ANHRI: The prosecutor-general must leave

Having been criticised by many groups for its bias towards the former Mubarak regime and poor performance, the ANHRI also calls for Abdel Meguid Mahmoud to step down

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The Arab Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI) held a press conference on Tuesday to announce the release of its new report entitled, ‘The need for the exclusion of the prosecutor general'. The report criticises the performance of the general prosecution both before and after the revolution, calling for current prosecutor-general, counsellor Abdel Meguid Mahmoud, to leave.
Gamal Eid, the ANHRI director, stated in the press conference that the network had prepared a report against the general prosecution before the revolution but had decided to wait until afterwards to see if there would be a change in performance. The report includes a brief history of the Egyptian general prosecution apparatus since the 19th Century, giving examples of incidents such as torture, forced disappearance and violations of freedom of expression. Cases such as these have made people consider its performance, suggesting a bias towards the former Mubarak regime.
"After the revolution there were also cases pinpointing the publicprosecution as being biased against the people",saysEid.For example, when investigating the killing of protestors, families complained that the inquiries were not serious and that there was not sufficient protection from the blackmail of the accused police officers.
ANHRI demanded the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) to appoint a new general prosecutor, adding in its report that, “Any new prosecutor-general should always remember that he came in office by the will of the Egyptian people whom he must represent.”
The Nadeem Human Rights Centre also published a report criticising the general prosecution practices in Egypt a couple of months ago. There were many calls among the Tahrir Square protesters to appoint a new general prosecutor, as counsellor Abdel Meguid Mahmoud was accused of being biased and appointed by former president Mubarak.