Eissa pardoned by President Mubarak

Ibrahim Eissa, the editor in Chief of al Doustor, has been pardoned today, on the 35 anniversary of the Crossing of the canal(The first day of the October War 1973). President Husni Mubarak pardoned him as part of the President´s efforts to foster freedom of the press in Egypt according to the Egyptian official news agency MENA.

While i fully appreciate the gesture from the President today, an important first step to foster freedom of the press in Egypt would be to carry out the promise given to Galal Aref, then Chairman of the Press Syndicate , on February 23rd 2004, about changing legislation, to safeguard journalists from facing the possibility of being sentenced to jail for what they write. This was later incorporated into the Presidential election platform in 2005. Today some 1685 days later, this promise has yet to be fulfilled. This is something that the President surely intends to do, prior to the ending of his fifth term in office in October 2011, or will it become part of the reforms sugested in the presidential election platform in 2011?

Here is al Doustour´s own take on the pardoning of Eissa.

Here is Ibrahim Eissa´s press conference at the Journalists syndcate in Cairo after recieving the pardon.

Ibrahim Eissa´s sentence reduced to two months

The Bulaq Abu al-Ella Misdemeanor Appeals Court issued a two months prison sentence to al Doustor´s editor in Chief , Ibrahim Eissa today. The verdict was an appeal of a six months prison sentence from March 26th 2008, and concerns articles published in August 2007 on the health of President Hosni Mubarak. He was brought to trial on charges of spreading false information, damaging public interest national stability. He could have been sentenced to a maximum of three years. Eissa was not in court today.

This story, as well as a number of other court cases featuring Ibrahim Eissa and virtually every other high profile editor of the free and opposition press, the Creme de´la creme of Egyptian journalism if you like.This has been like a real life Ramadan-tv series for the last year or so.

On February 23rd 2004, President Mubarak gave a promise of changing legislation, to safeguard journalists from facing the possibility of being sentenced to jail for what they write. This was later incorporated into the Presidential election platform in 2005. Today some 1675 days later, this promise is yet to be fulfilled.

Dustour online akhiran!

One of the most important newspapers in Egypt has finally an online prescence! The editor in Chief, Ibrahim Eissa and his team has changed the way of making newspapers in Egypt ever since he launched al Doustor originally back in 1995 to 1998, when it was closed down, banned and then relaunched again in 2005.

Dustour, together with new papers like al Masry al Youm, al badeel and Nahdet Masr have taken Egyptian newspapers to a new level.

It´s an irony that the day after the launching of the site also was the first session of the appeal of the six months prison sentence against Ibrahim Eissa, but then again this is just the normal workday for many brave eitors in Egypt, perhaps best summed up by Wael Ibrashy, whom is involved in another case of a one year prison sentence with Ibrahim Eissa and two others, awaiting the appeal ithat has been postponed until June 7th, when he announced that he was leaving Sawt al Umma, earlier this month, he said on a talk show that his work is divided between visiting courts, meeting his laywers and trying to make a newspaper.

I wish to congratulate Ibrahim Eissa and his team on the the much awaited website, and wish him the best of luck with the current case, and the other approximately 35 court cases that ad Dustour is facing. Alf Mabrouk!

Ibrahim Eissa recieves a six months prison sentence

UPDATE: BREAKING NEWS

Ibrahim Eissa recieved a prison sentence of six months for having spread false information about President Mubarak´s health in August 2007. The sentence was given by Judge Sherif Kamel Mustapha at Bulaq Court of misdeamenours this morning. He was found guilty of having harmed Egypt´s economy.

He paid 200 E.P and was freed on bail. Eissa is expected to appeal to a higher Court according to his lawyers.

This was Ibrahim Eissa reaction to the verdict:

"This verdict is against all international human rights conventions," Eissa told AFP after judge Sherif Kamel Mustapha handed down the sentence in a Cairo court.


He said the verdict showed the regime's hostility to the press and "affirms the holiness of President Mubarak and the rejection of any criticism of him or his policies. I don't know if this is a judicial decision or a political one.

"The regime is trying to defend itself because it knows it has plunged the country into successive crises and, if my imprisonment will make bread reach the people who are queuing for it, then I am ready to go to prison," he said.

Here is a CPJ statement on Eissa from March 24th were CPJ executive Director had this to say:

“Eissa’s prosecution shows how Egypt’s authorities shamelessly use the courts to punish outspoken journalists,” said CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon.” The court should dismiss this politically motivated case once and for all.”

For the nitty-gritty details of the case one should check HR-Info´s excellent new website, Qadaya.net launched only yesterday. Here are the specifics on Ibrahim Eissa´s case(Arabic)