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Former Egyptian prisoners struggle to move on due to terror lists | Features News


It’s a scorching day in 2013 inside Egypt’s Tanta Prison, and Emad is tense when he hears the news from his loved one. They were placed on one side of the hall with 50 other visitors. Emad was on the other side, more than a meter away, with 15 other prisoners.

Two sets of wire mesh separate them; Police officers are patrolling the gap in between, where Emad suspects informants. A jumble of voices spread through the air. It was not possible to obtain precise information about the charges he was facing.

Instead, Emad relied on prison buddies for excerpts about the outside world because authorities had given him little information about why he was arrested and jailed, other than what he knew about a widespread crackdown that was underway. action against anyone connected with the political opposition.

Then one day, a fellow inmate delivers shocking news: Emad has been added to Egypt’s national terrorist list, his bank account is frozen, his assets are confiscated and some His factory closed.

Emad, whose name was changed to protect his identity, was eventually released from prison in late 2014, and then, he said, he bribed to leave the country.

9 years since his detention, Emad has gone from a successful businessman to a successful businessman living in exile in Turkey with little money, unable to speak a language or unable to provide for his family. .

Emad is one of about 7,000 citizens placed on Egypt’s national terrorist list, according to figures from the Geneva-based human rights group’s Commission for Justice (CFJ). Among the names are a prominent football player, Mohamed Aboutrika, and a former presidential candidate, Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh, who has recently convicted up to 15 years in prison.

Former Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, who was overthrown in Egypt 2013 military coup and die like a prisoner three years ago, was also on the terrorist list, and his two sons also said they were on that list.

For the Egyptians on the list, it has a serious impact on their freedom, their ability to earn a living, and has devastating effects on families separated without reunification. in sight.

Since President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi came to power shortly after a 2013 coup, there has been a dramatic increase in the use of anti-terror laws in Egypt, which human rights groups have criticized as a broad, imprecise and ambiguous. The law has evolved into one of the most powerful tools used by the government to target dissidents, activists, politicians, business people and their companies, a newspaper reported. CFJ report released last year said.

The official line of the Egyptian government, which did not respond to a request for comment for this story, is to add people to the list for the purpose of curbing and cutting off funding for terrorist organizations. However, many of those accused of crimes are often not even informed that they are on the list, let alone invited to court or present evidence they have carried out the attacks. mentioned.

“[It] allows the criminal court to make its decision without forcing them to listen to the defendant or his defense,” CFJ’s Ahmed Mefreh told Al Jazeera. “It does not provide any guarantee of a fair trial that claims to include this, in violation of what is provided in various legal systems.”

Furthermore, those accused have only 60 days to appeal from the date their names were published in the Official Gazette of Egypt. “In fact, even if a judgment or decision is issued that does not include or remove someone from the list, the actions that lead to the terrorist list remain unchanged, especially against the terrorist. with people outside of Egypt,” Mefreh said.

Suffering in exile

In Turkey, Emad struggled to create a life of his own. He was unable to renew his passport or obtain official documents from the Egyptian embassy because they refused to deal with him.

Back in Egypt, it’s a similar story. His family has two cars lying dusty in the garage for many years because the road license cannot be renewed.

Although Emad’s wife is not on the terror list, every time she tries to leave Egypt to visit him, her passport is temporarily confiscated. This underscores the list’s deepest implication: the pain of being separated from loved ones. Then there was the unbearable weight of guilt. “The position of my family is all my fault,” Emad said, several times.

Immediately after the 2011 revolution, Khalid, whose name was also changed, was elected as an MP in Giza, a traffic-congested city just southwest of Cairo. When the government fell two years later, Khalid took refuge in another government.

As persecution increased and arrests spiked, he headed to Upper Egypt and then across the border and into Sudan, where he received a phone call from a friend. “Khalid, you have been added [terror] list. I saw your name in the Official Gazette. ”

Khalid was shocked. “I never imagined or expected this,” he said. “Having your name on this list is a big thing. I have no connection to terrorism, and I would never have expected this.”

As another punitive measure, the government added Khalid’s brother and two cousins. “Fortunately, they are overseas. If they were in Egypt, they would be arrested,” he told Al Jazeera.

When he was 17 years old, one of Khalid’s sons was arrested and sentenced to 25 years in prison. Another was placed on probation, which meant he had to check in weekly at the local police station. While logged on, political prisoners on probation are frequently arbitrarily detained for several days, or worse, tortured.

Khalid, currently in Turkey, spends his time teaching the Quran. Like Emad, he has not seen his wife, children, family for nearly 10 years. They did not try to leave for fear of being arrested at the airport. Despite now having Turkish citizenship, Khalid still hesitates to travel, especially to any country that has good relations with Egypt.

Khalid says he lives a modest life in Egypt, so the state can’t confiscate his savings or assets because he doesn’t have one.

However, Emad estimates that the Egyptian government took nearly $2 million from him.

While Emad and Khalid were once politically active, Egyptian businessmen with no political connections were also added.

In one case, a prominent Egyptian businesswoman took her passport to the government administration building to renew it, but when she showed it to the civil servant, he wrote a letter in Arabic. qaf for the qayma (list) on it and then inform her that the passport will not be issued. return.

In another case, an e-commerce entrepreneur was informed by a banker that his card was locked, which is when he realized his account was frozen and he was added. on the list. Unable to pay for goods online, his business collapsed.

Emad reflects: “Now it is not only the opposition in Egypt that is being targeted, but also anyone with a business like mine. There was a pause as his voice cracked and he struggled to get the words out. “I miss my family and my office… I miss the neighbors, the pyramids and the good people of Egypt. These are the feelings of anyone in exile.”



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