguid’s Facebook account.
Thousands of people are being held in Egyptian prisons for political reasons. Many of them have been convicted following unfair trials; many being detained without any trial at all.
Conditions in Egyptian prisons have become infamous globally.
