{"id":16812,"date":"2026-07-29T12:12:48","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T10:12:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/?p=16812"},"modified":"2026-10-07T03:12:21","modified_gmt":"2026-10-07T01:12:21","slug":"press-freedom-egypt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/press-freedom-egypt\/","title":{"rendered":"Between Two Presidential Calls for Media Reform: 21 Journalists Imprisoned and a Bill on Hold"},"content":{"rendered":"

For the second time in less than a year, reform of Egypt\u2019s media has returned to the official agenda. At the inauguration of the state\u2019s strategic command headquarters, the Octagon, in the New Administrative Capital, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi called for developing the media system, opening space for objective dialogue accommodating different opinions, and holding an annual meeting to assess performance and propose practical improvements.<\/p>\n

The call came only months after a media-development committee established by the prime minister in September 2025 completed its work. Sixty-six journalists, broadcasters, academics and experts participated in approximately 175 hours of meetings and discussions before Supreme Council for Media Regulation chair Khaled Abdel Aziz submitted its recommendations to the prime minister.<\/p>\n

The media-development committee.<\/a><\/p>\n

Five months after submission, leading legislative proposals that participants considered essential to meaningful reform remained pending, without an announced timetable. The legislative committee, chaired by Journalists Syndicate head Khaled al-Balshi, recommended a freedom-of-information law and legislation prohibiting custodial penalties for publication offences.<\/p>\n

With a renewed presidential call arriving before recommendations from the first initiative were implemented, the fate of those proposals remains uncertain. Will this round put legislation protecting publication on the reform agenda, or will recommendations once again remain in drawers despite their direct relevance to press freedom and the legal environment needed for media development?<\/p>\n

Submission of its recommendations.<\/a><\/p>\n

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The syndicate\u2019s draft: ready for enactment<\/h2>\n

Zawia3 obtained a copy of the Journalists Syndicate\u2019s draft law abolishing custodial penalties for publication and public-expression offences. Submitted to the development committee and several officials, it does not seek to remove criminal liability or shield wrongdoing from accountability. Instead, it proposes proportionate financial or civil remedies that balance accountability with the constitutional right to expression.<\/p>\n

The draft defines publication and public-expression offences broadly: crimes committed through publication or public communication, whether publicity is an essential element, a means of commission or a circumstance associated with the offence. Its scope extends beyond newspapers and traditional media to electronic publication and other forms of expression.<\/p>\n

Prepared by the freedoms and legislation committee of the syndicate\u2019s sixth general conference, the proposal rests on Article 71 of the Constitution. That article generally prohibits custodial penalties for offences committed through publication or public expression, with exceptions for incitement to violence, discrimination between citizens and attacks on individuals\u2019 honour.<\/p>\n

Egypt\u2019s Constitution, Article 71.<\/a><\/p>\n

The explanatory memorandum says more than a decade has passed since the 2014 Constitution while dozens of legal provisions continue to permit imprisonment for publication offences. It sees a conflict between constitutional protections and legislation in force, requiring legislative action. Leaving those provisions intact, it argues, permits prison sentences under laws inconsistent with freedom-of-expression guarantees.<\/p>\n

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The draft would abolish custodial penalties across publication offences while retaining existing financial penalties and the three constitutional exceptions. Where a penal provision specifies no fine, a court could impose one between EGP 1,000 and EGP 100,000.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The memorandum also draws on Supreme Constitutional Court judgments holding that expression must not be burdened by restrictions that deter its exercise, and that imprisonment is among the most severe constraints on that right. It cites comparative approaches replacing prison with fines and compensation as better suited to redressing harm without taking away personal liberty.<\/p>\n

Al-Balshi tells Zawia3 that the bill has followed an official route over recent months. It was sent to Parliamentary, Legal Affairs and Political Communication Minister Mahmoud Fawzi and the prime minister, and delivered to several MPs. Official correspondence subsequently indicated referral to the ministry responsible for parliamentary affairs for the necessary procedures.<\/p>\n

The proposal was presented again to the media-development committee, where al-Balshi chaired the legislative subcommittee. He says it was adopted unchanged and included in the final recommendations submitted to the cabinet and presidency. Contact with MPs has continued to build support.<\/p>\n

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The bill would protect everyone exercising the right to publish, whether through journalism, digital platforms or other means, he stresses. It is concerned with publication offences generally, not journalists alone. It follows Article 71 and retains its three exceptions while replacing imprisonment in other publication offences with alternative penalties.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The idea dates back to the committee established after the 2014 Constitution to prepare media legislation, known as the tripartite committee. Chaired by the late Hussein Abdel Razek, it included Ali Abdel Aal and al-Balshi. The proposal later became a syndicate-backed bill raised in successive rounds of media-law reform.<\/p>\n

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Translating Article 71 into law<\/h2>\n

A previous Zawia3 report concluded that genuine media reform cannot succeed without reviewing legislation restricting journalism, particularly laws permitting imprisonment for publication. Participants argued that reform is more than improving content, training staff or restructuring institutions: it begins with a legal environment protecting journalism and the public\u2019s right to know.<\/p>\n

Zawia3\u2019s earlier reporting.<\/a><\/p>\n

A freedom-of-information law and an end to custodial publication penalties are therefore not isolated professional demands. They form the legislative basis for a serious programme to restore the media\u2019s public role.<\/p>\n

Journalist and legal researcher Mohamed Basal says the delay leaves a gap between the Constitution and penal legislation, twelve years after the adoption of the 2014 Constitution.<\/p>\n

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Article 71 establishes a general prohibition on custodial penalties for publication and public expression, he tells Zawia3. This is \u201cnot a gift from anyone\u201d, but reflects the development that should have occurred in the state\u2019s approach to expression and intellectual production free from authoritarianism and arbitrariness.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Basal links that approach to Egypt\u2019s international commitments, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and to comparative legislative trends towards non-custodial remedies. He cites Britain in 1880 and France in 1928 as historical examples in the Arabic interview; these dates are his account rather than a comprehensive chronology of the abolition of all publication-related prison penalties. Modern legal scholarship, he argues, regards fines and compensation as more appropriate deterrents and remedies in expression cases.<\/p>\n

The bill adopted by the sixth general conference translates Article 71 into enforceable rules and would prevent circumvention through older provisions permitting imprisonment, Basal says. He invokes constitutional judgments warning against restrictions that discourage expression and emphasising equal opportunities for open dialogue as a route to national security.<\/p>\n

Depriving people of liberty for what they write, publish or say is not the most appropriate response to abuse of expression, he argues. The conduct at issue is intellectual production, which differs from conventional crime and requires accountability proportionate to constitutional rights.<\/p>\n

Continuing to impose imprisonment under ordinary legislation despite an express constitutional prohibition raises concerns about constitutionality and the validity of resulting judgments, Basal concludes. The proposed law is therefore more than a political signal of respect for the Constitution: it is a necessary instrument to bridge constitutional principles and legal practice.<\/p>\n

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Alternatives to prison: protecting publication<\/h2>\n

Eman Ouf, rapporteur of the Journalists Syndicate\u2019s freedoms committee, says abolishing custodial penalties has been a central demand for years. At the time of the report, approximately 21 journalists were imprisoned, most facing cases connected with publication in newspapers, websites or social media.<\/p>\n

One recent and contentious case concerns writer and poet Ahmed Douma. On 3 June 2026, the New Cairo Misdemeanours Court sentenced him to one year in prison with labour for publishing false news. The case concerned his opinion article, \u201cFrom Prison Inside the State to the State Inside Prison\u201d, published by Al-Araby Al-Jadeed on 25 March 2026, and a social-media post about detention conditions. On 16 July, the appeal court upheld the sentence.<\/p>\n

Rights organisations linked Douma\u2019s prosecution to freedom of expression and called for his release. His defence argued that the Constitution limits imprisonment for publication to incitement to violence, discrimination and attacks on honour, and that his writings fall outside those exceptions. Resolving that conflict legislatively is central to the proposed bill.<\/p>\n

Amnesty International\u2019s statement on Ahmed Douma.<\/a><\/p>\n

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Ouf says provisions allowing prison directly restrict journalism despite alternatives such as reply, correction and professional accountability. She describes imprisonment as \u201ca sword hanging over journalists\u2019 necks\u201d, especially under false-news charges. Fear of prosecution reinforces self-censorship and discourages coverage of corruption and economic or social issues.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

She also links these conditions to the absence of a freedom-of-information law. Difficulty accessing official information discourages sources from speaking and forces journalists to work without transparency, creating room for rumours rather than reducing them. Journalism cannot fulfil its watchdog role without protection for publication and access to information.<\/p>\n

Ahmed Abdel Nabi, executive director of the Regional Centre for Rights and Liberties, describes a ban on custodial publication penalties as one of the most important reforms needed for a more open and accountable media environment.<\/p>\n

Protecting reputation and personal rights does not require imprisonment, he tells Zawia3. Proportionate civil compensation, reply and correction can repair harm without depriving people of liberty or chilling expression.<\/p>\n

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Article 71 sets a clear rule subject to its specified exceptions, making legislative review necessary, he says. Remaining prison provisions create legal uncertainty, impede journalism and information circulation, and narrow public debate as writers avoid subjects that could bring prosecution.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Reform must balance expression with individual rights by replacing prison with proportionate civil remedies, retaining accountability in the constitutional exceptions, and strengthening reply, correction and compensation. Judicial independence and timely resolution of disputes are also essential. Alignment with constitutional and international standards would protect journalism, build institutional trust and strengthen transparency and accountability.<\/p>\n

The centre\u2019s research paper, \u201cA Legislative Map of Imprisonment for Publication and Public-Expression Offences\u201d, argues that the effect extends beyond journalists. Fear and self-censorship discourage public discussion and information-sharing across society, undermining the right to know and the quality of debate.<\/p>\n

The paper says Article 71 aims to preserve accountability through more proportionate measures, retaining the exceptions involving violence, discrimination and attacks on honour. Alternatives include fines, civil compensation, reply and correction, and professional accountability. It calls for criminal penalties to be confined to genuinely dangerous conduct while other disputes are addressed through remedies protecting both rights and expression.<\/p>\n

The Regional Centre\u2019s research paper.<\/a><\/p>\n

The bill still awaited a place on the legislative agenda at the time of the Arabic report. As official calls for media development recur, its enactment remains a test of whether those calls become actual reform: constitutional protection for journalism, a consistent legal environment, and accountability through measures proportionate to publication offences.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Egypt\u2019s Journalists Syndicate has submitted a bill replacing imprisonment for publication offences with proportionate remedies. Its recommendations remain pending as official calls for media reform recur and 21 journalists are imprisoned.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":15949,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[390],"tags":[],"kateb":[728],"class_list":["post-16812","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-human-rights","kateb-shimaa-hamdy"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/\u0627\u0644\u0625\u0639\u0644\u0627\u0645\u060c-\u0627\u0644\u0633\u062c\u0646-.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16812","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16812"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16812\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16813,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16812\/revisions\/16813"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15949"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16812"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16812"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16812"},{"taxonomy":"kateb","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/kateb?post=16812"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}