II. RECOMMENDATIONS

To the Government of Egypt

· Order the immediate and unconditional release of Saadeddin Ibrahim and his three colleagues Nadia `Abd al-Nour, Usama Hammad `Ali and Khaled Ahmad al-Fayyad.

· Ensure that the other defendants still being imprisoned, Magda Ibrahim al-Bey and Muhammad Hassanein `Amara, receive a fair re-trial before an ordinary criminal court or are released. 

· Abolish Military Order No. 4 of 1992 and seek regular legislative approval of all new laws, or amendments to existing laws, that the government considers necessary to protect the security of Egyptian citizens, and ensure that any such laws conform to Egypt's Constitution and its obligations under international law.

· Ensure that all trials conform to international standards of fair trial, including granting the defense adequate time to prepare their defense and ensuring that the defense is granted full and prompt access to all relevant court documentation at every stage of the proceedings.

· Amend Article 80(d) of the Penal Code to bring that law into compliance with international human rights treaty law protecting freedom of expression and the rights to seek, receive and impart information and ideas.

· Abolish the Supreme State Security Court and all other extraordinary courts, and insure that all Egyptian courts meet basic international fair trial standards, including by guaranteeing a right to appeal to a higher judicial body. 

· Authorize the re-opening of the Ibn Khaldun Center and the Hoda Association and make clear that the government will not tolerate official harassment of these and other nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) on account of their leaders or members' exercise of their rights to freedom of expression and freedom of association. 

· Propose new legislation that grants legal recognition and guarantees full independence to nongovernmental associations. 

· Restate publicly, and at the highest levels of the E.U. Commission, the incumbent presidency and the Council of Ministers, the E.U. view that there is no substance to the charges of fraud against Saadeddin Ibrahim and his colleagues.

· Call for the immediate and unconditional release of Saadeddin Ibrahim and co-defendants Nadia `Abd al-Nour, Usama Hammad `Ali and Khaled Ahmad al-Fayyad, and urge that defendants Magda Ibrahim al-Bey and Muhammad Hassanein `Amara are retried before an ordinary criminal court following procedures that conform to international standards for fair trial or released.

· Hold the Egyptian government to obligations under the recently signed Association Agreement between the E.U. and Egypt, and urge it to acknowledge the positive role that human rights defenders play in society and to extend all necessary protection to them in the performance of their work.

· Raise the Ibn Khaldun case with Egyptian authorities at the highest levels, and state publicly the view that the charges on which the defendants were convicted were politically motivated and were designed to punish them for the exercise of their right to freedom of expression.

· Call for the immediate and unconditional release of Saadeddin Ibrahim and co-defendants Nadia `Abd al-Nour, Usama Hammad `Ali and Khaled Ahmad al-Fayyad, and urge that defendants Magda Ibrahim al-Bey and Muhammad Hassanein `Amara be retried before an ordinary criminal court following procedures that conform to international standards for fair trial or released. 

· Make clear to the government of Egypt that continued violations of human rights, including the rights of the Ibn Khaldun defendants, will affect negatively the depth and quality of U.S.-Egyptian relations, including military and economic relations, and that improved respect for human rights will strengthen those relations.