NGO warns decree will turn Egypt into militarised zone

An Egyptian NGO has strongly criticised the designation of public and educational facilities as “military facilities” under a new decree issued by Egyptian President Abdul Fatah al-Sisi, cautioning that this could turn Egypt into a “military garrison” state.

The NGO, “No to Military Trials for Civilians,” said in a statement that “Justice is absent yet stability has not been restored even though civilians have been appearing before military tribunals for years."

“It seems this is no longer enough, hence presidential decree number 136, authorizing the armed forces to protect public and vital facilities, now designated as military facilities… for a period of two years,” the NGO added, noting the only thing that had changed was that more people have been victimized by these systematic violations.

Justice is absent yet stability has not been restored even though civilians have been appearing before military tribunals for years.

'No to Military Trials for Civilians' also argues that the decree gives the military power to try civilians accused of attacking such facilities, a charge often used against dissidents and peaceful protesters, describing the decree as an alarming development that would expose thousands of civilians to the possibility of being tried in a military court.

The group said “Hundreds of civilians have been brought before military tribunals by a military justice system lacking many of the basic guarantees for a fair trial.”

The statement added that “All judges and prosecutors are military officers holding different ranks and are subject to all regulations and disciplinary procedures contained in military service laws.”

The group expressed its categorical rejection of military trials for civilians without exception, and stressed that the new law “clearly and crudely violates article 204 of the current constitution, which permits the trial of civilians before military tribunals only in cases related to the armed forces, and their facilities, equipment, and personnel.”

This is an edited translation from our Arabic edition.