Egypt: Lift Abusive Arbitrary Travel Bans

The Egyptian authorities should stop imposing travel bans to prevent human rights defenders from leaving the country and speaking out about Egypt’s appalling human rights record, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said after another prominent human rights lawyer was banned from travelling today. The bans are part of a larger campaign to suppress independent, critical voices inside the country.

Early this morning, human rights lawyer and defender Malek Adly was stopped from boarding a flight to France without any reasons given, he said on his Facebook page. Since the armed forces ousted President Mohamed Morsy in July 2013, the authorities have arbitrarily banned at least 12 other directors, founders and staff members of Egyptian non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from travelling abroad. Others who have been prevented from travelling outside the country include dozens of members of political parties, youth activists, bloggers, journalists and academics.