Joint statement : Egypt: Planned Presidential Vote Neither Free Nor Fair
| Publisher | Reporters Without Borders |
| Publication Date | 14 February 2018 |
| Cite as | Reporters Without Borders, Joint statement : Egypt: Planned Presidential Vote Neither Free Nor Fair , 14 February 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b85041fa.html [accessed 6 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
February 14, 2018
The Egyptian government has trampled over even the minimum requirements for free and fair elections for the planned March 26-28, 2018 vote for president, RSF said among fourteen international and regional rights organizations.
The government of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has relentlessly stifled basic freedoms among which press freedom.
Al-Sisi's government has also greatly restricted freedom of expression and the press, effectively almost eliminating the space for public criticism of the government and especially criticism of the president. From May to December, the Association of Freedom of Thought and Expression, a local rights group, identified at least 496 websites blocked in Egypt, including those of news and media sites, as well as human rights and political movements.
The government tightly controls state media, and companies with direct and indirect links to the intelligence services have taken over several privately owned television stations and newspapers, according to Reporters Without Borders and other media reports.
At least 26 journalists and citizen-journalists are currently detained in connection with their work in Egypt, which is ranked 161st out of 180 countries in RSF's 2017 World Press Freedom Index.
The repression in advance of Egypt's presidential election is a substantial escalation in a political environment that denies people's rights to political participation and to freedom of expression, association, and peaceful assembly. Even the potential candidates in this upcoming election have been arrested and some of their supporters rounded up.
For the full statement in English and Arabic and a shorter version in French, see below.
Signatories
- Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies
- CIVICUS "World Alliance for Citizen Participation"
- CNCD-11.11.11
- EuroMed Rights "The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network"
- Human Rights First
- Human Rights Watch
- International Commission of Jurists
- International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)
- International Service for Human Rights
- Project on Middle East Democracy
- Reporters Without Borders (RSF)
- Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights
- Solidar
- World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT)
