EGYPT: Imprisoned pacifist blogger Maikel Nabil Sanad escalates hunger strike after sentencing

Imprisoned pacifist blogger Maikel Nabil Sanad, who was sentenced to two years' imprisonment by a military court on 14 December 2011 following a re-trial, escalated his hunger strike on 18 December after more than 115 days. Previously, he had been drinking fruit juice with dairy, but since 18 December, he is only drinking water. With his hunger strike, he is demanding his release from prison.

Maikel Nabil Sanad was arrested at the end of march on charges of violating article 184 of the Egyptian penal code, which criminalizes "insulting the People’s Assembly, the Shura Council or any State Authority, or the Army or the Courts", and article 102, "spreading false information". In a trial in front of a military court violating all established legal standards, he was sentenced to three years' imprisonment on 10 April 2011, in absence of his family, friends, or lawyers. Since then he has been kept in El Marg prison.

On 23 August, Maikel Nabil Sanad began a hunger strike in protest against his imprisonment. In a statement at the beginning of his hunger strike, he declared that his hunger strike is in protest against the severe injustice he is subjected to, namely his unfair trial in front of a military court, the slow processing of his appeal, and the difference of treatment compared to other cases.

On 11 October, the military appeal court declared the original sentence of 10 April 2011 "null and void", but failed to release Maikel Nabil Sanad.

The sentencing of Maikel Nabil Sanad to two year's imprisonment is a blatant violation of Egypt's interim constitution, and of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Egypt is a party. It guarantees the right to a fair trial in article 14, and freedom of opinion and expression in article 19. On 21 July, the Human Rights Committee of the United Nations passed a new General Comment 34 on the right to freedom of opinion and expression. It writes: "States parties should not prohibit criticism of institutions, such as the army or the administration." (see http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrc/docs/GC34.pdf). The sentencing and imprisonment is in clear violation of the interpretation of article 19 ICCPR, as shown in General Comment 34.

Maikel Nabil Sanad has been adopted by Amnesty International as a "prisoner of conscience", and the human rights organisations is urging Egypt to release him (see http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/egypt-urged-release-blogger-sentenced-mi…).

While the case of Maikel Nabil Sanad was the first case of a blogger imprisoned and charged for his blog posts following the toppling of Mubarak, it is by now not the only one. Famous activist and blogger Alaa Abd El Fattah was arrested on 30 October, and has been kept on repeated 15 day sentences since, pending an investigation into his case. He was arrested following public criticisms of the army's conduct on the night of 9 October, when at least 27 people were killed during a Coptic Christian protest in downtown Cairo. Like many other activists, Abd El Fattah accused the army of direct involvement in the bloodshed, a claim that appears to be supported by extensive witness reports and video footage. He was charged by military prosecutors with "inciting violence against the army", and is being held since.

War Resisters' International calls for urgent letters of support to Maikel Nabil Sanad:
Maikel Nabil Sanad
El-Marg prison
El-Kalag
El-Khanka
Qalyubeya
Egypt
Letters to Maikel can also be sent via http://wri-irg.org/campagins/supportmaikelnabil

War Resisters' International calls for urgent letters of protest to the Egyptian authorities.

Director of Military Judiciary
Major-General Ahmed Abd Allah
Military Judicial Department
Cairo, Egypt
Fax: +202 2 402 4468 / +202 2 411 3452 (ask for fax)

Military General Attorney
Major-General Medhat Radwan
Military Judicial Department
Cairo, Egypt
+202 2 412 0980 (ask for fax)

Minister of Defence
His Excellency Muhammad Tantawi
Ministry of Defence
Cairo, Egypt
mmc@afmic.gov.eg ; mod@afmic.gov.eg
Fax: +20 2 2 5748 822
A protest email can be sent at http://wri-irg.org/node/14350.

War Resisters' International calls on the Egyptian authorities to respond to Maikel Nabil Sanad's hunger strike and to immediately release him.

Andreas Speck
War Resisters' International