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After his innocence been proven, who is going to rehabilitate Kareem Amer?
Cairo, March 3, 2008
After one year passed on the imprisonment of the secular prisoner of conscious, the blogger Kareem Amer, The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information said today that the campaign launched by some independent newspapers nowadays has proved the innocence of Kareem Amer from insulting the president. Amer was imprisoned for one year on an article written that criticized one of Islamic charity assemblies in the Damanhour city of Delta, stating this assembly described the president of the republic as the "prince of believers" (like a Khalifa in the older Islamic history).
General Prosecution had accused Kareem Amer of insulting the president according to article 179 of penal code on an article written in 2005 titled "vote for Mubarak…the prince of believers!". Kareem Amer said during the investigation that his essay was a critical one because the Sheikh of Al-Azhar had called Al-Azhar Sheikhs to issue a document in order to vote for Mubarak during the presidential elections, but they refused. Then a group called "Prophet Mohammed Sunni Group of Supporters" hung a large placard in Damanhour city that called on voting for Hosni Mubarak as "the prince of believers"!!
Five days ago, independent newspapers started to highlight this charity assembly whose chairman insisted on titling the president as "prince of disbelievers.” This in fact supports what was mentioned in Amer's article & proves also that he wasn't the one who said it.
Gamal Eid, executive director of the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information said that "Kareem Amer was punished because of criticizing an act that took place three years ago. Just today, he was proved to be right, as it was proved by Al-Karama and Al-Masry Al-Youm newspapers. This matter assures how such articles of the penal code are flexible & vague and can be interpreted in the interest of or against any body accused of them. Kareem Amer deserves to be acquitted of that accusation and we shall turn away all other accusations against him when the case comes to the cassation court.
For more details about Kareem Amer's case, visit:
http://www.hrinfo.net/en/focus/2007/pr0117.shtml
The Arabic Network advocacy pleading which contained details of the incident is available at:
www.openarab.net/campaigns/2007/camp5.shtml
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