The Foreign Ministry has said that the report issued by Amnesty International on the third anniversary of the 25 January revolution is unbalanced, inaccurate and reflects disregard on the part of the international organization to the will and aspirations of the Egyptian people, as it contains allegations contrary to reality.
“The Egyptian government is accountable to its people first and foremost and will not pay attention to attempts to distort facts,” said Assistant Foreign Minister for International Organizations and Security Hisham Badr.
“It is clear they do not understand the challenges faced by the people and the government, particularly the fight against terrorism and violence.”
In its report on Thursday, the organization said Egypt had seen state violence on an “unprecedented scale” since the army overthrew Islamist President Mohamed Morsy last July following mass protests against his rule.
Egypt's authorities “quash dissent and trample on human rights,” Amnesty said, pointing to mass arrests, pressure on freedom of expression and the introduction of a law that limits the right to protest.
Badr also said that the ministry monitors closely reports of international human rights organizations and world media with a genuine desire to listen to constructive criticism aimed to avoid what might taint democratic transformation in Egypt.
“The new Constitution establishes bases for freedoms and rights that are unprecedented in the history of this country,” he said, pointing out that some individual errors may occur from time to time during the fight against crime, violence and terrorism.
He said the president formed an independent commission headed by a renowned international judge to gather information and evidence about all the violence that the country has witnessed in the recent period. “This proves that the government is laying foundations for accountability for all mistakes and violations of the law,” he noted.
He added that no person is arrested without warrant from public prosecution, except in cases of flagrante delicto crimes, taking into account all fair trial standards.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
