RIGHTS-EGYPT: Sword Hangs over Civil Society

By Cam McGrath Reprint | | Print |

Cam McGrath

CAIRO, May 30 2003 (IPS) - Egyptian civil society is bracing itself to face a controversial law that requires NGOs to register with the government by May 31 or face liquidation.

Egyptian civil society is bracing itself to face a controversial law that requires NGOs to register with the government by May 31 or face liquidation.

"We really don’t know what will happen next," says Sabry Abdel Mordi of the Hisham Mubarak Law Centre, which offers free legal assistance in human rights cases. "The government could close us down."

Passed in June last year, the controversial NGO (non-governmental organisation) law places strict restrictions on fundraising, administration and political activities. It transfers authority over NGOs, previously the responsibility of the courts, to the Ministry of Social Affairs, and gives Egypt’s 15,000 NGOs until May 31 to register with the ministry or be shut down.

"The government will try to close many NGOs in Egypt that do not manage to register," Abdel Mordi told IPS. "I think we are one of these NGOs."

Under the new law, NGOs need ministry approval for board elections, for joining any organisation outside Egypt and for receiving foreign funds. The law gives the ministry sweeping powers to dissolve any NGO that it considers to be violating its rules. The ministry’s decision is final and cannot be overruled by a court.

Many NGOs have been running under the category of non-profit companies, using a provision in a 1964 law. This has allowed them to operate relatively free of government interference. The new law closes this loophole, and requires the NGOs to register with the ministry.

That is easier said than done, say some who have tried. Several NGOs are finding it difficult to wade through the red tape of the registration process. Some have spent more than six months collecting signatures, filing affidavits and greasing palms, but without success. Many suspect the motive behind the lengthy registration process is to weed out "undesirable" organisations, particularly those engaged in human rights activities.

"Some of the organisations working in the human rights field have been challenged by the government, and not accepted as civil societies or associations," says Mohammed Zarea, director of the Human Rights Centre for the Assistance of Prisoners (HRCAP). "This may be the indicator of the types of problems that will arise as a result of this law."

HRCAP filed its registration papers several months ago and is still awaiting a decision from the ministry. In the meantime, it has prepared a contingency plan if its application is rejected. "If we are unable to work as a human rights organisation we will work as a law firm," Zarea told IPS.

Switching activities could keep the organisation afloat, but severely hinder its efforts to end torture and improve health care in Egyptian prisons. The new law gives the ministry the authority to close down any organisation that commits "a grave violation against the law, public order or public morality." The ministry will decide how it interprets this clause.

The El-Nadim Centre for the Treatment and Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence is also reorganising its activities to stay open. "Our clinic will remain a non-profit company, but our human rights campaign and publications will operate under a new NGO," says physician Magda Adly.

"We will never close," says Adly. "They will have to forcefully close us and put us all in prison."

Not everybody believes it will come to that. What is written in the law may not necessarily translate into practice, says Ashraf Bayoumi, vice-president of the Alexandria Association for Human Rights Advocates (AAHRA). "The Egyptian government has long experience in issuing fantastic laws and not fulfilling any of them," he says.

Bayoumi says the real purpose of the new law is to satisfy foreign donor countries demanding greater NGO participation, while tightening government control over their activities. "The government is trying to balance the two," he told IPS. "It wants to put NGOs under its control while submitting to external pressure."

Western nations have asked Egypt do more to promote civil society, particularly in the field of women’s development, democratic reform and human rights. Bayoumi believes this concern is insincere, and arises from a desire to meddle in Egyptian affairs.

AAHRA is unusual in that it does not receive any foreign funding, but Bayoumi understands why the government is wary of any NGO that does. "They use the banner of democracy and human rights to interfere and dominate," he says.