Interview
Director of Al Ahram expected "positive news" about the Italy-Egypt meeting, but he was wrong
"We denounce what happens, we ask that the perpetrators of this crime are brought to justice." Director of Al Ahram was blatantly contradicted. Human rights activist Gamal Eid predicted the failure at Rome: not even the deterioration of relations between Egypt and Italy will push the regime to reveal the whole truth
“We expect positive news, inshAllah “. What kind of good news, was asked yesterday morning Abdel Hadi Mohammed Allam, director of Al Ahram, one of the most important Egyptian daily newspaper: does it mean that the Egyptian delegation will provide the information the Italian Public Prosecutor has been asking for a long time? “There is good cooperation between the two sides, I expect good news.”
Allam had not gone over about the mission of the Egyptian delegation that yesterday and Thursday met in Rome with the prosecutors who are investigating the kidnapping and brutal murder of Giulio Regeni. Vague wishes, phrases thrown around that had left us even more doubtful on the real goals of the Egyptian mission.
And we could not help but notice that reticence had the upper hand on courage, just a few days ago, it pushed Allam to demand, from the pages of his newspaper, a very different attitude by the Egyptian authorities on the Regeni case.
Then the announcement yesterday evening from Rome: complete failure, the Italian Government recalls its ambassador in Cairo. Allam’s artificial optimism elicits bitter smiles, in addition to a great disappointment. The director of al Ahram had answered our questions as if he had a recorded tape in his throat.
“We Egyptians have always appreciated Italy’s support, since June 30th … we have to think about the future (of relations between the two countries, editor’s note)”, he repeated it several times, referring to the 2013 strike that opened the way for the military coup against President Mohammed Morsi and the government of the Muslim Brotherhood. Now those relationships he wanted to preserve, are torn.
The attitude of the director of al Ahram confirmed to us that the Egyptian authorities and the media close to the regime have no intention of giving the clear and definitive answers that the Regeni family, the prosecutors, and Italy as a whole, have been expecting for the last two months.
The Egyptian civil society, traumatized by Giulio’s assassination, shares the same pessimism.
“If I were an Italian, I would not rely on the talks in Rome,” told us yesterday Gamal Eid, founder and director of Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI), one of the largest NGOs in the Arab world on the protection of freedom of opinion.
“I doubt that the Egyptian mission can make a change to the investigation on Giulio’s death, horribly tortured and killed,” added the director of Anhri, convinced that even the risk of a further deterioration of relations between Egypt and Italy will push the authorities in Cairo to, finally, reveal the whole truth.
He was right.
“To be honest, I’m not even sure that the members of the Egyptian delegation who went to Rome are aware of the truth,” Eid said “it is a shame that such a terrible murder of a foreign citizen has taken place in our country. Egyptians love truth and freedom, respect for human rights, and they have the right to know everything, all the way, without omissions. But I doubt the intention, the will and even the capability (of the regime, editor’s note) to proclaim the truth.”
We told Eid that in Italy, the media report rifts within the Egyptian security services, which are considered the probable responsible for Giulio’s kidnapping and murder.
He stated he is not aware of any cracks in Egyptian intelligence, however, he pointed out, “other State apparati are divided, they often move independently and this causes serious abuse and grave violations of human rights, in addition to those executed by the intelligence services.”
Then, we asked Eid if the terrible end of Giulio Regeni will help the Egyptians to find the strength to escape the most brutal manifestations of Abdel Fattah Sisi’s regime.
The Director of Anhri reflected for a few seconds before answering, then he pointed out that every day, the Egyptian population comes to terms “with the disappearance of persons, torture, abuse and violations of human rights that happens under the umbrella of total impunity for those responsible for these crimes.”
Eid also stated they are committed to “continue reporting what is happening and demanding emphatically that those who commit these crimes are brought to justice.”
The Egyptians, he said, “are not a single group. One part of society, which also includes some information generators, are ready to do anything to defend and protect the image of the government, even in the face of gross violations of human rights. Another part of the Egyptian society, I believe the majority, who wants freedom of thought, wants democracy, it does not follow the government media and expresses through social media. The assassination of Giulio therefore could be the beginning of something important for Egypt. “
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