August 24, 1999
His Excellency Muhammad Hosni Mubarak
President of the Arab Republic of Egypt
Oruba Palace
Heliopolis, Cairo, Egypt
Your Excellency,
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a non-governmental organization of journalists dedicated to defending press freedom worldwide, is writing to protest the libel convictions handed down last week against Magdy Hussein, editor in chief of the biweekly Al-Sha’b,Saleh Bedeiwi, a reporter for the newspaper, and staff cartoonist Essam Eddine Hanafi.
On August 14, the South Cairo Criminal Court convicted the three journalists of libeling Agriculture Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Youssef Wali in a series of articles and cartoons published in Al-Sha’bin 1998 and 1999. Al-Sha’baccused Wali of treason, among other things, because of his efforts to build strong agricultural ties with Israel. All three were sentenced to two years in prison and ordered to pay a fine of 20,000LE ($5,900). They were also ordered to pay damages of 501LE ($150).
Both Hussein and Bedeiwi were taken into custody shortly after the verdict was announced and are currently serving their sentences in Torah Mazraa Prison in Cairo. According to sources at Al-Sha’b,Hanafi has yet to turn himself in to authorities.
In addition to the sentences handed down against Hussein, Bedeiwi, and Hanafi, the court also assessed a 20,000LE fine against Adel Hussein, Secretary General of the Labor Party, which publishes Al-Sha’b.
The court’s ruling is the most recent in an alarming series of criminal libel convictions and jailings of journalists in Egypt over the past 18 months. In 1998, four Egyptian journalists were imprisoned for libel, including Magdy Hussein, who spent four months in jail after being found guilty of libeling the son of former Interior Minister Hasan al-Alfi. Dozens of other criminal cases against reporters and editors are currently pending in the courts or are under investigation.
CPJ recognizes the right of individuals to file libel suits to protect their reputations. However, we condemn the penalty of imprisonment for libel, regardless of the merits of a particular case. We believe that journalists should never go to jail for what they publish. Such practices violate the most fundamental norms for press freedom and stifle the free debate that is essential in a democratic society.
Regrettably, Egypt is the only country in the Arab world where journalists are currently in jail for libel. To our bitter disappointment, the Egyptian government has failed to take any meaningful steps toward ending the practice of criminal libel in Egypt, despite repeated and vigorous appeals from human rights and press freedom organizations.
The Committee to Protect Journalists respectfully urges Your Excellency to examine all possible legal options to rescind the court ruling against Magdy Hussein, Saleh Bedeiwi, and Essam Eddine Hanafi, in accordance with universally accepted norms for press freedom. We also reiterate our recommendation that you initiate meaningful efforts to abolish articles of the Egyptian penal code that allow journalists to be jailed for alleged publications offenses. Finally we urge that you take a leadership role in implementing legal safeguards to protect journalists from criminal prosecution for their reporting.
Thank you for your attention to these important matters. We look forward to your reply.
Sincerely,
Ann K. Cooper
Executive Director
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His Excellency Muhammad Hosni Mubarak
President of the Arab Republic of Egypt
Oruba Palace
Heliopolis, Cairo, Egypt