Egypt, a court sentences 43 foreign NGO workers to prison

June 05, 2013: An Egyptian court has sentenced to prison 43 operators of non-governmental agencies, including 27 foreigners, for having received illegal funding from abroad. The penalties range from a maximum of five years in prison for 17 U.S. citizens, tried in absentia, to a minimum of one year. The verdict, announced last night by the judge Makram Awad, has sparked strong reaction from the United States. John Kerry, U.S. Secretary of State, said the trial was "incompatible with the democratic transition in Egypt." The United States is the main partner of the Egyptian army, which receives each year from Washington a total of 1.3 billion dollars. The diplomat said the convictions are a serious attack on Egyptian civil society, which bring the country back to the period of the Mubarak regime.
The crackdown by the Egyptian authorities against foreign NGOs began at the end of 2011 during demonstrations against the Army High Council (SCAF) headed by General Mohamed Hussein Tantawi. At the time the court had ordered the closure of a number of organizations charging that, under the pretext of supporting the transition to democracy, they fomented riots against the military government by illegally receiving money from abroad. The process continued under the rule of the Muslim Brotherhood and has led to the expulsion of several American organizations including the International Republican Institute (IRI), the National Democratic Institute (NDI) and Freedom House
(AsiaNews / Agencies)