CAIRO: Twenty-two political parties, movements and coalitions are organizing a protest outside Egypt's public prosecution office during the first session of former President Hosni Mubarak's trial. Mubarak's trial begins tomorrow. He is charged with murdering demonstrators during Egypt's January 25 Revolution. In a statement, the group condemned the brutal break-up of the Tahrir Square sit-in yesterday, saying strikes are a legitimate means of protest and were one of the tools used to overthrow Mubarak. They added that the strikes and demonstrations prompted Egypt's ruling military council to respond to the demands of the demonstrators, such as combining the trials of Mubarak and former Interior Minister Habib al-Adly into one. The groups which signed the statement viewed dissolving the strike by force as part of a series of policies pursued by the ruling military council, such as smearing the strike and the revolutionary powers before the Egyptian people, issuing statements inciting the people against the demonstrators and accusing the national powers of treason and spying without any evidence. The statement said elements of the secret police fueled the situation in the square. It said a number of witnesses said there were elements of secret police who worked to arrest the demonstrators during the strike. It added that such policies were used by the former regime, and that their use now proves there is no serious change in security policies. The political entities demanded that the ruling military council respond to the demands of the revolution, including releasing those arrested yesterday, canceling the law which criminalizes strikes, suspending suppression policies, and imprisoning officers who participated in the killing of demonstrators.
