Foreign Ministry said that the Human Rights Watch report, which included accusations on human trafficking in Sinai, ignores several facts related to this phenomenon, which Egypt pays careful attention to.
In a statement on Thursday, the ministry added that the report ignores the importance given by Egypt to human trafficking and that it was on top of countries that joined United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its protocol which penalizes human trafficking.
The 79-page HRW report documents how, since 2010, Egyptian traffickers have tortured Eritreans for ransom in the Sinai Peninsula, including through rape, burning and mutilation. It also documents torture by traffickers in eastern Sudan and 29 incidents in which victims told Human Rights Watch that Sudanese and Egyptian security officers facilitated trafficker abuses rather than arresting them and rescuing their victims. Egyptian officials deny there are trafficker abuses in Sinai, allowing it to become a safe haven for traffickers.
In light of its negative impact on Egyptian society, the ministry said the government makes huge efforts to achieve its international commitments in field of combating the organized crime, especially the human trafficking.
In 2007, according to the statement, the national coordinating committee was founded to fight and prevent human trafficking. It helped in issuance of law no. 64 for the year 2010 over combating the human trafficking.
Egyptian peacekeeping forces are being trained on the issue, dimensions and dangers before being dispatched to any countries, especially those that recently coming out of conflicts, where forms of human trafficking are high.
Authorities in questions are working on the human trafficking phenomenon in complete cooperation with United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Government provides victims with shelter and support.
Security reports refer to a decline in number of African illegal immigrants via Sinai to Israel since 30 June, when Sinai and borders areas common with Israel were combed by military and security troops. High security presence led to crackdown on gangs that smuggle humans and work in other illegal fields.
Edited translation from MENA
