The Interior Ministry is attempting to improve its image. But will it wash with the public, reports Karim El-Khashab Reports of torture in Egyptian jails were again highlighted when a delegation from the African Committee for Human Rights visited Egypt to investigate the treatment of prisoners. A member of the delegation told Al-Ahram Weekly they were disturbed about recent cases of torture published in the press and believed the Egyptian government could do more to remedy the situation. The official, who spoke on condition on anonymity, said "the situation in Egyptian jails has been deteriorating and that there are some concrete steps that the Egyptian government can take to remedy the situation." Among the most disturbing of recent cases is that of 12 year-old Mohamed Abdel-Rahman who died after being released from a Mansoura police station three weeks ago. Though the Interior Ministry issued a statement saying that the coroner's office had ruled that the boy died of a lung infection last week the prosecutor-general's office announced that it was investigating the case and ordered the body to be exhumed for tests. The boy's brother told the Weekly that Abdel-Rahman had been buried without his family's permission. "The only thing I signed was a release form, I have never seen the papers authorising his burial," he said. Hamid El-Baz, the boy's lawyer, says prisoners in the cell with Abdel-Rahman have testified to instances of the boy being tortured and that his health deteriorated severely after he arrived in prison. The four who came forward also testified that Abdel-Rahman was left bleeding in the cell for two days and was only taken out when the stench became unbearable. Doctors have contradicted official statements that the boy underwent an operation while in police custody, which accounted for a deep cut on his chest. Ibrahim Hassan, a doctor in the hospital where Abdel-Rahman was admitted before he died, said he had no knowledge of what caused the gash on the boy's chest but it was definitely not a surgical operation. Such evidence lends weight to accusations that there was intent on behalf of the officers to cause serious harm to the boy. In a second incident, a 13 year-old boy, Islam El-Malawani, was released to hospital from a Tanta police station after allegedly being assaulted by an officer on 27 August. The boy's father told the Weekly his son was in a car with his uncle when an officer approached and asked for his licence. When the boy replied that he had none and the car did not belong to him witnesses report that he was dragged from the vehicle and repeatedly beaten by the officer before being taken to prison. The family filed a complaint demanding the boy be released to hospital. Doctors report that he suffered severe blows to the head and back and is now in a partial coma. The Interior Ministry declined to comment on the incident. In the face of the growing number of reports of incidents of torture the Interior Ministry seems keen to improve its public image. In statements and interviews to state run media outlets ministry spokesmen insist that cases highlighted in the media are an aberration and not indicative of the overall performance of the police. One spokesman was quoted as saying the ministry receives almost 9,000 complaints about ill-treatment annually and responds on a case-by-case basis. They have also been quick to point out that the police academy now includes courses on human rights in its curricula. Lieutenant Hamid El-Iwisi, a teacher at the academy, says officers receive such training in cooperation with the National Council for Human Rights, and that increasing numbers of checks are being introduced in police stations. In a recent report the Egyptian Organisation for Human Rights criticised the government for failing to combat ill-treatment in jails. The report cites inadequate legal protection for victims and demanded an independent body be set up to monitor and investigate instances of torture instead of leaving it up to police officers to investigate their colleagues. The report did not categorise abuse of detainees as systematic but blamed it on an outdated legal system subject to state of emergency laws. Lawyer Hossam Mabrouk said the report highlights important facts -- notably that in Egyptian law the definition of torture is vague and as a consequence hard to prove. He added that the report did not pay enough attention to how widespread cases are. "Between 1993 and 2007 the report mentioned that there were 500 cases of torture, with 167 leading to fatalities." The real figure, says Mabrouk, is much higher but people are often too frightened to file complaints. "The decision has to come from the top," he says. "It has to be a political decision not to allow these practices, or else they will continue to be swept under the rug."
