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Human Rights Organizations Call Upon the President to Reduce the Punishment imposed on Ayman Nour
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22/1/2007
The undersigned human rights organizations call upon the President of the Republic to reduce the punishment imposed on Dr. Ayman Nour, the former president of al Ghad Party and a former MP, who is now spending an imprisonment period of five years in Mazraat Tora Prison after he was charged in Case 169/2005 (State Security). This call came as a reaction to Nour's deteriorating health conditions and as an enactment of Article 149 of the Egyptian Constitution which states that "The President of the Republic shall have the right of granting amnesty or commuting a sentence. General Amnesty can only be granted by virtue of a law."
On the 18th January 2007, information were received concerning the deterioration of Nour's health conditions after having a catheterization at Al Kasr Al Ainy Hospital. He suffered from bleeding in heart arteries after he was transferred back to Tora Prison. Nour is diabetic and receives medication for bleeding control which eventually led to a bleeding in his eye retina, which may totally damage his optical nerves. He is also suffering from deep venous thrombosis and decaying in the joint of the right leg due to preventing him from moving inside the prison.
On the other side, Nour's family complained that the prison's administration is preventing visits from his doctor and lawyer, which constitutes a vehement breach to the Constitution and international human rights instruments. The undersigned organizations reaffirms that what Nour's sufferers inside the prison is considered direct violation to national legislation and international human rights documents such as Article 3 of the Universal Declaration for Human Rights which states that " Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.", and also Article 36 of Law 396/1956 (Prison Law) which states that:" Any prisoner who may be viewed by the prison's doctor to be suffering from a life-threatening sickness shall be presented to the head of the prisons' medical department to consider his/her release….".
Accordingly, the undersigned organizations demand from the President of the Republic to reduce Dr. Nour's punishment to the period he already spent in prison and to release him soon. Also the undersigned organizations demand from the Prosecutor General to enact Article 42 of the Criminal Procedures Code and dispatch a representative of the Prosecution Office to investigate the conditions inside Mazraat Tora Prison and to determine the health conditions of Nour to avoid endangering his life.
Signed to this petition:
The Egyptian Organization for Human Rights
Cairo Center for Human Rights Studies
Kalima Center for Human Rights
Land Center for Human Rights
Hisham Mubarak Law Center
The Human Rights Association for Prisoners Aid
The Arab Program for Human Rights Activists
The Association for Human Rights Legal Aid
The Egyptian Democratic Center
Nadeem Center for Psychological Therapy for Torture Survivors
South Center for Human Rights
The Egyptian Association for Community Participation Enhancement
The Egyptian Center for Women's Rights
Sawasia Center for Human Rights and Counter Discrimination
The Center for Egyptian Women's Issues
The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information
Land Son's Foundation for Human Rights
The Arab Center for Independence of Judiciary and Lawyers
Shomoa Association for Human Rights and Special Needs Care
The Egyptian Association for Supporting Democratic Development
The Group of Democracy Development
The Egyptian Foundation for Training and Human Rights
United Group
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