CAIRO: Without a personal computer and through Internet cafés, 22-year-old Al-Azhar University student Abdel Kareem Nabil Soliman, known as Kareem Amer, created a blog under the name "Kareem Amer. The blog focused on criticizing Islam, Al-Azhar education and the President. During sectarian strife in Alexandria he supported the Copts. But being unconventionally outspoken in a conservative society had its repercussions, especially that he was a student in the top Islamic educational institution. Consequently, university officials filed an official compliant against him to the Public Prosecutor on Nov. 6, 2006. Four months later, on Feb. 22, 2007, an Alexandria Court sentenced him to four years in prison for "religious contempt and insulting the president. He became the first Egyptian blogger to receive a prison sentence. Last week, I visited him at the Burj El Arab Prison, on the outskirts of Alexandria, along with Gamal Eid, lawyer and director of the Arab Network for Human Rights (HRInfo), Roada Ahmed, a lawyer affiliated with HRInfo, Al Jazeera reporter Howaida Taha, and blogger Nawara Ahmed Fouad Negm. Amer was equally happy with the visit as he was with what Eid and Taha brought him: some winter clothes and a cheap blanket - Amer, like the rest of Egyptian prisoners, sleeps on the floor and the prison administration doesn't allow expensive blankets. "Prison didn't change me, Amer said. "I'm still holding on to my ideas, because oppression doesn't change minds. "What's the difference between criticism and insult? he continued reiterating that he didn't mean to insult Muslims. "I just used my right to criticize. His family, which had publicly expressed its disapproval of his opinions, doesn't visit him in prison. His mother replies to his letters every now and then. She tries to get him to change his opinions, while he tries to explain that he didn't do anything wrong. But that is only part of his problems. On Nov. 14, HRInfo filed an official complaint to the public prosecutor accusing one of the prison officers of supervising Amer's torture in the facility. Amer said another inmate, following this officer's orders, had assaulted him. The heavy beating left one broken tooth which Amer showed us. The inmate got 10 days in solitary detention. Eleven days after filing the complaint, the network issued a statement expressing its concern that authorities hadn't investigated the incident yet. The network said this sheds doubt on justice and makes it easy to escape punishment. "In torture cases, investigations start immediately before signs of torture disappear, Eid said, "but in this case they want the signs to disappear before starting the investigation. While Amer accuses the prison administration of intentionally targeting him - he was put in solitary detention 65 days before being moved to the political prisoners' section then to criminal - he says his relations with the fellow inmates are fine. "I avoid any theological discussion because it won't lead anywhere. Amer enjoys the support of many international organizations and movements such as Amnesty International, Reporters Without Borders and Human Rights Watch. A number of activists and bloggers have initiated the "Free Kareem campaign, whereby they organize demonstrations in front of Egyptian embassies around the world and gather signatures on petitions calling for his release. Amer didn't garner the same level of support on a local level. "Solidarity with Kareem is the basic solidarity with freedom of expression - a right granted for all regardless whether you agree or disagree with their ideas, said Taha, who's currently appealing a prison sentence she received for making a documentary about police torture in Egypt. Negm conveyed, however, Egyptian bloggers' support to Amer. "Although I disagree with Kareem regarding his ideology and the means of expression but I think that the only response to opinions are opinions not oppression and limiting freedoms, Negm said. "I don't have a problem with Kareem criticizing my faith, because it isn't weak faith, she added. "I think the main reason for imprisoning him is attacking the President. If the government penalizes religious contempt why would it allow websites that express contempt of Christianity? Isn't Christianity also a religion? For the time being, writing has become Amer's sole relief, although he opposes HRInfo's idea of publishing the letters he sends them.
