Your Excellency:
The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply troubled that Egyptian
security forces have intimidated journalists who filed complaints after
being assaulted by pro-government demonstrators in Cairo last month.
On May 25, government supporters beat demonstrators and several foreign
and local journalists who were covering a protest over limited presidential
elections. Journalists interviewed by CPJ said that they were punched,
kicked, and slapped by the assailants, and that Egyptian security forces
did not intervene. Journalists said they suspected some of the assailants
were actually security agents. Some female reporters told CPJ that they
were groped by the assailants.
More than a dozen journalists filed complaints with your office against
the leadership of Egypt's ruling party and specific officers who were
present at the melee. Since that time, CPJ has learned, at least two
female reporters have been pressured by security forces to withdraw
their complaints. One journalist, Shaymaa Abol Kheir of the weekly independent
newspaper Al-Dustour, who was beaten and groped by female government
supporters, told CPJ that security agents have conveyed messages to
her through relatives and neighbors. Abol Kheir told CPJ that agents
told her neighbors that her brothers would be detained and that she
would face legal charges unless she dropped her complaint.
Another journalist who filed a complaint, Abeer al-Askary, also from
Al-Dustour, told local journalists that her family received a visit
from individuals who identified themselves as General Intelligence agents,
warning her and her family that they would face serious consequences
unless she dropped her complaint. Journalists who spoke to al-Askary
told CPJ that she was informed that her siblings would lose their government
jobs and that her parents could be detained. Neither journalist has
dropped her complaint.
These incidents of intimidation appear to be an attempt to stifle serious
examination of last month's troubling attacks on protestors and the
media, and they call into question the seriousness and credibility of
the government's investigation. We urge you to ensure that any attempts
by Egyptian authorities to hinder this investigation and intimidate
complainants are stopped at once and that the investigation now under
way is conducted thoroughly and expeditiously to determine those responsible
for wrongdoing. The failure to do so would signal that Egyptian authorities
tolerate violent attacks against the press.
Thank you for your attention to this important matter. We look forward
to your reply.
Sincerely,
Ann Cooper
Executive Director
