Egypt: Journalist and filmmaker Sanaa Seif’s trial adjourned until December 15
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Egypt: Journalist and filmmaker Sanaa Seif’s trial adjourned until December 15
November 10, 2020, Cairo, Egypt—Journalist and filmmaker Sanaa Seif’s trial has been adjourned until December 15 to allow her lawyers to copy the case file and summon exclusion witnesses. The Coalition For Women In Journalism urges the Egyptian authorities to end this unfounded trial and release the journalist immediately.
Film maker Sanaa Seif was abducted on June 23, outside the prosecutor's office. Sanaa was forced into a minivan and escorted to the national security prosecution office for interrogation. She faces allegations of inciting protests and spreading rumors regarding the deterioration of health conditions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sanaa, her sister Mona, and her mother, professor Laila Souif, were attacked, robbed, and beaten by women in front of the Tora prison complex on June 22. Prison guards stood idly by, watching without any attempt to stop the attacks.
The next day, Sanaa accompanied her family to the prosecutor’s office to file an official complaint over the physical assault. Instead, authorities detained Sanaa and forced her into a minivan. She was then taken to the national security prosecution office for interrogation about the charges slapped arbitrarily against her.
According to Sanaa’s lawyers, she made the following statement during her interrogation: “I lost all hope in change, I only want to support my unjustly prisoned brother, and this, I won’t stop doing”.
Sanaa has been imprisoned over flimsy allegations since June, facing charges of spreading disinformation about the COVID-19 breakout in Egypt, which authorities claim to have incited protests. She was previously detained in June 2014 and stood trial over allegations of attacking police officers and demolishing public property. Sanaa was sentenced to three years in jail and a fine of 10.000 L.E (approximately $750). She was released on a conditional presidential pardon on September 23, 2015.
The detention of Sanaa is considered an act of reprisal against activist and blogger Alaa Abdel-Fattah, who has been detained since September 2019 over a false accusation of indicting protests against the president. The imprisonment of Sanaa and Alaa and the relentless intimidation of their family are clear acts of retaliation by the Egyptian authorities.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is monitoring Sana’s trial proceedings closely and calls upon Egyptian authorities to review its practices towards women journalists and political prisoners, in line with its international commitments and pledges to improve press freedom and freedom of expression in Egypt. We aspire for a new era in Egypt where imprisoned journalists will be released and press freedom will be respected.
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The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world, and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
Follow us on Instagram @womeninjournalism and Twitter @CFWIJ. Our website is WomenInJournalism.org and we can be reached at press@womeninjournalism.org
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