Source: Nick Lewandowski, examiner.com
An engineering student stood before a military tribunal yesterday, charged with "disseminating false information" and "tarnishing the image of the military."
Ahmed Mostafa, who studied at the University of Kafr el-Sheikh, was arrested last week on the orders of Egypt's military prosecutor.
In February, Mostafa had written a piece on his blog, "What's Wrong with my Homeland?," that recounted how a student was forced out of a military school so another applicant could have his place.
A lawyer following the case told Al Masry Al Youm that "[t]his isn't the first time for Mostafa’s blog to fall under scrutiny [...] Last year, he was summoned by officials of the Armed Forces on a friendly basis, who explained the problem to him."
Mostafa is being tried under the 1966 Military Courts Law. This law has been used since 1992 to prosecute those threatening national security. In Egypt, the line between "threats to national security" and threats to Hosni Mubarak's National Democratic Party (NDP) is often blurred. Mubarak has governed under emergency law since the assassination of President Anwar Sadat in 1981. Furthermore, Ahmed Mostafa has been active in opposition politics. He was a member of the 6 April group, which used the internet to organize a general strike in 2008.
If Mostafa loses his case, he has one chance at an appeal through a military high appeals court. Significantly, only President Mubarak himself can strike the ruling of an appeals court.
The UN's Universal Periodic review recently stated that Egypt's bloggers and journalists are some of the most harassed in the world.
In December, a blogger lost his job over attempts to organize a trade union at government-owned Petrotrade. Shortly thereafter, police raided the home of another blogger, this time one who had exposed videos of police torture.
"[In Ahmed Mostafa's case]," a lawyer told Al Masry Al Youm, "We're trying to defend [him] on the basis that he didn’t disclose any secrets but was simply reporting on a case of corruption inside the [military ]school, which had to be exposed. Nothing in his blog post harms national security. We hope this fact will reduce his sentence or lead to his release with a fine."
Ahmed Mostafa, who studied at the University of Kafr el-Sheikh, was arrested last week on the orders of Egypt's military prosecutor.
In February, Mostafa had written a piece on his blog, "What's Wrong with my Homeland?," that recounted how a student was forced out of a military school so another applicant could have his place.
A lawyer following the case told Al Masry Al Youm that "[t]his isn't the first time for Mostafa’s blog to fall under scrutiny [...] Last year, he was summoned by officials of the Armed Forces on a friendly basis, who explained the problem to him."
Mostafa is being tried under the 1966 Military Courts Law. This law has been used since 1992 to prosecute those threatening national security. In Egypt, the line between "threats to national security" and threats to Hosni Mubarak's National Democratic Party (NDP) is often blurred. Mubarak has governed under emergency law since the assassination of President Anwar Sadat in 1981. Furthermore, Ahmed Mostafa has been active in opposition politics. He was a member of the 6 April group, which used the internet to organize a general strike in 2008.
If Mostafa loses his case, he has one chance at an appeal through a military high appeals court. Significantly, only President Mubarak himself can strike the ruling of an appeals court.
The UN's Universal Periodic review recently stated that Egypt's bloggers and journalists are some of the most harassed in the world.
In December, a blogger lost his job over attempts to organize a trade union at government-owned Petrotrade. Shortly thereafter, police raided the home of another blogger, this time one who had exposed videos of police torture.
"[In Ahmed Mostafa's case]," a lawyer told Al Masry Al Youm, "We're trying to defend [him] on the basis that he didn’t disclose any secrets but was simply reporting on a case of corruption inside the [military ]school, which had to be exposed. Nothing in his blog post harms national security. We hope this fact will reduce his sentence or lead to his release with a fine."
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