Global Voices Advocacy » Rasha Abdulla

Egyptian veteran blogger Alaa Abdel Fattah released

Rasha Abdulla — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 13:50:36 +0000

By Rasha Abdulla

Egyptian veteran blogger Alaa Abdel Fattah has finally been released pending investigation from the Cairo Criminal Court yesterday after being detained for 56 days.

He comes home to his family and his 20-day-old son, who was born while his daddy was detained. Cute little Khaled was named after Egypt’s martyr, Khaled Said, who was brutally beaten to death by police informants outside an Internet café in Alexandria on June 6, 2010.

I was with Alaa’s family yesterday as we started the day at the Cairo Criminal Court, where a real investigation finally started. My tweet at that point was:

At Cairo criminal court with Alaa's family. Alaa is inside. Waiting for session. Hoping for the best. #FreeAlaa

— Rasha Abdulla (@RashaAbdulla) December 25, 2011

Alaa has been detained by military court after refusing to answer any questions directed at him and instead pleading silence as a sign of not recognizing military trials for civilians as legitimate. He knew there would be a price to pay for that. And indeed pay he did. Alaa’s case was finally transferred to a civilian judge recently. That judge yesterday re-started the investigation process, and soon afterwards released Alaa pending investigations.

Alaa Abdel fattah has just been released. Great great joy! I can't describe the feelings

— Rasha Abdulla (@RashaAbdulla) December 25, 2011

Alaa had to go back to Torah prison, his detention place, for his release orders to be processed. We followed him to Torah, where a while later we were told he was transferred to Cairo Central Security, so we rushed over there.

We are now at Cairo central security waiting to see if Alaa will be released from here or from a police station. Hoping to leave with him.

— Rasha Abdulla (@RashaAbdulla) December 25, 2011

We waited outside Cairo Central Security for close to three hours. Finally, I tweeted the following:

علاء علي الاسفلت yfrog.com/kke5tjej Alaa is free

— Rasha Abdulla (@RashaAbdulla) December 25, 2011

Alaa was finally free. The moment we’ve all been waiting for for 56 days. A sleuth of media was waiting for him, and he immediately started his fierce attacks against military rule. Alaa told the media that the real triumph would only come when the army generals who shot the protesters at Maspiro would be put through a fair trial. A mini protest followed, “Down with military rule.”

And where would Alaa’s first stop be, in prison clothes, but his beloved Tahrir Square:

احنا طالعين مع علاء علي التحرير .. going with Alaa to Tahrir

— Rasha Abdulla (@RashaAbdulla) December 25, 2011

Alaa was treated like a celebrity in Tahrir. People rushed at him to say their hellos and hug him. Friends who learned he was free from Twitter joined us in Tahrir. Alaa immediately delved into a passionate impromptu speech about what the revolution means, and what should happen next.

علاء من الزنزانة إلي التحرير Alaa straight from prison to Tahrir yfrog.com/kljmqelj

— Rasha Abdulla (@RashaAbdulla) December 25, 2011

Although he kept repeating to his followers that he’s just a foot soldier in the revolution and that he needs time for himself and to be with his family and new born, I was again reminded of why he’s so important to the revolution and why he was such a threat to the military council. Alaa is a natural leader, he posses such charisma, and yet is so true to himself and down to earth that he inspires revolutionaries. People love to be around him, to hear him talk, to listen to whatever he has to say. With great organizational skills added to his qualities, he manages to get people to actually do stuff, to plan things that seem impossible, and to get them done. Or at least to try and keep trying and never lose hope. Hope is the keyword here. And that’s what a leader is about. Alaa is an inspiration. We’re so happy he’s finally free.

We (myself, a couple of friends, and his family) headed from Tahrir to Alaa’s parents’ house, where he finally had a chance to enjoy his family, his wife activist and blogger Manal Hassan, who endured his absence as her pregnancy was coming to term, and his precious Khaled.

And here’s my favorite tweet of all.

@Alaa and cute little Khaled yfrog.com/mnom4hj @manal @monasosh #Alaaisfree

— Rasha Abdulla (@RashaAbdulla) December 25, 2011

Egypt: Military Court Refuses Alaa Abdel Fattah's Appeal

Rasha Abdulla — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 10:45:11 +0000

An appeal filed by Egypt’s veteran blogger Alaa Abdel Fattah for his release pending investigation has been denied (Nov. 3) by a Cairo military court. Abdel Fattah was detained on October 30 for 15 days after refusing to be interrogated by a military court, and insisting on his right to be investigated before a civilian court.

Abdel Fattah’s lawyers argued, among other things, that he was a no-flight risk since he was originally in San Francisco when the court summoned him, and he returned a few days later to appear before the court the next day.

It is therefore evident that he is not trying to escape trial. Instead, he insists on his civilian right to being tried before a civilian court, especially that the military is itself accused in the Maspero case for which he is being investigated.

Following the denial of appeal, Abdel Fattah was transferred to Tora prison, which has much better living conditions than the appeals prison he was originally in. He had published an article in Al Shorouk newspaper [in Arabic] and the Guardian [in English] in which he explained that the conditions at the appeals prison are simply inhumane, and declared that his imprisonment is a return to the post-revolution Mubarak days. Abdel Fattah had previously been detained under Mubarak for 45 days in 2006 after participating in a protest in support of an independent judiciary.

A second blog post by Abdel Fattah [a translation of which is available here] was published on the award-winning blog Manal and Alaa Bit Bucket (manalaa.net), which is maintained by the blogger and his wife as one of the first and most popular blogs in Egypt and the Arab world. In his second post from behind bars, Alaa said he was offered and refused a deal to be released if he stops attacking Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, the head of the Supreme Council of Armed Forces, Egypt’s current ruling authority.

On a more personal note, Alaa reveals a graceful self-embarrassment at having asked to be transferred to a more humane prison, thus having to leave other cell mates behind. He tells his readers that although he was brave enough to face imprisonment, he wasn’t brave enough to hear the opinion of his nine-month pregnant wife, Manal, in his decision to remain silent before the military prosecutor, which they knew would probably lead to detention. He knew she would support him anyway, he says. He ends his blog on a note of gratitude, crediting any bit of courage that he has to the influence of his mother, his younger sisters, and his wife, whose being separated from is the hardest part of detention.

Egyptian Blogger Alaa Abdel Fattah Detained for 15 Days Pending Military Investigation

Rasha Abdulla — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 10:15:28 +0000

Egypt’s veteran blogger Alaa Abdel Fattah (@alaa) was detained today (Sunday, Oct. 30) for 15 days pending investigation after refusing to be interrogated by a military investigator, insisting on his right to be tried before a civil court.

Alaa was called in for investigation last week in light of the Maspiro events in Cairo, where 27 people died and many more were injured after the army cracked down on a Christian-majority demonstration. Alaa was very active in the aftermath of these tragic events, and spent two days at the morgue alongside other activists in solidarity with the victims’ families, while trying to convince them to agree to autopsies and trying to make sure the reports of the autopsies are correctly documented. Alaa wrote a very moving piece of that experience in Al Shorouk newspaper (a translation of which can be found here) in which he repeatedly reminded everyone that solidarity is the way out of any problems in Egypt.

Alaa was in San Francisco when he was called to the investigation last week. His father, veteran human rights lawyer Ahmed Seif El Islam Abdel Fattah, appeared in court and asked for the case to be postponed. Alaa came back to Cairo on Saturday afternoon and appeared in court on Sunday morning. The military prosecutor has filed five charges against him including demonstrating, inciting to demonstrate, assaulting military personnel, destroying public property, and stealing military weapons. Alaa, whose sister Mona Seif (@monasosh) is one of the founders of the No to Military Trials for Civilians group, insisted to be interrogated before a civic judge, especially in light of the fact that the army is facing law suits accusing it as a defendant in the same case, which constitutes a clear conflict of interest. He was detained as a result pending further military investigation.

Alaa has been very active on the blogging scene in Egypt since 2004, when he and his wife Manal Hassan (@manal) started the award-winner blog and aggregator Manal and Alaa’s Bit Bucket (www.manalaa.net). Both bloggers have been very active online and offline in fighting the old regime in Egypt and making sure cases of corruption and police brutality were broken into traditional media. Alaa was detained before in 2006 for 45 days.

Many believe Alaa’s detention comes as a warning to other bloggers and political activists as another step in a series of violations against freedom of expression committed by the ruling Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF) in Egypt. Several bloggers were interrogated and/or detained including Asmaa Mahfouz, Hossam El Hamalawy, Loai Nagati, and Maikel Nabil, who has been on a hunger strike since August 22.

The No to Military Trials for Civilians group has published a press release condemning Alaa’s arrest in the strong possible words, and asking for his immediate release, together with the other 12,000 victims of military trials in Egypt, who should at least be retried before a civil court. The group called upon Egyptians to refuse to cooperate with military interrogation and to support the cause of No to Military Trials for Civilians. You can read the press release in its entirety here.

Egypt: On Maikel Nabil, first blogger to be jailed since January 25

Rasha Abdulla — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 16:21:00 +0000

Maikel Nabil , the first Egyptian blogger to be jailed since the January 25 revolution started, has been on a hunger strike since Monday, August 22. On August 30, Maikel stopped taking any liquids, including water. He was taken to a hospital two days later after falling into a coma.

He has agreed to drink some water but still refuses to eat any food. Maikel, who has a heart condition, was tried before a military court 12 days after being arrested from his home on March 28, 2011, and charged with “insulting the military & spreading false reports aiming to disturb public security.” He was sentenced to three years in prison.

Maikel is serving three years in jail for a blog he wrote in March entitled “The army and the people are not one hand,” in which he listed what he thought were alleged wrongdoings by the army to the people of Egypt. His blog is linked to other newspaper pieces and videos supporting his claims. Maikel has a history of online activism as well as of controversial and at times unpopular opinions. His website www.maikelnabil.com has featured an online campaign he started in 2009 against compulsory drafting by the army in Egypt. As someone who defines himself as “pro-Israel” and “atheist,” his website also features several pieces that do not resonate well with the mostly religiously conservative, anti-Israeli atrocities Egyptian people. His unpopular opinions have not granted him that many supporters among Egyptians.

I personally do not agree with many of Maikel’s blog entries or arguments, but as someone who has always been a staunch supporter of freedom of thought and expression, I will defend to the death his right to say them. In my book “Policing the Internet in the Arab World” (the Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research, 2009), I argued that even though Egypt does not block any websites (Maikel’s blog in its entirety, including the entry he was tried for is still online), security forces have always gone after bloggers and online activists in an attempt to harass and intimidate them and others. That was during pre-January 25 Egypt. We had hoped by now things would be different. Since Maikel’s arrest, the army has investigated several online activists and journalists, including Hossam el Hamalawy, Reem Magued, Adel Hammouda, Rasha Azab, and Asmaa Mahfouz. These were not arrested. Activist Loai Nagati was detained for a week and later released.

Since February, 11,879 Egyptian civilians have been trialed or investigated by military courts.

A group of activists has since been actively trying to campaign against military trials. The “No To Military Trials for Civilians” group is calling for all civilians to be tried before their normal, civic court. The group also asks that those already in jail by military courts be released and re-tried before a civic court. Recently, the group produced a PSA (in Arabic) featuring several potential Presidential candidates advocating against military trials for civilians.