(arbitrary arrest and detention of four
presumed homosexuals)/Egypt

Case EGY 291101
Arbitrary detention/Torture/Fair trial

The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your
URGENT intervention in the following situation in Egypt.

Brief description of the situation

The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by a
reliable source of the arbitrary arrest and detention of four men
accused of being homosexual in Egypt.

According to the information received, four presumed
homosexuals, R.M.S, S.S.H, S.H, and M.S.A. (identified by
their initials for their protection) were reportedly arrested by the
Egyptian authorities on November 10th, 2001. The arrests have
been confirmed by the Central Vice Squad in Giza, a suburb of
Cairo. The four men have been held in the Boulak Prison Station
in Giza, and are reportedly under investigation for "the habitual
practice of debauchery" - previously also translated as "obscene
behaviour" - under Article 9c of Law No. 10 of 1961 on the
Combat of Prostitution. The men were arrested at the same time
in an appartment that they were using as a "den of perversion,"
according to the police. The Public Prosecutor's Office in
Boulak ordered them to be detained for four days on November
11th, and on November 15th extended their detention period to
December 30th, 2001, at which time the next hearing is due.
The men have not as yet been charged with any offence. It is not
clear whether, if charged, they will be brought before the
Emergency State Security Court or a civil court.

According to the information received, all four men have been
subjected to torture and other forms of cruel, degrading and
inhuman treatment during their detention, including: being
stripped naked and beaten with batons, being splashed with cold
water in the face and being left hanging by the bars of the prison
cells.

The police reports that the men were arrested at the same time
at an appartment allegedly owned by one of the men have been
refuted by the men, according to their lawyers, who claim that
they were arrested in various locations - one in Giza Square,
with the others having been arrested in different parts of Cairo.
Furthermore, the lawyers maintain that the police claim that the
chief defendant was using his appartment as a "den of
perversion" are also untrue, as the chief defendant does not own
the said appartment and is in no way connected to it.

OMCT recalls that these arrests come just one day after the
Emergency State Security Court in Cairo sentenced 23
presumed homosexuals to one to five years of hard labour, also
based on "the habitual practice of debauchery." These
sentences, which have been the subject of International
condemnation, cannot be appealed. 29 other men were
acquitted but remain in detention.

Action requested

Please write to the authorities in Egypt urging them to:

i. take all necessary measures to guarantee the physical and
psychological integrity of the above-mentioned persons;
ii. order their immediate release in the absence of valid legal
charges or, if such charges exist, bring them before an impartial
and competent tribunal and guarantee their procedural rights at
all times;
iii. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the
circumstances of these events in order to identify those
responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal, civil and/or
administrative sanctions as provided by law;
iv. guarantee adequate restitution, compensation and
rehabilitation to all injured people;
v. put an immediate end to the persecution and harassment of
the above-mentioned persons, and more generally all
homosexuals in Egypt;
vi. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental
freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national
laws and international human rights standards.

Addresses

· His Excellency Mohammad Hosni Mubarak, President
of the Arab Republic of Egypt, E-mail:
{ HYPERLINK
"mailto:[email protected]" }[email protected], Fax : +
202 390 1998,
Telex: 93794 WAZRA UN
· His Excellency General Habib al-'Adeli, Minister of the
Interior, Fax: + 202 579 2031, E-mail:
[email protected]
· His Excellency Farouk Solf Al Nasr, Minister of Justice,
Fax: +202 355 81 03

Please also write to the embassies of Kazakhstan in your
respective country.

Geneva, November 29, 2001

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of
this appeal in your reply.

Organisation Mondiale Contre la Torture (OMCT)
World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT)
Organización Mundial Contra la Tortura (OMCT)
8 rue du Vieux-Billard
Case postale 21
CH-1211 Geneve 8
Suisse/Switzerland
Tel. : 0041 22 809 49 39
Fax : 0041 22 809 49 29
E-mail : [email protected]
http://www.omct.org