Experts question Egypt's response to US pressure over human rights violations

• Author: MINA NADER/THE MEDIA LINE
• Published date: 23 September 2021
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

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Three days later, the US State Department announced that Secretary Antony Blinken would release $170 million of the assistance, with the remaining $130 million to be held back based on the rights concerns.

Al-Sisi, in his remarks at the launch of the strategy, drafted by the Supreme Standing Committee for Human Rights established under the authority of the Foreign Ministry, said, "It is my pleasure to start my address on the occasion of the launch of the National Strategy for Human Rights by welcoming you all, contributors to the preparation of this strategy, Egyptians or foreign guests, as you are all sharing with us this radiant moment in Egypt's contemporary history. I consider this step to be momentous on the path toward promoting human rights in Egypt."

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Dr. Sameh Fawzy, a member of the committee's consultative board, told The Media Line, "The National Strategy for Human Rights is a remarkable move toward promoting human rights. It is a state-sponsored strategy, drafted by a high committee formed in November 2018, and deliberated with a 25-member consultative board.

"The strategy has been received with great interest domestically and internationally. However, it is time to think about how to translate it into practice; sustaining human rights, in particular, requires well-constructed programs at both cultural and practical levels," Fawzy said.

Ned Price, the US State Department spokesperson, noted on September 15 that while $130 million of the aid would continue to be withheld, the administration is making available "assistance for Egypt in those categories that I mentioned, and that's border security, nonproliferation, and counterterrorism programs. And we will move forward with that $130 million, the maximum amount that we could withhold, only if the government of Egypt affirmatively addresses specific human rights-related conditions."

In July 2020, then-candidate Joe Biden criticized al-Sisi for Egypt's human rights violations, tweeting: "No more blank checks for Trump's favorite dictator."

Of particular interest to the Biden administration, the US Congress and international human rights advocates are the arrests of political dissenters.

Some 60,000 detainees in Egypt are political prisoners, rights groups estimate. These include secular activists...