CAIRO: Human rights group Amnesty International is calling for the release of jailed prisoners of conscience Musaad Abu Fagr and Kareem Amer. Amnesty International and other human rights groups consider their imprisonment unlawful both because the men in question expressed beliefs without using or espousing violence and because it is in violation of international law. Amnesty's announcement comes on the heels of the issuing of Abu Fagr s 13th arrest warrant last week and associated extension of detention by the Ministry of Interior. A group of Sinai intellectuals also wrote an open letter demanding his release yesterday. Novelist and human rights activist Abu Fagr has been held indefinitely for over a year and a half. Abu Fagr, whose real name is Musaad Suliman Hassan Hussein, was arrested in December 2007 after protesting the denial of building permits and demanding the release of Bedouins who were detained in the wake of terrorist attacks around the Red Sea in the preceding years. He had been protesting alongside supporters of the Sinai-based movement he founded, called Wedna Na ish ( We Want to Live ). Abu Fagr s brother Ahmed is also being held. In February 2008 he was acquitted in the north Sinai town of Al-Arish of charges against him related to inciting protests and resisting authorities. However, under the emergency law his detention continued under special orders from the Ministry of Interior. Human rights groups and lawyers from the Hisham Mubarak Law Center have repeatedly requested he be released but have been ignored by State Security Investigations. After a court ordered Abu Fagr be released in June, State Security continued to hold him illegally and then extended a 13th administrative detention order instead, bypassing the court. Following this he was moved to the Borg Al-Arab prison on July 18. The plight of blogger Kareem Amer captured global attention after he became the first blogger in Egypt s history to be imprisoned for his online writings. The former Al-Azhar student was arrested and charged with criticizing the president and defaming Islam in 2007 on his blog. Sentenced to four years in prison, he is due for an appeal at the end of August. The UN s Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) called Amer s detention arbitrary and said he should be released. State Security at the prison where he is staying prevented Arabic Network for Human Rights Information lawyers from visiting him and he was last seen in March with the most recent attempt last week. The health and well-being of Abu Fagr and Amer are also of concern, as both have reported suffering physical and psychological abuses while in jail. It is unclear if Amer s appeal next month will result in his release, but human rights activists are doubtful because previous pleas for Amer s release have been ignored or provoked greater restrictions on visitation. Abu Fagr s case is less clear, with the possibility of repeated extensions of detention likely. Egypt has come under scrutiny and condemnation for its liberal use of detention and intimidation of those who criticize government actions. An Amnesty report on Egypt issued last year estimated that around 18,000 individuals are being held under administrative orders by the Ministry of Interior in inhumane conditions.
