In June and July 2024, the Egyptian Front submitted five reports for the fourth Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Egypt, one was individually and the others were jointly with Egyptian and International Human Rights organizations.
During the third cycle of the UPR on Egypt in 2019, Egypt received 383 recommendations and agreed to 292 of them. However, the human rights situation, including civil and political rights and economic and social rights, has deteriorated. The OHCHR Summary of stakeholders’ submissions on Egypt referred to several observations and recommendations submitted by the Egyptian Front.
“EFHR recommended ensuring effective independent and impartial investigations into the unlawful deaths of detainees/prisoners.” OHCHR
The Front’s individual UPR report – submitted in June 2024 – provides information and recommendations about the conditions of detention places with a focus on the new prisons. Although the Egyptian government accepted all the 2019 UPR recommendations concerning the minimum standards for the Treatment of Prisoners and the practices of torture in detention places, Egyptian detainees still suffer from persistent violations including inhuman treatment, torture, solitary confinement, visits prohibition and denial of medical care. The report detailed incidents of Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Denial of Medical Care, Visits, Prohibition and Solitary Confinement. The Front made 11 recommendations including adopting a system of independent national monitoring of all places of detention.
The Egyptian Front submitted another report jointly with 12 Human Rights Organizations. The report highlighted several violations, including the right to life, Enforced disappearance and Judicial Independence and Fair Trial Guarantees. The organizations provided 17 recommendations, including Repealing counter-terrorism laws and aligning other legislation, including the Penal Code and emergency laws, with international standards.
With regard to the deterioration of Economic and Social rights in Egypt, the Front submitted a joint report with 5 Human Rights organizations highlighting the Right to Health and Education, the Right to Work in Just and Favorable Conditions, and the Right to an Adequate Standard of Living and to Social Security. The organizations gave 15 recommendations, which include protecting women’s rights to work and to just and favorable work conditions by implementing regulations safeguarding women’s labor rights in the private sector and actively monitoring women’s work conditions.
In parallel, the Front submitted a joint report with the Egyptian Human Rights Forum, the report covered several aspects of transnational repression, such as Legal and judicial escalation, Suspension of official identifying documents and the denial of consular services, Surveillance of HRDs abroad, Reprisals against families of HRDs and dissidents and Defamation and social stigma. The two organizations made 9 recommendations including Allowing HRDs and dissidents to return to their home country in the long term while guaranteeing their safety and the diligence of the Egyptian authorities; such an agreement might include the official bodies responsible for human rights in Egypt, as well as international bodies trusted by and acceptable to Egypt.
Given the widespread and systematic use of torture in Egypt, the Egyptian Front submitted another report jointly with eight other organisations. The report sheds light on the detention cycle that begins with arbitrary arrest, incommunicado detention, enforced disappearance and torture of individuals and ends with prolonged pretrial detention or sentencing that lacks the minimum standards of a fair trial. The nine organizations made 11 recommendations including reducing the use of detention, especially pretrial detention; refusing to use confessions extracted under any ill-treatment as evidence in any proceeding (except against a person accused of torture as evidence that the statement was made); and, halt judicial processes (at any stage) if there is any suspicion of torture or ill-treatment.