CAIRO: In preparation for the Eid holiday that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, Egypt is deploying additional police to a number of locations in order to combat any possible outbreaks of mass sexual harassment that have occurred two out of the past three holidays. With crowded streets, an already volatile atmosphere is confounded at youth hang outs, cinemas, amusement parks, restaurants and gardens across the country. In Helwan, a suburb of Cairo, police have been deployed in massive numbers in order to ensure the safety of women. In October 2006, during the Eid holiday that follows the Holy Month of Ramadan, mobs of young men attacked female bystanders, ripping at and groping them near a local cinema in downtown Cairo. Nobody believed the women’s stories until evidence appeared on blogs that included video and pictures of the event. A second incident occurred in 2008, in the Cairo area of Mohandiseen, where hundreds of young boys and men attacked women in similar fashion. This time, however, police intervened, arresting a dozen perpetrators. At least two of them received a hefty fine and a short jail term for their actions, which has forced the government to take action. Engineer Tarek Fouad Salah al-Din, Chairman of the Cleaning and Beautification Authority in Helwan said in interview with al-Youm al-Saba'a that the governorate of Helwan declared a state of emergency to prepare for the three day festival. He added that Helwan is characterized by a large number of gardens, visited by thousands of citizens during the first three days of the feast. This has the government on edge due to recent incidents of harassment and assaults against women. Salah al-Din explained that there are 10 parks in Helwan, including the Japanese Garden, which is the “most popular” park, al-Mostaqbal garden, Fairouz, Mubarak and 8 others in the Turra district. Salah al-Din confirmed that the gardens will open from 8 in the morning until late at night, where he said security forces “will intensify its presence to prevent sexual harassment cases.” He said the Governor of Helwan had instructed security to increase the number of informants in the area, particularly within parks to protect girls from harassment and theft. **reporting by Mohamed Abdel Salam BM
