Egypt

Salah's Egypt, Mané's Senegal into African Cup semifinals

Associated Press via The Washington Post(Link: Salah's Egypt, Mané's Senegal into African Cup semifinals)

Egypt’s Mohamed Salah, celebrates at the end of the African Cup of Nations 2022 quarter-final soccer match between Egypt and Morocco at the Ahmadou Ahidjo stadium in Yaounde, Cameroon, Sunday, Jan. 30, 2022. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)

YAOUNDE, Cameroon — The biggest stars of African soccer are on course to meet in their continent’s biggest game.

Mohamed Salah’s Egypt and Sadio Mané’s Senegal reached the African Cup of Nations semifinals on Sunday. One more win for both teams will see the Liverpool pair meet in the final.

Salah scored the equalizer and created the winner to inspire Egypt’s comeback to beat Morocco 2-1 after extra time in the day’s first quarterfinal.

Mané set up Famara Diedhiou for Senegal’s opener in a 3-1 win over Equatorial Guinea later at the same Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium in Yaounde.

Substitutes Cheikhou Kouyaté and Ismaila Sarr finished off Equatorial Guinea, which had drawn level through Jannick Buyla a few minutes after having a penalty awarded and then taken away through a VAR check.

Egypt progressed to a semifinal game against tournament host Cameroon, a repeat of the 2017 final that Cameroon won. That game on Thursday will also be a clash between the two most successful sides in African Cup history with 12 titles between them.

Senegal plays Burkina Faso in the first semifinal on Wednesday, when Mané’s team will be aiming to make a second straight final. Senegal hopes to finally win one this year to get rid of its unwanted label as the best team to never win an African title.

Egypt fell behind to an early penalty won by Achraf Hakimi and converted by Sofiane Boufal in the seventh minute.

Egypt captain Salah reacted quickly to knock in a rebound to make it 1-1 in the 53rd and sent in a perfect low cross for Trézéguet to tap in near the end of the first half of extra time.

Egypt was left to rely on third-choice goalkeeper Mohamed Sobhy for most of extra time after an injury to Mohamed Abou Gabal, who was already in the team in place of No. 1 Mohamed el-Shenawy.

Abou Gabal was injured in normal time but tried to play through it. He couldn’t and had to come off in the sixth minute of extra time, leaving the 22-year-old Sobhy to make his debut for his country in the final stages of a high-pressure game.

In the end he wasn’t tested and Salah and Trézéguet combined for the winner four minutes after Sobhy came on. Salah was faced with three defenders covering him on the right wing but he went for the outside and sent a right-foot cross into the path of Trézéguet at the back post.

Trézéguet’s celebration was all about recognizing the brilliance of Salah. He kneeled in front of the Liverpool forward, put Salah’s right foot on his knee and pretended to shine his boot.

Egypt hasn’t won the African Cup since its record-extending seventh title in 2010. Salah made his debut for the national team the year after that triumph and is still searching for a first major title with his country.

So is Liverpool teammate Mané, although Senegal’s wait has been much longer.

Mané’s pass opened up Equatorial Guinea’s defense for center forward Diedhiou to score in the 28th.

Senegal appeared in control but got a first warning when captain Kalidou Koulibaly had a penalty awarded against him in the 50th minute. It was canceled by referee Victor Gomes after he saw on VAR that Koulibaly’s right hand was down by his side when the ball struck it.

Equatorial Guinea did get its goal seven minutes later but the introduction of Kouyaté and Sarr as substitutes paid off big time for Senegal coach Aliou Cissé.

Kouyaté put Senegal ahead just three minutes after arriving when he pounced on a miscued defensive header. Sarr finished after brilliant work down the left wing by Saliou Ciss.

That goal was also vindication for Senegal after insisting that Sarr join up with the squad at the African Cup of Nations despite his club Watford saying he was injured and wouldn’t be able to play at the tournament.

Sarr was sent to Spain by Senegal for treatment on a knee injury and will now be a part of the final stages of his country’s title chase.

Senegal will play Burkina Faso back at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium. Egypt and Cameroon will meet at the tournament’s main Olembe Stadium across town in Yaounde after it was cleared to stage games again following last week’s deadly stadium crush.

وتستمر الطرق الملتويه

الاهرام ٢٢ يناير ٢٠٢٢
بقلم عزة رضوان صدقي

 

 

يواصل الإعلام الغربي إشاعة الادعاءات الكاذبة عن مصر. فقد نشرت وكالة الأنباء الفرنسية مقالا عن مصر وتداولته وكالات الأنباء الأخرى، وقد جاء في العنوان: الولايات المتحدة تعتقل رجلاً بتهمة التجسس على معارضي مصر السيسي 

الموضوع واقعي. من المحتمل أن يكون بيير جرجس، المصري المتهم بالتجسس، قد جمع معلومات عن أشخاص يهددون أمن مصر. سوف نتعمق في هذه القضية لاحقًا. الشيء الغريب حقًا الذي يستحق التركيز عليه هو الصياغة في العنوان والمحتوى 

لنبدأ بالعنوان.. عبارة "مصر السيسي" مقصودة ومحسوبة. إنها تثير صورة نظام استبدادي حيث يهيمن شخص واحد فوق الأمة بأكملها. لم يشر عنوان المقال مثلا الي "رئيس مصر"، لانه لن يكون سلبيا بالقدر الكافي. أما "مصر السيسي" فهو عنوان أكثر تعمداً وغلظة. لكن إذا كانت نية الإعلام الغربي خلق انطباع سيئ لدى الشعب ضد الرئيس السيسي بفقدانه بلده لشخص واحد، أخشى أن جهودهم لم تلق آذاناً صاغية

يشير المقال إلى أن السلطات الأمريكية "تتبعت وحصلت على معلومات بشأن المعارضين السياسيين للرئيس المصري عبد الفتاح السيسي". تهمة التجسس ليست مرتبطة بأي حال من الأحوال مباشرة برئيس الدولة ومع ذلك فإن وسائل الإعلام الغربية مبدعة للغاية في محاولة توريط الرئيس في كل فعل ما وبالذات الأمور المشكّكة في أمرها. هذا الأسلوب مقصود ويسبقه الإصرار المتعمد

ماذا عن معارضي مصر نفسها؟ هل هؤلاء المعارضون السياسيون ضد رئيس مصر فقط أم هم ضد مصر بشكل عام؟  تم اختيار الصياغة لإثارة المزيد من المعارضين لمصر وتحريض الآخرين على اتباع نفس المسار. إنه نمط تكيفت معه وسائل الإعلام الغربية لفترة طويلة لدرجة أنه أصبح غير مؤثر تقريبًا

وتستمر الفبركة. كان جرجس قد أرسل معلومات بشأن "ناشط مناهض للسيسي" "حصل عليها من الحكومة المصرية ووفرها إلى منفذي القانون الأمريكيين". في اعتقادي أن إبلاغ المعلومات إلى ضباط تنفيذ القانون الأمريكيين هو أمر إيجابي لكن هؤلاء الضباط لا يبالون بما قد يصيب مصر من هؤلاء "المناهضين"، ولا يبالون بحق مصر في ملاحقة كل من تسوِّل له نفسه إيذاء مصر أينما كان

المقال غير مهضوم ويمتثل إلى الإهمال والغباء وفشل فشلا كبيرا في خلق الذريعة

ثم نأتي إلى مفهوم "التجسس". لكي نكون واقعيين لنعترف بأن جميع الدول تقريبا تحاول حماية نفسها ومواطنيها واقتصاداتها وحدودها عن طريق أجهزة المخابرات.  لكن من المضحك أنه إذا أشارت وسائل الإعلام الغربية إلى الجواسيس الغربيين يطلق عليهم "أعضاء أجهزة المخابرات" بينما في حالة مصر فهم ليسوا سوى جواسيس

هذا لا يجعل التجسس مقبولًا من الناحية الأخلاقية، لكنه يخبرنا بأنه موجود. يقول تقرير صادر عن المقرر الخاص للأمم المتحدة المعني بحرية الرأي والتعبير، "لقد أتاحت التغييرات في التقنيات أيضًا فرصًا جديدة لمراقبة الدول والتدخل في الحياة الخاصة للأفراد". ووفقًا لمؤسسة كارنيجي للسلام الدولي فإن عددًا متزايدًا من الدول ينشر أدوات مراقبة متقدمة لمراقبة وتتبع المواطنين

كما تمتلك الولايات المتحدة شبكة استخبارات أكثر شمولاً وتطوراً بين جميع الدول. تقول البي بي سي "تتجسس الولايات المتحدة على العالم بأسره". وكأداة لحد الإرهاب قامت الولايات المتحدة بمراقبة الأفراد الأمريكيين وغير الأمريكيين والدول الأصدقاء منهم والأعداء. في وقت من الأوقات راقبت الولايات المتحدة المندوبين الفرنسيين في الأمم المتحدة وكذلك هاتف المستشارة الألمانية السابقة أنجيلا ميركل

المثال الأمثل لهذا يتواجد في قضية إدوارد سنودن. كان يعمل سنودن كخبير في وكالة الأمن القومي الأمريكية عندما قرر الإفصاح عن آلاف الوثائق عالية السرية المتعلقة بوكالات المخابرات الأمريكية ومقدار المراقبة التي تجريها. يقول سنودن إن وكالة الأمن القومي لم تكن تجمع معلومات عن المجرمين والجواسيس والإرهابيين والأشخاص ذوي القيمة الاستخبارية فحسب، لقد كانوا يجمعون معلومات عن الجميع في كل مكان طوال الوقت لأنه لا يعرف أبدًا ما قد يثبت أنه هام فيما بعد. وإذا فاتت الفرصة فقد لا تحصل على فرصة أخرى

القضية التي دوّنها المقال جديرة بالملاحظة والمتابعة لأن الولايات المتحدة تتهم مصريا ذا جنسية مزدوجة بالتجسس. ما هو غير مقبول هو الإدراج المتعمد والغير محله للرئيس السيسي في القضية، وهو تكتيك غير ذي صلة ولا علاقة له بالموضوع

تعدُّ الموضوعية وعدم دعم البعض ضد البعض الآخر أمرًا أساسيًا حتى تتمكن وسائل الإعلام من الاستمرار في لعب دورها الأساسي وهو كشف بواطن الامور للقراء. بمجرد تحريف المعلومات والتلاعب بها تصبح وسائل الإعلام أداة مثيرة للانقسام والبغيضة. عندها يقوم القراء بتجاهل المصادر المشكوك فيها تمامًا

 

 

 

The media deceit continues

Al Ahram Weekly and Ahram Online

Azza Radwan Sedky

Tuesday 18 Jan 2022

The Western media has once again revealed its hostile agenda towards Egypt, this time in reporting the arrest of an Egyptian national in the United States, writes Azza Radwan Sedky

Here we go again: the Western media continues to dump its grime on Egypt. Yet another article published on Egypt by Agence France Press (AFP) has been circulating widely, its headline reading “US arrests man for spying on opponents of Egypt’s Sisi.” 

The topic is factual, no doubt about it. The chances are that Pierre Girgis, the Egyptian man charged with spying in the US, may have gathered information on persons threatening Egypt’s security. We will delve into that issue later on. What is really bizarre and worth focusing on here is the wording of the headline and also the content. 

Let’s start with the headline. The phrase “Egypt’s Sisi” is intentional and calculated. It evokes a picture of an authoritarian regime in which a single person hovers over the whole nation. The article does not refer to “the president of Egypt” because that would come across as benign. “Egypt’s Sisi” is more deliberate and vehement. 

But Western media, if the intention was to create a malign impression of President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi, and one in which Egyptians have lost their country to a single person, I’m afraid your efforts have fallen on deaf ears. 

The malice continues. The article refers to the US authorities having “tracked and obtained information regarding political opponents of Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi.” The latter phrase is hyperlinked, sending readers to a BBC article entitled “Egyptian President Abdul-Fattah Al-Sisi: Ruler with an Iron Grip.”

The issue of the spying charges is in no way directly connected to the president of our nation, and yet the Western media is very inventive in trying to implicate the president in any wrong-doing. This is premeditated but very apparent. 

What about the “political opponents”? Are these only against Egypt’s president, or are they against Egypt in general? Again, the wording has been chosen to egg on those who are against Egypt and to incite others to follow the same route. It’s a pattern that the Western media has been attuned to for so long that it has become almost nondescript. 

The article continues by saying that Girgis had sent information about an “anti-Sisi activist” that “he obtained from the Egyptian government to US law-enforcement officers.” One might have thought that reporting such information to US law-enforcement officers would be a positive matter, but such officers do not see eye to eye with Egypt. One might also wonder if the “anti-Sisi activist” is against Egypt itself, since this would give Egypt the right to go after him wherever he is.

The article is careless and inconsequential. In trying to create a mountain out of a molehill, it has failed miserably.

Then we come to the notion of “spying.” Secret intelligence operations are conducted by almost all countries in an effort to protect themselves, their citizens, their economies, and their borders. However, if the Western media refers to Western spies, they are usually called “members of the intelligence services,” while in Egypt’s case, they are nothing but evil-spirited “spies.” 

“Spies” have also been around for millennia. According to the Bible, the Lord said to Moses, “send men to explore Canaan.” So, at the Lord’s command, Moses dispatched men to explore the land of Canaan for 40 days. 

While this does not always make spying morally justifiable, it does tell us that it has existed for centuries. Countries around the world even spy on their friends as well as on their embassies and agencies. 

A report by the UN special rapporteur on the freedom of opinion and expression says that “changes in technologies have also provided new opportunities for state surveillance and intervention into individuals’ private lives,” for example. According to the US Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, “a growing number of states are deploying advanced Al surveillance tools to monitor, track, and surveil citizens.”

The US itself has the most extensive and sophisticated intelligence network of all nations. In fact, as the BBC says, the “US spies on ‘the entire globe.’” Employing spying as a necessary tool in the fight against terrorism, the US has conducted mass surveillance of individuals and countries, friends and foes, and Americans and non-Americans. All these have been watched and spied upon. French delegates at the UN were under surveillance at one point, as was the mobile phone of former German chancellor Angela Merkel.

Another case in point is US national Edward Snowden, who worked as an IT expert for the American National Security Agency (NSA) before he let the cat out of the bag by releasing thousands of top-secret documents from the NSA indicating the amount of surveillance it conducts. Since 2013 when Snowden exposed the NSA actions, he has been in hiding, seeking asylum, or about to be extradited to the US. For the last few years he has been granted asylum in Russia. 

Snowden said that “they [the NSA] were not just collecting and intercepting communications from criminals, spies, terrorists, people of intelligence value – they were collecting on everyone, everywhere, all of the time, just in case, because you never know what’s going to be interesting. And if you miss it when it’s passing by, you might not get another chance.”

The issue reported by the AFP article is worth examining since the US is charging an Egyptian with dual citizenship with espionage. What isn’t acceptable, however, is the intentional and unnecessary insertion of President Al-Sisi into this case, since this is irrelevant and beside the point.  

Objectivity and non-partisan criticism are vital for the media to continue to play its fundamental role of informing readers. But if the information it provides is twisted and played with, the media becomes a divisive tool. It is then that readers disregard the media altogether because they consider it not to be worthy of their trust.

---

* The writer is the author of Cairo Rewind on the First Two Years of Egypt’s Revolution, 2011-2013.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 20 January, 2022 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.

A memoir befitting a journey

Ahram Online, by Rania H. Bedeir, (Excerpt: A memoir befitting a journey) 

Muthakarrat Azza Fahmy: Ahlam La Tantahi, Al-Dar Al-Misriyya wal-Lubnaniyya, 2021, pp.399

The first words in renowned regional and international jewellery designer Azza Fahmy’s memoir Never-Ending Dreams (2021) depict who she is at her core: “I have never taken a moment to stop and think of myself. With the wind in my hair, I am constantly on the go. A fast train moving to the speed of light.”

To know her is to witness the embodiment of her story: Her years of perseverance through the early mornings and late nights. Her long research excursions and twenty-year apprenticeship at Khan El Khalili (Egypt’s traditional Souq and craftsman district). She is a woman ahead of her time and the mentor who never stops seeking and exuding inspiration.

When I last met with her, she had tears in her eyes as she explained how time was not on her side: “There is so much more that I want to do if only I had the time.” Fifty years ago, she uttered the same sentiment: “If only my hands were capable of translating what’s inside my mind.” That was the flame that set off her fifty-year journey and continues to ignite the fire under her skin today.

Fahmy’s writing, like her work ethic, is detailed and well documented, meticulous and highly organized. She always saw her story as a simple one, a series of unpremeditated actions that made her who she is. She never stopped in her tracks to think about where each decision will lead her. “I was just living my life, I was just being me,” she says as she tries to explain the reasons behind the decision to compose her memoir. She adds: “But everyone around me told me it was important for the young generations to learn from my experience.” In her mind, the only way to go about doing so was to retrace her footsteps: “I asked myself the most fundamental question: what has brought me here?” She could only answer that by weaving Egypt’s history with her own. For she is the product of everything Egyptian and so in telling her story, she entwines the stories of her ancestors.

Fahmy is keen to recount every detail that shaped her. She dedicates full chapters to her roots, the city she grew up in, her school, her summers, and to the family members with the most influence. Her Sudanese grandmother, whom Fahmy learns fifty years later had twenty-four jewellers in her family. Her Egyptian-Sudanese father, the cultured man who instilled in her the love of country and allowed her the freedom to see the South through progressive and liberal eyes. Her mother with the braided hair taught her the value of being content with what is available in the face of any storm. In Sohag, she lived a comfortable life surrounded by a cosmopolitan intelligentsia in her father’s entourage and her mother  who played tennis at the club--things that are unheard of in the rural south. That kind of freedom opened her mind to have the curiosity to explore, to look around in wonderment, and to take in everything from the cooking traditions to the trees that shaded her home to the inscriptions on the temples. The Coptic, Muslim, and Pharaonic mélange around her left an imprint on her craft and art. They were all engraved in her heart as the building blocks that would unfold in her journey.

Readers will be surprised to learn that passion for jewellery design was not on Fahmy’s radar. She was only concerned about finding her passion. After fumbling through various endeavors, she refers to what happened next as poetic divine intervention. “It was 1969 and I can still remember the moment I stumbled upon a book that would change my whole life,” she recalls with a sparkle in her eyes “I don’t know what brought me to the German section of the book fair, I don’t even speak the language, but once I saw that silver piece of jewellery on the pages, I was hooked for life.” And so, without hesitation, she put on her jeans overall, headed to Khan El Khalili, and for the next twenty years, trail blazed her way under the apprenticeship of Egypt’s male-dominated and traditional craftsmen. “I didn’t take off my overall for almost fifteen years,” she says with pride, “in fact I still have them tucked away along with all my fond memories and deepest gratitude.”

After being endowed with a scholarship at the London Polytechnic College in the late seventies, her hands finally caught up with the inspirations of her mind. That is when things really took off for her. She began to sell her pieces, first to the entourage of cultured men and women that comprised her inner circle and then, as her name and designs resonated, to others that saw something they had never seen before. She underlines a special moment in her apprenticeship, “I remember sitting on my tizga (craftsman table) in El Khan workshop and looking across the window at the inscriptions on the minaret of Sultan Qalawun mosque. Like a light bulb that went off, I thought to myself: what if I use this magnificent calligraphy to adorn my pieces.”

That was the moment that catapulted her research and design journey. Fahmy would spend the next thirty years perfecting not only her craft but nurturing her curious spirit. She set out on a journey to catalog the traditional jewellery of Egypt, North Africa, and the Arabian Peninsula and, along the way, attained her greatest inspiration: that every piece of jewellery tells a story. That became the ethos of her design: a storyteller who crafts pieces that tell of ancestors, of local craftsmen who keep old techniques alive, and of design precision that is local in flavor and international in standard.  She points out: “My message is a cultural one but I am not a copier of culture. I am inspired by it. I have to be true to my ancestors and their legacy.” That is how Fahmy views the responsibility that she laid upon herself. She proudly gives the example of the Pharaonic collection launched in 2012 which took eight years to research. To her, accuracy resides not only in design but in every aspect, from research to final execution: “You cannot enter the international markets with local standards anymore. It takes years of study and preparation.”

Read on here. 

12-year-old girl graduates from South Florida college

The brilliant Egyptian 

News4Jax. Excerpt (Link: 12-year-old girl graduates from South Florida College)

 Sawsan Ahmed loves Minecraft, Disney movies, will attend the University of Florida next

Sawsan Ahmed, 12, outside the Broward College library on Dec. 13, 2021. (Emily Michot/Miami Herald) (Emily Michot, Photo provided by Miami Herald)

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – During her first in-person biology lab on campus, the professor asked the class to find an object and swab it for bacteria. Most students wiped their desks and phones. Sawsan Ahmed reached into her backpack and pulled out her white teddy bear, Ben.

Her Broward College classmates looked at her curiously; one casually asked her age.

“Ten,” replied Ahmed to the college freshmen and sophomores.

At the beginning of the semester, they often referred to her as “sweetie” and “honey,” but by the end, they sought her academic expertise.

That was about two years ago. On Wednesday, Sawsan, who towers at nearly 5-foot-8 like some of her peers, but wears ponytails and other hair-dos carefully styled by her mom, graduated from Broward College, the youngest graduate in the school’s 61-year history. A 15-year-old previously held the record.

The now-12-year-old earned an associate’s degree with a concentration in biological science and a 4.0 GPA. In January, she will go on to the University of Florida, where she will study microbiology and cell science.

“It was awesome. I’m so happy,” Sawsan said after the ceremony, her first graduation. Her favorite part was when Broward College President Gregory Adam Haile recognized her on stage.

“Thank you, Sawsan, you have helped us demonstrate that Broward College can support the dreams, regardless of age or academic pursuits,” Haile said, while the crowd cheered.

Loves Disney movies, Minecraft

At first glance, Sawsan is like any other girl her age. She likes playing video games like Minecraft and watching Disney movies — she recently saw “Encanto” and loved it, although “Zootopia” remains her favorite.

But she has been amazing people from an early age.

Shortly after she was born in Providence, Rhode Island, her dad, Dr. Wesam Ahmed, remembers Sawsan was crying, so he started reciting the Islamic call to prayer. She turned to look at him and immediately stopped crying. He stopped reciting, and she started crying again.

The nurse looked at the newborn, at her father and then back at her. She commanded the dad to start reciting, which led to the end of Sawsan’s wails — again.

Ahmed rushed to his wife’s side and announced he believed the baby’s IQ was high because she had recognized his voice, noting the months he spent by his wife’s side talking to Sawsan in the womb.

Jeena Santos Ahmed laughed at her husband, thinking he was behaving like any other proud dad. She made fun of him, but soon realized he was right.

Now he doesn’t miss an opportunity to tease her about it. “He brings it up all the time,” Jeena said.

Read on here. 

لا للتَدّخُل في الشئون الداخلية للدول

الاهرام ٨-١-٢٠٢٢

بقلم عزة رضوان صدقي

قبل أن يصدر الحكم في قضية النشطاء المصريين، تنبأت الحكومة الألمانية بعدم عدالة الأحكام، ودعت الحكومة المصرية إلى "ضمان محاكمة عادلة وإطلاق سراح المتهمين". وبنبرة تهديد قالت إن النطق المرتقب للحكم في٢١ ديسمبر ٢٠٢١ في قضية المحامي محمد الباقر سيظهر إلى أين تتجه أوضاع حقوق الإنسان في مصر

رفضت الخارجية المصرية على الفور التدخل الألماني في الشئون الداخلية المصرية وقال البيان الرسمي: "من الأفضل للحكومة الألمانية أن تستجيب لتحدياتها الداخلية بدلاً من فرض وصايتها على الآخرين". وأكدت الخارجية المصرية على أن افتراض نتيجة محددة للمحاكمة مرفوض رفضًا قاطعًا لأنه ينطوي على تجاوزات دون دليل، ويُعدُّ تدخلا سافرا وغير مبرر في الشأن الداخلي المصري.  كما أن الصياغة التي استخدمتها الحكومة الألمانية في بيانها خاطئة، لأن "ضمان محاكمة عادلة" لا يعني بالضرورة "إطلاق سراح المتهمين". بالطبع يجب أن تكون المحاكمة عادلة ولكن لا ينبغي أبدًا افتراض حكم بعينه

بعد صدور الأحكام أعرب المتحدث باسم وزارة الخارجية الأمريكية نيد برايس عن خيبة أمله قائلا: "يجب أن يتمكن الصحفيون والمدافعون عن حقوق الإنسان وغيرهم ممن يسعون إلى ممارسة حريتهم في التعبير سلمياً دون مواجهة عقوبات جنائية وترهيب ومضايقة أو أي شكل آخر من أشكال الانتقام ". فشدد المتحدث باسم الخارجية المصرية أحمد حافظ على أنه "لا يجوز تناول مثل هذه القضايا في أي إطار سياسي أو ربطها بمسار العلاقات بين البلدين لما يترتب على ذلك من تعقيدات غير مبررة "، وقال أيضا: ليس من المناسب إطلاقا التعليق أو الإشارة بأي شكل من الأشكال إلى الأحكام الصادرة عن القضاء في تنفيذ القوانين المبنية على أدلة قاطعة لا تقبل الجدل في إطار قضائي عادل ونزيه ومستقل

قضيتنا اليوم هي مع عواقب مثل هذه الصياغات الاستباقية من جانب الدول الكبرى. هل يحق لهذه الدول التَدّخُل في الشئون الداخلية للدول الأخرى وأسلوب معالجتها لقضاياها وتحدياتها؟ من حيث الجوهر التَدّخُل في الشئون القضائية للدول الأخرى يجب أن يكون محظورًا، فهو أحد أساليب التلاعب السياسي

تعتقد الدول الكبرى أنه مرخص لها إصدار أحكام على الدول الأخرى وأنه من حقها أن تملي إرادتها على الآخرين. عندما يتم التعدي على طرف ثالث أو إذا تمت الإساءة للقوة الكبرى نفسها، عندئذ فمن حق الدول التَدّخُل لكن التَدّخُل العشوائي وبدون سبب مناسب مرفوض تماما. إلى جانب ذلك لا تمنح مصر لنفسها أبدًا حق انتهاك أحكام أو نظام قضائي أو التنبؤ بأن الأحكام غير مبررة والتحدث باستياء عن الأحكام، فلماذا تمنح الدول الأخرى لنفسها هذا الحق؟

تدعم الولايات المتحدة المدافعين عن الحرية في جهودهم لتأسيس ديمقراطيات في بلدانهم، وتساعد الديمقراطيات المشّكلة حديثًا في اتباع مبادئ الديمقراطية. في ظاهر الأمر هذا شيء جيد، إلا أن هذا في حد ذاته يعني تدخل الولايات المتحدة في الشئون الداخلية للبلاد. ومع ذلك حتى لو كان هذا المنطق سليمًا ومستساغا، هل هذا يعطي الولايات المتحدة الحق في التعدي على النظام القضائي لدولة ما؟

 إن ألمانيا، في حكمها الاستباقي للقضية والولايات المتحدة في حكمها بعد صدور الحكم، يحاولان الحفاظ على هيمنتهما وتفوقهما وإملاء وجهات نظرهما على الأحكام القضائية، وهو مما لا شك فيه مرفوض تماما

في المخطط الكبير للأحداث يمكن أن يؤدي التدخل في شئون الدول الأخرى إلى تسميم العلاقات الدولية والتسبب في تداعيات لا داعي لها، مثل عدم الثقة والشكوك. وفي حالات أخرى أكثر حدة قد ينتج الضغط الدبلوماسي في ردود فعل شديدة مثل فرض عقوبات اقتصادية ثم التطور إلى تدخل عسكري وتخريب العلاقات. غالبية هذه التدخلات تفشل فشلا ذريعا، وينتج عنها مآسٍ تغرق الناس في بؤس ومعاناة. إلى جانب ذلك فإن سيادة الدول ومساواتها مثبتة في ميثاق الأمم المتحدة. بموجب قرار الجمعية العامة للأمم المتحدة رقم ١٠٣-٣٦ المؤرخ في ٩ ديسمبر ١٩٨١ "أنه لا يحق لأية دولة أن تتدخل بشكل مباشر أو غير مباشر، ولأي سبب كان في الشئون الداخلية والخارجية لأية دولة أخرى". ثم ينص القرار الجمعية العامة إذ ترى أن التقيُّد التام بمبدأ عدم التدخل بجميع أنواعه في الشئون الداخلية والخارجية للدول هو أمر ذو أهمية عظمى للمحافظة على الأمن والسلم الدوليين لتحقيق مقاصد ومبادئ الميثاق

من المؤكد أن هناك أوقاتًا يصبح فيها التدخل خيارًا ضروريًا خاصة عندما تكون الأزمات الإنسانية على وشك الحدوث، لكن هذا لا يعني أن فرض وجهات نظر الدول على الآخرين هو خيار مقبول

 

 

To meddle or not to meddle

Al Ahram Weekly, by Azza Radwan Sedky

Foreign interference in other countries’ judicial matters should be off limits since it poisons international relations and can lead to significant mistrust, writes Azza Radwan Sedky

Even prior to the trial of three Egyptian nationals in Cairo late last year, the German government predicted that things would go awry, presuming that the verdicts would be a foregone conclusion. 

It sounded the alarm in a threatening tone. “The upcoming pronouncement of a judgement on 20 December 2021 in the trial of the lawyer Mohamed Al-Baqer will show where the human rights situation in Egypt is heading,” the German government said, also calling on the Egyptian government to “ensure a fair trial and to release those charged.”

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry immediately rejected Germany’s “blatant and unjustified interference in the country’s internal affairs” in a statement, adding that “it would be better for the German government to heed its own internal challenges rather than to impose its guardianship on others.” 

The Foreign Ministry stressed that “assuming a specific outcome [of the trial] is utterly and categorically rejected as it represents a derogation of the judiciary, justice and the principles of the rule of law and the separation of powers that are stipulated in the Constitution.” 

The wording that the German government used in its statement was unsound since “ensuring a fair trial” does not necessarily entail “releasing those charged.” There should be fair trials, but their outcome should never be assumed. It would have been more direct and straightforward of Germany to call on the Egyptian government to free the detained – though that is not Germany’s prerogative, and the case has nothing to do with the German government.  

Once the verdicts were handed down, no further statements came from the German government.

However, soon afterwards another foreign power chose to react. US State Department Spokesperson Ned Price expressed his “disappointment” at the Egyptian judicial rulings. “Journalists, human rights defenders and others seeking to peacefully exercise their freedom of expression should be able to do so without facing criminal penalties, intimidation, harassment or any other form of reprisal,” he said.

In reply, Egyptian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Ahmed Hafez said that “it is not permissible to address such judicial issues in any political framework or to link them to the course of relations between the two countries because of the unjustified complications that this would entail.” 

“It is absolutely not appropriate to comment in any way on, or refer to, rulings issued by the judiciary in the implementation of laws that are based on irrefutable, conclusive evidence within the framework of a fair, impartial and independent judicial process,” he said. 

The issue here concerns the consequences of such preemptive judgements on the part of foreign powers. Should they interfere in other countries’ domestic affairs and their handling of various issues and challenges? The answer is that undoubtedly interference in other countries’ judicial matters should be off limits. In essence, meddling is a method of political manipulation. 

These foreign powers believe that they are licenced to judge other countries and that it is within their rights to dictate to them. Well, they are not, and it isn’t. Only if the rights of a third party, a third country, for example, are being taken advantage of, or if the foreign power itself is being infringed upon, should there be any encroachment or infringement. Interference can never be warranted indiscriminately.  

Egypt would never give itself the right to violate another country’s judgements or criticise its judicial system by speaking ill of its legal verdicts or predicting them to be ungrounded or unjustified. So, why should other countries give themselves that right? 

According to the Washington-based National Museum of American Diplomacy, “the United States supports defenders of freedom in their efforts to establish democracies in their own countries and assists newly formed democracies in following democratic principles.” This in itself is dubious since it is unclear how the US can aid countries in establishing democracies without meddling. Does this aim give the US the right to infringe upon a nation’s judicial system? 

It goes without saying that the US and Germany in their preemptive judgements on last year’s case were trying to maintain their dominance, telling Egypt what to do and dictating their views on Egyptian judicial verdicts before and after they were released. 

In the larger scheme of things, interference and meddling can poison international relations and cause an unnecessarily inflamed discourse that can often lead to mistrust. More importantly, in some cases diplomatic pressure on the part of foreign powers has even led to more substantial reactions such as interventions. 

The majority of interventions fail miserably. All nations’ sovereignty and equality are enshrined in the United Nations Charter. No one country should enforce its ways on other countries even if it is a world power. 

According to the Chinese People’s Daily newspaper, “the chaos and mess stirred up by such political manipulations will never cover up the fact that the US is trying to gain hegemonic control of other countries.” 

“Numerous hard facts have proved that the US is the main culprit threatening global political security as it has frequently interfered in and subverted other countries’ regimes, regarding such misdeeds as tools of foreign policy and causing a large number of tragedies that have plunged people into great misery and suffering,” it said.

There are times when intervention may become a necessary option, especially when humanitarian crises are about to unfold. But that is not to say that enforcing one’s views and ways over others is an acceptable choice. 

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* The writer is the author of Cairo Rewind on the First Two Years of Egypt’s Revolution, 2011-2013.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 6 January, 2022 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.