The renowned human rights lawyer and activist - and father of activists Alaa and Sanaa Abdel-Fattah - died at 63 on Wednesday due to heart problems; mourners vow to continue his fight Hundreds of activists, journalists, rights advocates and loved ones gathered in a Cairo mosque on Thursday to bid farewell to the renowned rights lawyer Ahmed Seif El-Islam, who died a day earlier at 63 after struggling with heart problems. Tearful and covered in black, mourners stood in the entrance of the mosque, holding pictures of Seif El-Islam with "Farewell Seif" written across them. Another picture showed a caricature of him holding the hand of a policeman wielding a stick, in reference to his life-long fight against security forces' heavy handedness. Seif El-Islam, who along with his wife and children represents a life of political activism, had been unconscious in the intensive care unit for nearly two weeks as he suffered from complications due to heart surgery. Before afternoon prayers at the mosque, young men gathered for a final look at the man's body – wrapped in the Egyptian flag – while some read the Quran. Three of his children are activists. Two of them, Alaa and Sanaa, are currently being detained for breaking a protest law banning all unsanctioned demonstrations. They were permitted to attend the burial – but did not attend prayers in the mosque. Police allowed Alaa and Sanaa to attend the burial rites. Alaa, who appeared at the burial in white prison clothes, said he and his sister Sanaa will attend their father's on Saturday. "My father died a martyr and you know who killed him," Alaa said. During El-Islam's stay in hospital, the two activists were allowed to visit their sick father once. El-Islam himself was imprisoned four times for his activism – twice during the rule of former president Anwar Sadat and twice during the rule of ousted autocrat Hosni Mubarak. A decisive point came during a five-year detention period in the early 1990s when he was tortured by state security officers, which led to him deciding to fight against torture in Egypt. He spent those years in jail studying law and graduated from the Faculty of Law at Cairo University to represent hundreds of political activists over the last three decades. His middle daughter, Mona, was born while he was in jail. Prominent novelist and relative Ahdaf Suweif told Ahram Online that the scene of El-Islam's body surrounded by lots of young men whom he taught and raised was "touching and fitting of the situation." She said that despite the great loss, "we will continue," a phrase regularly used and associated with the popular uprising that ousted Mubarak in 2011. As his body was carried out of the mosque, young men briefly chanted that they will continue what he started, as one of them waved a large white flag with his picture on it. "During his life, he gave those who fought for human rights in Egypt a great deal of positive energy that we cannot afford to lose right now," prominent rights lawyer Nasser Amin told Ahram Online. Throughout his career, El-Islam defended a variety of political prisoners, regardless of their affiliations and backgrounds, including leftists and Islamists. Among the mourners was a tearful lady in black who said Seif El-Islam defended her son – without giving other details. Seif El-Islam co-founded the Hisham Mubarak Law Centre in 1999 to challenge human rights violations in Egypt and to offer all forms of support to victims through legal assistance in and out of court. His wife, Laila Seif, is a professor at Cairo University and a fellow fighter for human rights. "His death is a real loss, it's rare that we find someone like him," said prominent journalist and human rights activist Mohamed Abdel-Koudous. "Our country is divided, but Seif El-Islam has given all Egyptians a symbol and a role model." http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/109472.aspx
