Civil society activists will be out in full force for a rally on Wednesday evening, aimed at highlighting the deteriorating human rights situation in Egypt. The North African state and its military leader turned president, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi have been the subject of both internal and external criticism following a 2013 coup which ousted former Muslim Brotherhood leader, Mohammed Morsi.

Since then, many Egyptians have become the subject of gross human rights violations and unwarranted political detentions. It has been suggested that since the military reasserted its control in the country more than 41 000 people have been arrested, many without charge.

The Justice for Egypt rally has been organised by the Egyptian Revolution Council (ERC), and member Yacoob Abrahams said their initiative was very much in line with the global opposition to el-Sisi’s military rule. With South Africa viewed as an example of resistance for its own struggles, the rally would serve as a way for the country to take an active stance in highlighting Egypt’s human rights atrocities.

The current political situation in Egypt is compounded by the shocking imprisonment of Egyptian-born South African national, Sheikh Mohammad Bassiouni. The scholar was arrested in December upon arrival in Cairo, and has since been kept in detention without charge, and with little foreseeable hope of release. Whilst his case has caused much uproar amongst the local Muslim community, it has been seen as part of a much broader problem in facing Egypt.

“Thousands of peaceful protesters have been killed in the streets over the past year or two, since the coup took place on the 3rd July 2013. So many, if not hundreds of thousands of torture and rape crimes have been committed by the authorities and police forces (as well),” alleged Adiel Achmad, also an ERC member.

Achmad further claimed that under el-Sisi’s rule, 1541 Egyptian national had thus fair being issued death sentences, including former president Mohammad Morsi. Such statistics according to him was clear evidence that the country was facing an ‘extremely critical situation’.

Sheikh Muhammed Bilal said they were hoping to persuade local leadership into exerting some influence in the bid to secure Bassiouni’s release. He stressed that as a South African citizen, the scholar was thus eligible for state intervention.

“The same thing happened with Mohamed Soltan, and the Americans interfered and took him. (Similarly) South Africa can put pressure on the El-Sissi regime to release Sheikh Bassiouni because he committed no crime,” he said.

The rally will take place at 7:30pm on Wednesday at the Blackpool Sports Hall in Salt River. It will be hosted in collaboration with Cosatu, The ANC, the MJC, and Rhodes Must Fall amongst others.

Speakers for the event will include MJC secretary general Maulana Abdul Khaliq Allie, ANC WC chairperson Marius Fransman, Cosatu regional secretary Tony Ehrenreich, and the ANCYL’s Muhammad Khalid Sayed. VOC (Mubeen Banderker)