Even though Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak pledged three years ago to reform the system that harshly punishes journalists, Abdel Kareem Nabil Suleiman, who blogged under the name "Kareem Amer," was sentenced to four years in prison on Feb. 22, 2007. The crime? "Inciting hatred of Islam" and criticizing Mubarak. In his postings, Kareem promoted secularism and women's rights; he was expelled from his university early last year for criticizing the lack of free expression at his school. Kareem also called Al-Azhar university "the university of terrorism."
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In Kareem's court proceedings, the 22-year-old was accused of being an "apostate" who "has hurt every Muslim across the world," according to prosecutor Mohammed Dawoud. He also reportedly told the Associated Press, "I want him [Nabil] to get the toughest punishment. I am on a jihad here ... If we leave the likes of him without punishment, it will be like a fire that consumes everything." In his defense at the trial, Kareem said, "I don't see what I have done. I expressed my opinion ... the intention was not anything like these [charges]."
Kareem needs support from around the globe now from all people who cherish the basic human right of free expression. What can you do to help?
- Visit FreeKareem.org. Download the image on the rail and link to the campaign off your own blog or Web site. (As a testament to the thirst for free speech, you'll see in this post that the creators of the campaign are Muslims who disagreed with what Kareem wrote.)
- Sign the petition for Kareem's release.
- Sign a petition in Arabic!
- Reporters Without Borders states that Egypt is bucking to host a stage of the United Nations-sponsored Internet Governance Forum in 2009 (ironically, the country is on the group's list of 13 Internet enemies). Lobby against Egypt's inclusion in this event by contacting Nitin Desai, the United Nations Secretary-General's Special Adviser for Internet Governance, at igf@unog.ch. (Mailing address and phone/fax numbers here.)
- Contact the Egyptian Embassy in D.C. to lobby for Kareem: embassy@egyptembdc.org; (202) 895 5400.
- Lobby the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. The AP reported that "seconds after he was loaded into the truck and the door closed, an Associated Press reporter heard the sound of a slap from inside the vehicle and a shriek of pain from Nabil." So use the Human Rights Commission address reserved for urgent matters: tb-petitions@ohchr.org.
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