PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN EGYPT (1 March 2016)

That this House is concerned about serious human rights violations in Egypt under President al-Sisi's government; notes with alarm the chapter on Egypt in the Human Rights Watch World Report 2016 which highlights the authorities' imprisonment of tens of thousands and banning of protests, the courts' sentencing of hundreds to death, including former President Morsi, after unfair trials, and the law enforcement forces' involvement in torture and enforced disappearances; further notes that human rights defenders and civil society in Egypt are under considerable pressure, with endless hate speech from state-affiliated media, continuous harassment from the authorities, and travel bans repeatedly used as a tool to silence them; fears that current human rights violations will ultimately serve to destabilise the country and lead to increased radicalism; notes that Egypt is second only to China as the world's worst jailer of journalists in 2015; calls on the government of Egypt to commit to a full, impartial and transparent investigation into the death of Cambridge PhD student, Giulio Regeni and to the release of Irish student, Ibrahim Halawa, imprisoned without trial since 2013; further calls on the Egyptian government more generally to uphold its international human rights obligations; and urges the Government to make representations about these issues to their counterparts in Egypt as a matter of urgency.

Sponsored by:
Ann Clwyd (Labour)