Anger is growing as civilians continue to be referred to military trial, reports Amirah Ibrahim On Tuesday Asmaa Mahfouz was referred by the military prosecutor for trial. Like many other political activists she will face a military court. The charge against her is insulting military commanders and inciting the public against the military council. "If the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces [SCAF] and the judicial authorities are unwilling to respect our rights can they really get angry when assassinations are carried out by armed fundamentalists? When there is no respect for the law or for the judicial system then no one has the right to be surprised [when the law is broken]," Mahfouz wrote on Twitter account. A statement by the Military Justice Authority released on Sunday said Mahfouz "went beyond criticism to slander and incitement... She even went further and called for the assassination of members of the military and judiciary in comments published on her personal Twitter and Facebook accounts." Released on bail of LE20,000 on Sunday, Mahfouz continued to post comments critical of the SCAF on Facebook. Mahfouz says her comments were directed at the SCAF as the "presidential ruling authority and not as the army". On Saturday the SCAF was busy posting on its own Facebook page. "The right to protest is a right that's been respected by the ruling military council since the beginning of the revolution as long as it does not affect personal or public property," it said. "All Egyptians have the right to demonstrate peacefully as long as their actions do not affect production or property." Speaking to Al-Ahram Weekly, head of the Military Justice Authority Major General Adel El-Mursi insisted that referring Mahfouz to military trial did not contravene penal code. "We investigate only those cases that come under our authority as stipulated in the penal law," said El-Mursi. "When civilians fight against or insult military facilities or personnel, they are investigated by military prosecution and face military trials. The reverse happens when civilians are victims of assault or damage by the military. They can then take the military to civil courts." "[Former president Hosni] Mubarak is facing a civil trial because he is not accused of crimes against the army. If we took him to a military court just to make the public happy, then we would be in violation of the law. That would tarnish the image of our great 25 January Revolution which called for justice and the rule of law." "According to the 12th item of the constitutional declaration issued on 30 March the right to freedom of expression and opinion is absolutely protected provided laws which protect social peace and unity are not broken." El-Mursi then claimed that only cases involving sexual assault, attacks against security personnel and the use of weapons would be referred to military courts. Egypt's Military Justice Authority summoned three human rights activists -- Bassem Samir, Hossam Ali and Ahmed Ghoneim -- for investigation on Tuesday. Maha Abu Bakr, a leading member of the Kifaya movement was released shortly after being summoned on Monday in what the military prosecutor said was a case of "mistaken identity". Anger is growing over the number of activists who continue to be tried in military courts. The practice has been condemned by many political groups, and a "No to Military Trials" campaign is gathering speed. "Military trials for young activists, while Mubarak & Co stand before civilian courts, is a legal farce," wrote presidential candidate Mohamed El-Baradei on his Twitter account. The Muslim Brotherhood announced its opposition to the military trial of civilians on Tuesday, arguing that it was unconstitutional and in violation of the United Nation's declaration of human rights. More than 10,000 civilians are thought to have been handed prison sentences by military courts in the last five months. Military sentences cannot be appealed.
