{"id":12977,"date":"2023-12-16T18:07:45","date_gmt":"2023-12-16T16:07:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rpegy.org\/?post_type=editions&p=12977"},"modified":"2026-01-24T02:50:30","modified_gmt":"2026-01-24T00:50:30","slug":"the-eu-should-uphold-human-rights-and-accountability-in-negotiation-of-a-strategic-partnership-with-egypt","status":"publish","type":"editions","link":"https:\/\/seta.rpegy.org\/en\/editions\/the-eu-should-uphold-human-rights-and-accountability-in-negotiation-of-a-strategic-partnership-with-egypt\/","title":{"rendered":"The EU should uphold human rights and accountability in negotiation of a strategic partnership with Egypt"},"content":{"rendered":"

We 14 NGOs urge the EU and its Member States to prioritize accountability and human rights reforms in ongoing negotiations for an EU strategic partnership with Egypt, notably regarding the overall framework of the deal, provision of financial support, and migration and security cooperation. If the EU fails to address Egypt\u2019s\u00a0human rights and accountability crisis<\/a><\/u>, focuses on curbing migration by reinforcing Egyptian security bodies and the military, and funds the Egyptian State without prior reforms, such a short-sighted approach would not tackle Egypt\u2019s\u00a0chronic instability<\/a><\/u>\u00a0issues, and rather would lead to reinvigorating\u00a0authoritarianism\u00a0<\/a><\/u>there, proving counter-productive. Egypt\u2019s\u00a0dire economic straits<\/a><\/u>\u00a0and its\u00a0human rights crisis<\/a><\/u>\u00a0are related to the same underlying problems of unaccountable governance and the pursuit of regime survival before stability, which should be decisively addressed. Indeed, the increase in departures by boats of Egyptians in recent years from Libya is a direct result of the economic deterioration and pervasive repression produced by the government\u2019s policies which cannot go unaddressed.<\/p>\n

Tackling Egypt\u2019s human rights and governance crises and restoring accountability<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

If a new EU-Egypt strategic partnership materializes following negotiations in the coming weeks, it would directly follow Egypt\u2019s December 2023\u00a0presidential election<\/a><\/u>, held in a\u00a0thoroughly closed electoral environment<\/a><\/u>\u00a0without open civic space<\/a><\/u>, a\u00a0free public sphere<\/a><\/u>,\u00a0judicial independence<\/a><\/u>\u00a0or\u00a0checks on Executive power<\/a><\/u>. Such conditions\u00a0preclude any free or fair election<\/a><\/u>; the incumbent, President Abdelfattah al-Sisi\u2019s re-election is a\u00a0foregone conclusion<\/a><\/u>. Would-be candidates considered \u201cactual opposition\u201d such as\u00a0Hisham Qassem<\/a><\/u>\u00a0or\u00a0Ahmed al-Tantawy<\/a><\/u>\u00a0have been\u00a0prevented from running<\/a><\/u>. This\u00a0highly repressive context<\/a><\/u>\u00a0has provoked\u00a0an urgency resolution<\/a><\/u>\u00a0from the European Parliament, which<\/p>\n

\u201cUrges authorities to uphold the rule of law, freedom of expression, press, media and association, and judicial independence, to stop stifling opposition voices through arbitrary detention, digital surveillance, enforced disappearances and torture, to immediately and unconditionally release the tens of thousands of prisoners arbitrarily detained for peacefully expressing their opinion, including award winner Alaa Abdel Fattah and 20 journalists, and to lift online censorship against independent media\u2026<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

This election comes in the context of a severe and ongoing human rights crisis documented and recognized by multiple\u00a0civil society organizations<\/a><\/u>,\u00a0UN bodies<\/a><\/u>\u00a0and\u00a0other<\/a><\/u>\u00a0institutions<\/a><\/u>. If the EU neglects to tackle such abuses,\u00a0it risks both perpetuating them and bolstering Egypt\u2019s authoritarian President\u00a0<\/a><\/u>A<\/a>l-Sisi. As Egypt suffers a\u00a0p<\/a>rolonged economic and social crisis<\/a>\u00a0<\/u>which al-Sisi\u2019s\u00a0unaccountable governance is widely believed to have fueled<\/a><\/u>, a lucrative strategic partnership with Europe that neglects human rights would allow him to boast securing financial support without any concessions. This would\u00a0help the Executive and the military to\u00a0<\/a>avoid reform<\/a><\/u>\u00a0and continue\u00a0wielding unchecked power in pursuit of the same u<\/a>nsustainable policies<\/a><\/u>, which promote\u00a0instability<\/a>\u00a0and continued crisis<\/a><\/u>, and thus feed refugee and migration flows as\u00a0people increasingly seek<\/a><\/u>\u00a0a\u00a0safe and dignified living elsewhere<\/a><\/u>. Therefore, the political framework for any EU-Egypt strategic partnership must explicitly acknowledge the reality and\u00a0serious nature<\/a><\/u>\u00a0of these issues \u2013 including the human rights crisis \u2013 and effectively address them.<\/p>\n

No unconditional funding of abusive and unaccountable governance<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

It is essential that the new EU-Egypt Strategic Partnership\u00a0subject any provision of direct and indirect EU financial support to Egypt,<\/strong>\u00a0to\u00a0clear, public and measurable conditions<\/a><\/u>\u00a0in the areas of human rights and accountability, and spell out the relevant\u00a0benchmarks\u00a0<\/a><\/u>to be met.\u00a0<\/strong>This should also apply to new funds from the\u00a0European Investment Bank (EIB)<\/a><\/u>\u00a0 or the\u00a0European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD),<\/a><\/u>\u00a0and European encouragement of foreign direct investment in the country. Weakly conditioned financial support risks subsidizing the same policies that have led to Egypt\u2019s economic deterioration over the past decade.<\/p>\n

It is all the more crucial for EU and Member State direct budget support funds, whose use cannot be verified by donors; thus, they are particularly at risk of misappropriation, including for the benefit of entities involved in gross human rights violations. The allocation of new EU direct budget support funds to Egypt has been suspended since the 2013\u00a0Foreign Affairs Council Conclusions<\/a><\/u>\u00a0issued in response to the Rabaa and al-Nahda massacres (though sectoral development cooperation and civil society funding have continued). In recent years, the European Parliament has repeatedly\u00a0warned against<\/a>\u00a0budget support for Egypt<\/a><\/u>\u00a0due to its alarming human rights situation. The unconditional release of such funds today would give a distinctly harmful signal both of EU confidence and support for Egypt\u2019s unaccountable and unsustainable governance, and an EU belief the country\u2019s human rights situation has significantly improved.<\/p>\n

Hence, reform conditions must be clearly signaled in the overall EU-Egypt Strategic Partnership language and announcement, and spelled out in specific financial support agreements. The EU should set out concrete\u00a0benchmarks to restore some independence to state institutions, notably the\u00a0judiciary\u00a0<\/a><\/u>and State\u00a0anti-corruption and anti-fraud agencies<\/a><\/u><\/strong>. To allow civil society and the media to play their crucial role to hold authorities accountable and foster inclusive governance,\u00a0Egypt\u2019s repressive legal framework and practices maintaining closure of the public sphere must be amended<\/strong>\u00a0(notably the\u00a0draconian Counter-Terrorism Law and Terrorist Entities Law<\/a><\/u>\u00a0of 2015,\u00a0the Cybercrime Law,<\/a><\/u>\u00a0the\u00a02018 Media regulation\u00a0 Law<\/a><\/u>,\u00a0Assembly Law no.10\/1914,<\/a><\/u>\u00a0the 2019 NGO law<\/a><\/u>, and\u00a0Penal Code provisions<\/a><\/u>\u00a0that hinder independent civic work). A clear change in the policy of punitive use of\u00a0mass arbitrary detention in abusive conditions to silence dissent<\/a><\/u>\u00a0\u2013 more than the release of a handful of symbolic individual cases \u2013 must be implemented. Concrete measures must be taken to tackle the\u00a0impunity\u00a0<\/a><\/u>of security forces for crimes of\u00a0enforced disappearance<\/a><\/u>\u00a0and\u00a0torture<\/a><\/u>.<\/p>\n

Tackling the risk of human rights violations within cooperation on migration<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

In the field of migration and asylum, the EU must ensure any\u00a0negotiations with Egypt<\/a><\/u>[i]<\/sup><\/a>\u00a0consistently highlight the alarming\u00a0rule of law<\/a><\/u>\u00a0and human rights issues. Just in the last two years, the Egyptian authorities have\u00a0blocked\u00a0<\/a>people fleeing Sudan\u2019s<\/a>\u00a0conflict from entering without visas, creating life-threatening delays in access to asylum;\u00a0<\/a><\/u>and violated the principle of non-refoulement by\u00a0forcibly returning Eritrean asylum seekers<\/a><\/u>\u00a0to Eritrea and\u00a0deporting Uyghur students<\/a><\/u>\u00a0to China.<\/p>\n

They subject thousands of foreign nationals annually \u2013\u00a0

EU Funding For ECG En<\/span>
Fullscreen<\/a>Download<\/a><\/div><\/div>