HRW: Egyptian Police Operate Outside of the Law

Human Rights Watch issued remarks criticizing Egyptian police for beating and arresting protesters at peaceful demonstrations following the death of Khalid Said in Alexandria, stating that “security officials need to learn how to do their jobs without gratuitous violence that amounts to extrajudicial punishment.” The NGO reported that police in Egypt detained approximately 100 protestors during three protests, arrested 55 activists at a demonstration in Cairo, and beat others.

Meanwhile, Nabil Helmi, head of the National Democratic Party’s Commission on Human Rights and a member of the National Human Rights Council, attempted to defend the status of human rights in Egypt. Helmi stated yesterday that a new Anti-Terrorism Law about to be adopted will include greater restrictions on security forces than the Emergency Law. Helmi also argued that the amended Emergency Law represents an improvement over the old version of the law, and repeated the government’s position that its scope is limited, since it can only be applied in terrorism- and drug-related cases.

In an interview today with Al-Masry Al-Youm, Dr. Ayman Fouda– a forensic medicine specialist and former chief medical examiner in Egypt –applauds the government’s decision to perform a second autopsy in the case of Said, but questions the legitimacy of the results, stating, “I think the new report is incomplete and should be reconsidered.” Fouda argues that medical examiners in Egypt should have complete independence in carrying out their work, in order to avoid intimidation and potential inaccuracies in results. Currently, he indicates, the chief medical examiner operates under the authority of the Justice Minister.

The alleged beating and killing of Said at the hands of Egyptian security officers has sparked a protest movement and engendered harsh criticism of human rights violations, both within Egypt and on the international scene.