The government shows signs that it might be willing to meet at least some of the demands of Sinai's Bedouins, reports Serene Assir Following weeks of pressure in the form of demonstrations, sit-ins and tribal meetings, during which threats of more action were issued, the Egyptian government finally signalled its willingness to consider the demands of Sinai's Bedouin population. Deputy Interior Minister Adli Fayed held direct talks with Bedouin tribal leaders in the Sinai this week, the first time such a senior official has met them. In a bid to appease their grievances, promises were made to release detainees detained without charge following the deadly Sinai blasts that began in October 2004, when a bomb exploded at the Taba Hilton in South Sinai. "On 2 July eight detainees were released," North Sinai Governor Ahmed Abdel-Hamid told Al-Ahram Weekly. "A further 12 were freed on 3 July. We are actively studying the cases of the remaining detainees, and we will be freeing between 100 and 200 in the coming weeks and months." Abdel-Hamid added those released will be helped to find work. "We will do everything we can to ensure their lives return to normal as soon as possible," he said. "They are, after all, citizens of Egypt, with the same rights as other citizens. We will do everything that needs to be done to improve their living conditions." Such official pronouncements are welcomed by the Bedouin, who in recent weeks have stepped up their campaign against the government. "Of course we appreciate that the government is showing its willingness to deal with our concerns in an open and just way," Selim (not his real name) told the Weekly. "But this is the very least they should be doing. The government should never have detained these men to start with." The protesters are demanding the release of approximately 2,500 detainees -- a far cry from the 100 to 200 promised by the government. "Still, so long as the government shows it is cooperating, we will desist from further demonstrations," says Selim, who lives in Al-Meney, North Sinai. The mood in Sinai appears calmer than for some time. "Treatment of the Bedouin by the security forces has improved," says Selim. "Their record, though, is so bad that a majority of Bedouin are still frightened about what might happen to them at checkpoints and roadblocks. Many still refuse to travel Sinai's roads." Human rights organisations say the government's attitude towards the Bedouin still has a long way to go before it can be considered to be acceptable. "In Cairo Bedouin are seen as third-class citizens," said Gamal Eid, lawyer and director of the Cairo-based Arabic Network for Human Rights Information. "Like residents of Upper Egypt, they are marginalised economically and politically. What makes the Bedouins' situation worse is that they are mistrusted." "The released detainees should never have been imprisoned to start with. The government is essentially covering up for a mistake that shouldn't have been made. The releases should not be misinterpreted as a change in policy," he told the Weekly. That the Bedouin live in one of the Arab world's most strategically crucial areas makes a genuine improvement of their conditions all the more urgent. Yet Cairo's strategy, says Selim, has been to portray Sinai's Bedouin as unpatriotic. "As Bedouin Arabs we are very patriotic, more so than many others. We are the ones, after all, who suffered the Israeli occupation. But the government and the security forces treat us so badly that the situation is constantly in danger of flaring up." It is in the interests of the government to develop a strategy towards the Bedouin that genuinely ensures they are treated with absolute equality, says Eid. "Releasing a few prisoners will not do the trick. Policy towards Sinai needs a complete overhaul." The government denies it has mistreated any of the detainees. "Security is tighter in the Sinai than elsewhere because it is a border territory," says Abdel-Hamid. "However, it is untrue that innocent parties have been treated badly. Only those guilty of crimes are treated with firmness." The October 2004 Taba bombings were followed by a spate of attacks in the wake of which thousands of Bedouin were rounded up in a random campaign of arrests. In many cases, detainees were released within hours, though Bedouin leaders say more than 2,000 remain in prison without charge, often in isolation. Reports of torture, and even deaths resulting from medical attention being denied, are widespread.
