MP Ahmed Said, a former chairman of the Free Egyptians Party, told reporters on Sunday that a parliamentary delegation will head to Brussels next month to discuss human rights with the EU parliament. “The delegation, composed of 13 MPs representing different political forces, will discuss the 10 March resolution issued by the European Parliament addressing human rights in Egypt and the death of Italian student Giulio Regeni in mysterious circumstances in Cairo last January,” said Said. The delegation was due to hold meetings with officials from the Foreign Ministry and the National Council for Human Rights on 24 March as part of its preparation of a report responding to the European Parliament's negative resolution on the situation of human rights in Egypt. The resolution stated that the murder of Regeni “is not an isolated incident” but part of a pattern of “torture, death in custody and enforced disappearances across Egypt in recent years”. It called for the immediate and unconditional release of detainees it said have been imprisoned simply for exercising their right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. Said argued that the resolution was based on incorrect and inaccurate information. “We have prepared responses to 13 items forming part of this resolution and they will be contained in report to be discussed in Brussels,” he said. “The delegation will also prepare a report about Regeni's death, including a file about his life in Cairo, contacts and movements.” The resolution, which also heavily criticised Egypt's Protest Law, was not only without foundation but unacceptably politicized, said Said. “The problem is that the EU parliament includes many liberal radicals like members of the Green Party in Germany who adopt extremist positions when it comes to freedoms. Instead of viewing the Protest Law in the context of the terrorist attacks that have hit Egypt since the removal of Muslim Brotherhood from power in June 2013 they impose their own radical views on the situation.” He continued, “The European Parliament needs to understand know that the law does not ban protests. What it does is impose stipulations to ensure protests are organised in a peaceful way.” Said accused the European Parliament of ignoring the negative impact of terrorism on Egypt and North Africa. “In recent years European governments rushed to issue tough anti-terror laws that were criticized by human rights organisations. Now they want to ignore the fact that terrorist organisations like the Muslim Brotherhood, which mix religion with politics, exploit political freedoms to advance their extremist ideology.” He continued, “The delegation is studying the make-up of the EU Parliament to determine which lobbies promote radical positions on human rights.” The Egyptian parliamentary delegation's visit to Brussels is scheduled for mid-April. Said says he has already received instructions “from parliament speaker Ali Abdel-Aal to resolve differences with the European Parliament through dialogue rather than confrontation.” Abdel-Aal has described the EU resolution as unwarranted interference in the internal affairs of Egypt. “It is no secret that the issue of respect for human rights has taken on international dimensions in recent years. Still, we wholeheartedly reject the European Parliament's exploitation of the issue to intervene in the internal affairs of other countries,” said Abdel-Aal. Abdel-Aal said he was surprised by the resolution “because I met last month with representatives from the European Parliament and we decided that our relationship would be based on mutual respect and accurate information”. He added, “Now I tell them we reject double standards in dealing with human rights, and the exploitation of human rights for political reasons.” MPs also accused US Secretary of State John Kerry of jumping to hasty and inaccurate conclusions about human rights in Egypt. On 18 March Kerry issued a statement saying he was “deeply concerned by the deterioration in the human rights situation in Egypt, including a decision to reopen an investigation into human rights NGOs”. Kerry's statement came hours after a judicial committee reopened a five-year-old investigation into human rights NGOs accused of receiving foreign funding illegally, and ordered the freezing of the assets of four leading Egyptian human rights workers and their families. They include Gamal Eid, the executive director of the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information, and Hossam Bahgat, founder of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights. “We care about freedoms and [know] that NGOs play a more active role in boosting development and observing human rights in Egypt, but we do not accept that foreigners, especially American officials, impose their say on us,” said Egypt's Deputy Parliamentary Speaker Soliman Wahdan. According to Wahdan, “Once a new draft law on NGOs operating in Egypt is referred to us it will be revised by Egyptian MPs.” Following Kerry's statement, many MPs demanded a blanket ban on foreign funding of NGOs. The Conservatives Party, led by tycoon Akmal Qortam, which has six MPs, said investigations had shown that “foreign funding of NGOs has become a source of profiteering and fertile ground for corruption among handful of activists who monopolise the business”. It issued a statement calling for “a strict overhaul of foreign funding of NGOs in Egypt to ensure all money is spent on concrete development projects”. The Guardians of the Nation Party, which boasts 18 MPs, urged parliamentarians to “stand united against the concerted campaign emanating from the EU and the US administration which aims to spread chaos in Egypt”. Mohamed Osama Abul-Magd, chairman of the Guardians of the Nation, told reporters that the party is in favour of “tightening the noose on NGOs that obtain foreign funding”. “The Americans are irritated because the NGOs and individuals they fund to spread anarchy and chaos are about to be exposed,” said Abul-Magd.
