After a midnight hospital visit to his critically ill father, activist Alaa Abdel-Fattah — detained on charges of organising an unauthorized protest late last year — announced that he would begin a hunger strike to press for his release. His decision has re-energised efforts to secure the freedom of dozens of young men and women detained for protesting against the controversial protest law. Other jailed activists have said they will join the hunger strike, including Abdel-Fattah's sister, Sanaa, in jail for over two months in a separate case. Abdel-Fattah was first arrested in December, and has been in an out of prison ever since. Family members and other activists say he was targeted by security forces because of his outspoken criticism of the government and the army. He is among 25 defendants being tried for organising a demonstration in front of the Shura Council in November. The demonstration called for the 50-member committee drafting the constitution to ban the practice of using military courts to try civilians.The protest was among the first to be held after a controversial protest law, which grants the Interior Ministry the final say on whether a protest can be held, came into force. At the time the government insisted that the law was necessary to confront daily protests organized by the Muslim Brotherhood. Secular activists were concerned it could just as easily be used against them. Their fears turned out to be correct.Abdel-Fattah's case has a convoluted history. While most co-defendants were released on bail pending trial, Abdel-Fattah and another defendant, who faced charges of attacking a police officer and attempting to steal his walkie-talkie, were kept in jail for four months. When the trial finally opened in April the judge ordered both of the defendants to be released. On 11 June the judge decided to start what was supposed to be a regular session of the trial early. None of the defendants were present in the court when he sentenced all 25 to 15 years imprisonment. Abdel-Fattah was outside the court, trying to gain entry. He was immediately arrested, along with two others. Several more defendants in the same case were present but were not detained. The 15-year prison sentence was issued in absentia, which means that, under Egyptian law, defendants are entitled to an automatic retrial. When the case opened again on 22 July, the judge ordered the release of all defendants except Abdel-Fattah, Mohamed Nobi and Wael Metwali. The next session is due on 10 September. Lawyers say they will use the hearing to renew their request for release of the three defendants who remain in custody. They intend to show the court a medical report on the deteriorating health of Abdel-Fattah's father Ahmed Seif, who for decades was a leading rights activist. The government and security officials insist that all defendants are held according to the law, and that there are no political detainees in Egypt. But human rights groups and political parties, including Al-Dostour, Al-Tayar Al-Shaabi or Popular Trend led by Hamdeen Sabahi, Popular Socialist Alliance, Arab Nationalist, Al-Karama, Al-Adl and Egypt Freedom Parties, argue that jailing young men and women for lengthy periods pending investigation or trial constitutes punishment before they have been convicted of any crime. Together with the National Human Rights Council they are demanding that the penalties stipulated by the protest law be reduced in cases where the protest was peaceful. Abdel-Fattah's youngest sister, Sanaa, 20, was arrested with 23 other defendants on 21 June while taking part in a demonstration close to the Ittihadiya Presidential Palace in Heliopolis to demand changes to the protest law. The trial of the 17 young men and seven women opened on 29 June, only for the presiding judge to set 13 September as the date for the second session. His decision means the defendants will spend three months languishing in jail. Two cases involving 10 leading secular activists in Cairo and Alexandria have already ended up with final prison sentences, meaning the defendants' only hope for release is a presidential pardon. Ahmed Maher, leader of the 6 April Movement, which was instrumental in rallying opposition to the Mubarak regime, Mohamed Adel, a 6 April member, and activist Ahmed Doma were sentenced in December to three years for organizing an illegal demonstration. Mahinour Al-Masri, a member of the Revolutionary Socialist Movement, and seven other activists from Alexandria were sentenced to two years in prison on similar charges. Al-Masri's sentence was reduced on appeal to six months. On Tuesday she announced that she would join Abdel-Fattah on hunger strike. Members of youth groups announced this week they would hold a symbolic, one-day hunger strike in an effort to revive the campaign calling for release of the detainees. Others plan to hold small, peaceful protests without seeking a permit from the Interior Ministry, a move many fear will increase the number of those held in jail. On Monday Dostour Party Chairman Hala Shukrallah, Tayar Al-Shaabi leader Sabahi, and two members of the National Human Rights Council, George Ishak and Kamal Abbas, met with Prosecutor General Hisham Barakat to discuss the cases of activists detained while awaiting trial, some of whom have been in prison for eight months. Mohamed Abdel-Wahed, a Fine Arts Faculty senior, has been held in a police station in Giza since January after being arrested in front of Cairo University while taking photos of a demonstration by Brotherhood supporters. During the meeting, Sabahi requested the release of a member of his presidential campaign, Amr Saleh, held since June on charges of belonging to “an illegal terrorist organisation” (i.e., the Muslim Brotherhood). Yet, according to Sabahi, Saleh led demonstrations against Morsi on 30 June. The delegation also requested the release of Abdel-Fattah and the 24 activists held after protesting near the Ittihadiya Palace in June. Barakat said he was willing to look into cases that are under his jurisdiction, but not those, like Abdel-Fattah's, that have already been referred to court. He denied that prosecutors were under political pressure to target particular political groups. During his election campaign, President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi defended the protest law issued by former prime minister Hazem Al-Biblawi. He argued that security threats, terrorist attacks and deteriorating economic conditions left no room for unauthorised protests. He promised, however, to examine the law's possible amendment in the future, and to consider the release of activists who were not involved in violent demonstrations. Three months later no one has been released. Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb has said that the committee he chairs to review current legislation might consider amending the protest law following recommendations received from the National Human Rights Council. No timetable has been set for the changes.
