Local human rights organizations this week criticized a recent decision by Egypt's Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) to ban the media from covering court sessions. In defense of its decision, the SJC referred to articles 186 and 187 of the Egyptian Penal Code, which criminalizes attempts to influence presiding court judges and witnesses. In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Cairo-based Arab Center for the Independence of the Judiciary and the Legal Profession said that the ban violated Article 169 of the Egyptian Constitution and global conventions on civil and political rights. The center also warned that the SJC decision would adversely affect the independence of judges. In its statement, the center went on to assert that the Egyptian judiciary was "not fully independent," warranting a degree of "public monitoring" by both civil society organizations and the media to ensure the integrity of court proceedings. The Egyptian Organization for Human Rights (EOHR), meanwhile, also in a statement issued on Wednesday, likewise criticized the courtroom media ban. The EOHR called on Egypt's judiciary to abide by the international agreements to which Egypt is signatory in this regard. The Sawaseya Human Rights Organization, for its part, called for granting the media access to information in order that it might be reliably relayed to the public. Translated from the Arabic Edition.
