Mon 6 Oct 2014 In: International News View at Wayback View at NDHA
People all over the world are being called upon to stand with persecuted lgbt Egyptians by taking part in a global day of protest. The organisers of the web-driven initiative Solidarity with Egypt LGBT are calling for coordinated protests outside Egyptian embassies globally. “We invite you to participate in the demonstration that will take place on 18 October 2014 in front of every Egyptian embassy around the world … to protest against human rights violations committed by the Egyptian government, relying on unlawful and unethical media tools, towards those of differing sexual orientations and gender identities.” They are also asking for people to use Twitter hashtags #StandForEgyptLGBT and #SolidarityWithEgyptLGBT to show their support, and to hold up a sign with a message and the hashtags, take a photo, and send it to them. The campaign comes after the arrests of seven men in Egypt who were in a same-sex wedding video, said to be Egypt’s first gay marriage, which went viral on social media. Authorities made the arrests after a video of the apparent wedding ceremony went viral The arrested men have been accused of inciting debauchery and undermining public morals and were remanded in custody for up to four days, according to local media. While gay sex is not explicitly outlawed by Egyptian law, it can be punished under statutes on morality. Human Rights Watch says the arrested suspects were subjected to forensic anal examinations, which it says violates international standards against torture. In the past, those subjected to the examinations in Egypt said they were forced to bend over while a government doctor working for the police massaged their buttocks and examined and sometimes probed their anus. Human Rights Watch says the arrests are the latest of a long line of cases in which Egyptian authorities have persecuted men suspected of ‘homosexual conduct’. In October 2013, prosecutors ordered 14 suspects detained and subjected to anal examinations for engaging in homosexual conduct at a medical centre in Cairo. In April, four men were convicted of “debauchery” and sentenced to up to eight years in prison after holding parties where authorities found makeup and women’s clothing and which allegedly involved consensual homosexual conduct. The largest such case in recent Egyptian history, known as the Queen Boat Trials, occurred in 2001with the arrests of more than 50 men allegedly involved in a party at a discotheque on a cruise vessel moored in the Nile. “Over the years, Egyptian authorities have repeatedly arrested, tortured, and detained men suspected of consensual homosexual conduct,” says Graeme Reid from Human Rights Watch. “These arrests represent another assault on fundamental human rights and reflect the Egyptian government’s growing disdain for the rule of law.”
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Monday, 6th October 2014 - 9:41am