Egypt

(asked on 23rd June 2015) - View Source

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their estimate of the short-, medium- and long-term consequences for the stability and security of the region of alleged human rights abuses and failings in the rule of law in Egypt under President al-Sisi.


This question was answered on 6th July 2015

The UK believes that progress on the economy, democracy and human rights are essential for security and stability in Egypt. We do not under-estimate the threat Egypt and the region face from terrorism and violent extremism, and we are committed to deepening our partnership with Egypt to defeat terrorist violence. But this must be done within a framework of respect for human rights.

We urge the Egyptian authorities to apply the rule of law consistently in line with international standards, and to implement the rights contained in Egypt’s constitution by protecting the right to freedom of expression and association. In recent months, Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers have asked the Egyptian authorities to take action to release journalists and political detainees who remain imprisoned; to review mass judicial decisions; and to remove restrictions on civil society.

During the UN Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review in November 2014, we expressed our concern at the number of detainees in pre-trial detention; reports of mistreatment or torture; use of mass trials and trial irregularities; retention of the death penalty; and restrictions on Freedom of Expression and Freedom of Assembly as well as the decreasing space for civil society and the media to operate.

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