CAIRO: An anti-torture demonstration held yesterday in front of the Journalists' Syndicate signaled a reignited attempt by opposition groups to bring the issue back into the public eye. "The Bible and the Quran together against tyranny, chanted protesters including the families of last month's Mansoura torture victims. The protest organized by the Journalism Syndicate's Freedoms Committee brought together a number of opposition groups and NGOs, like Kefaya (Egyptian Movement for Change) and the Legal Assistance Association. Brother of the late Telbana village torture victim, Nasr Abdallah, gave a speech. "They killed my brother for nothing, he shouted into the microphone as riot police encircled the syndicate entrance. A pamphlet was also handed out naming the alleged perpetrators of the most recent string of torture cases. After the protest, the Syndicate held a conference on its fourth floor to honor journalists Ghada Abdel Hafez, Hesham Lotfy and Mohamed Taha, who were beaten by security personnel while covering the Telbana torture case and the violence that followed. In a speech by Mohamed Shabana, the late Nasr Abdallah's attorney, he lauded the efforts of the three journalists who "ventured into Telbana at night, while the village was under siege by security forces and were consequently beaten because they were covering the story. Shabana also highlighted the dire need for legislative reform that could mollify the torture phenomenon. According to Shabana, the penal code is only implemented if an official tortures suspects to extract a confession from them. "If that victim is not a suspect in the case then the felony clause is not implemented. Do you now see the value of the citizen? said Shabana. He went on to recount a number of court rulings in torture cases, which included a case where security personnel went so far as to commit sodomy but the court ruled that a jail sentence was not in order. The conference, attended by journalist Mohamed Abdel Quddous, Kefaya founder George Ishaq and former Egyptian Prime Minister Aziz Sedky reached a climax when the mother of 12-year-old Mohamed Mamdouh appeared on the panel with framed photos of her late son, who died several weeks ago after being subjected to torture at a Mansoura police station after his arrest for petty theft. "Our beloved Mohamed, your blood will not go in vain, the attendees chanted as they gave the bereaved mother a standing ovation.
