News briefing
By: Committee for Justice
Geneva, 1st November
The Supreme State Security Prosecution has initiated an investigation with the human rights lawyer and former member of the Egyptian National Council for Human Rights, Hoda Abdel Moneim, in connection with a new case. This comes after the end of her sentence, which concludes on the evening of November 1, 2023. The Committee for Justice has documented the summoning of Abdel Moneim from her detention in the Tenth of Ramadan Women’s Prison
to the headquarters of the Supreme State Security Prosecution in the Fifth Settlement, in an attempt to renew her detention before the end of her sentence duration.
Arrest, Enforced Disappearance, and Poor Detention Conditions:
On 1st November 2018, Abdel Moneim was apprehended from her residence in Cairo. Following her arrest, she endured a forced disappearance for 21 days at the National Security headquarters located in Abbassiya. It wasn’t until the 21st November 2018 that she was brought forth to the Supreme State Security Prosecution. At that point, her health had significantly deteriorated due to intense physical and psychological abuse. After her investigation, the decision was taken to detain her concerning case number 1552 for the year 2018 / Supreme State Security. Subsequently, her case was referred to the Supreme State Security Emergency Court. This court decreed a 5-year imprisonment term for her, set to conclude on the evening of 1st November 2023. Throughout these five years, Abdel Moneim has grappled with severe health challenges. She underwent numerous health crises that put her life in danger, all while the authorities neglected her case. Her ordeal continued as she was once again apprehended today in connection with a new case.
Appeals for her immediate release and halting the misuse of pretrial detention:
CFJ rejects the actions taken by the Egyptian authorities against the human rights lawyer, Hoda Abdel Moneim, and their attempt to renew her detention after her sentence pending a new case. This is a practice the authorities in Egypt have become accustomed to against human rights defenders; detaining them for long periods and preventing them from carrying out their peaceful, legitimate activities. CFJ also demands the immediate release of Abdel Moneim and calls for consideration of her severely deteriorating health condition due to the poor detention conditions she experienced during her sentence. Moreover, the CFJ urges UN and international mechanisms to pressure the Egyptian authorities to stop using pretrial detention as a weapon against human rights defenders and to review the duration of pretrial detention, which currently extends to two years as per the existing law, a duration that participants in the recent national dialogue have demanded to be amended.
