| Login | |
| Currency | |
| Weather | |
| |
Egypt will bring to trial 43 members of NGOs, among them Americans
posted on: Feb 5 2012 14:18 by RDugey. Viewed 19 times.
A total of 43 workers of several NGOs, including 19 Americans, will be brought to trial in Egypt accused of attracting foreign funds to finance their organizations, something forbidden by Egyptian law.
A Committee on research of the Ministry of Justice today ordered that is brought before Cairo Criminal Court defendants, although it did not set a date for the hearing, according to the official Mena news agency.
The defendants, who are prohibited from leaving Egypt, include, in addition to Americans, citizens of German, Serbian, Norwegian, Palestinian, Jordanian and Egyptian nationality.
One of them is the son of the Secretary of transportation of U.S., Sam Lahood, responsible of the NGO International Republican Institute in Cairo that Egyptian authorities banned to leave the country at the end of last January.
Los 43 workers are accused of directing headquarters of international organizations without permission of the u000aEgyptian Government and receive foreign financing.
Las ONG involved are four Americans and a German, among them the International Institute, Republican, which received funding of $ 22 million, and the National Democratic Institute (18 million).
An Egyptian activist, who requested anonymity, told Efe that the majority of defendants have not yet been contacted by the Egyptian authorities.
In his opinion, this new decision is another step in "the escalation of the campaign against non-governmental organizations", which coincides with riots in Cairo and with serious allegations against the military Junta and the Government for the massacre in the Port Said Stadium.
The last December, the Prosecutor's Office of Egypt registered offices from 17 organizations in Cairo to search for documents that confirmed their foreign fundraising.
The Public Prosecutor stated that there are "serious evidence" that these NGOs, both Egyptian as u000aforeign, practiced activities that violate the law of the country.
In different reports, organizations have been alerted about the retreat of human rights in Egypt in recent months denounced a campaign by the authorities to discredit NGOs under the argument that receive foreign financing.
Digg it!
del.icio.us
MySpace
Facebook
Fark
Reddit
Newsvine