The International League Against Arbitrary Detention urges the Government of Egypt to take all the necessary actions to implement the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention Opinion No. 40/2023 concerning Aya Mohamed Ibrahim al-Afifi asking for the Government of Egypt to immediately and unconditionally release her and to accord her an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations in accordance with international law.
Read the full WGAD Opinion concerning Aya Mohamed Ibrahim al-Afifi (Egypt): Opinion No. 40/2023.
SUBJECTED TO ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCE AND PROLONGED PRE-TRIAL DETENTION
Aya Mohamed Ibrahim al-Afifi is an Egyptian doctor, born on 10 January 1991. Ms. al-Afifi is the administrator of the Warm Houses Facebook group, which aims to support the families of victims of arbitrary detention.
On 13 June 2022, State security officers illegally broke into Ms. al-Afifi’s house and arrested her. Following her arrest, Ms. al-Afifi was detained at an undisclosed location for three days, after which she was brought before the Public Prosecutor of Mansoura and accused of joining a banned group, funding a terrorist group, misusing social media, and establishing a group to support the families of individuals in terrorist groups. Ms. al-Afifi was then placed in pretrial detention pending investigation at the Al-Qanater women’s prison, known for its poor detainment conditions, where she remains to date.
The source noted that the counter-terrorism legislation that Ms. al-Afifi has been charged under, namely the Anti-Terrorism Law, has been used systematically by Egyptian authorities to punish critical voices and activists. These charges are punishable with the death penalty under Egyptian law. Though given the opportunity to answer these allegations, the Government chose not do.
First, the Working Group found that Ms. al-Afifi’s arrest was arbitrary, as authorities failed to provide her with an arrest warrant and her detention was not ordered by, or subjected to, the effective control of a judicial or other authority under the law, in violation of articles 3 and 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 9 (1) of the Covenant.
Moreover, she was subjected to enforced disappearance for three days following her arrest, which effectively placed her outside the protection of the law, in breach of article 6 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and articles 9(1) and 16 of the Covenant. Furthermore, the government failed to promptly inform Ms. al-Afifi of any charges, in violation of article 9(2) of the Covenant.
Finally, the Egyptian authorities failed to bring Ms. al-Afifi before a judicial authority within 48 hours of her arrest and to justify the prolonged use of pre-trial detention in this case, in breach of article 9(3) of the Covenant.
Considering these violations, the Working Group concluded that her arrest and subsequent detention were devoid of any legal basis, thus rendering her deprivation of liberty arbitrary under Category I.
DETAINED AND ACCUSED OF TERRORISM FOR BEING A HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER
According to the source, Ms. al-Afifi was detained for having administered a Facebook group supporting the families of victims of arbitrary detention, which the Egyptian authorities considered as supporting the families of individuals in terrorist groups. Thus, the Working Group noted that Ms. al-Afifi's detention resulted from the peaceful exercise of the right to freedom of association and the right to take part in the conduct of public affairs, and was therefore contrary to article 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 22 of the Covenant.
The Working Group also noted that Ms. al-Afifi was charged with terrorism-related charges, and that the amendments made in February 2020 to the Terrorist Entities Law and the Anti-Terrorism Law are being used for the large-scale targeting of human rights defenders in Egypt. The Working Group recalled that broad, vague, and imprecise laws can present a risk of providing domestic legal coverage to situations that are considered arbitrary detention under international human rights law.
In light of the above, the Working Group concluded that Ms. al-Afifi's detention was arbitrary, falling under Category II, as it stemmed from her peaceful exercise of her fundamental rights.
SUBJECTED TO ILL-TREATMENT AND BLATANT VIOLATIONS OF HER RIGHT TO A FAIR TRIAL
Ms. al-Afifi was subjected to ill-treatment during her detention, including threats and verbal assaults, in violation of article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and articles 7 and 10 (1) of the Covenant. The Working Group recalled that ill-treatment is a grave violation of human rights and severely hinders an individual's ability to defend themselves, thereby undermining her right to a fair trial.
Moreover, although Ms. al-Afifi had access to a lawyer during her first interrogation and the first detention renewal hearing, she was denied all visits from her counsel at the detention facility. As such, the Working Group considered that her right to adequate time and facilities for the preparation of her defense, enshrined in article 14(3)(b) of the Covenant, had been violated.
The Working Group also stressed that all detained and imprisoned individuals have the right to communicate and be visited by their families, which was denied to Ms. al-Afifi. Moreover, Ms. al-Afifi’s right to appropriate health care, food, water, and sanitation was violated as she was detained in unhygienic and overcrowded conditions, and the prison banned the delivery of necessary items such as food, medication, and feminine hygiene products.
For the above reasons, the Working Group concluded that the violations of Ms. al-Afifi's right to a fair trial and due process were of such gravity that it rendered her deprivation of liberty arbitrary under Category III.
CONCLUSIONS OF THE UN WORKING GROUP AGAINST ARBITRARY DETENTION
In light of the foregoing, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention considered that the detention of Ms. Aya Mohamed Ibrahim al-Afifi was arbitrary and fell under categories I, II and III because her deprivation of liberty was in contravention of articles 3, 5, 6, 9 and 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and articles 9, 7, 10, 14, 16 and 22 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention recommended that the Government of Egypt take the necessary steps to remedy the situation of Ms. Aya Mohamed Ibrahim al-Afifi without delay and bring it into conformity with the relevant international norms. The Working Group considered that, taking into account all the circumstances of the case, the appropriate remedy would be to immediately release Ms. Aya Mohamed Ibrahim al-Afifi and to accord her an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations.
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