CAIRO: A group of Egyptian human rights organizations issued a statement on Monday condemning what they called a “political crisis” between revolutionary powers and the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), Egypt's ruling authority during the transitional period. Twenty two organizations said the ruling powers in the country have revived similar oppressive tactics against the opposition to replace dialogue with security solutions. The Egyptian Cabinet, working with SCAF, last week reactivated the draconian emergency laws in the country disregarding the fact that the laws enforcement for the past 29 years had been a moving force behind the Egyptian uprising earlier this year. “The organizations note sadly that the policies adopted recently by the SCAF or by the government, which comply with the directives, adds to the political tension and promote the belief that there is a wide gap between the aspirations of Egyptians for democracy and for the salvation of the remnants of the former authoritarian regime,” read the groups' statement. Many leading rights organizations and groups singed onto the statement, including the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS), the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI), The Egyptian Center for Women's rights, Andalus Center for Peace and Non-Violence Studies among others. The statement said that the new emergency laws will be implemented in areas that exceeds how the past regime used it, to fight drugs and terrorism, while the new implementation will be used to allegedly fight “attempts to breach national security or public order and will be used against any media outlet,” who according to the authorities would air or publish “false” news. The organizations demanded that the SCAF halt the emergency law and bring an end to trying civilians in front of military courts. They also have called for the cancellation of the ministry of information and allowing media to work freely in the country without political pressures or prosecutions. BM
