Egypt

Alexandria's beautiful Corniche by the Mediterranean is one of the most romantic places for a young couple in love to take a stroll. However, there is a sinister side to this picturesque scene that few talk about. At any given time, the coast is crawling with the policemen and plainclothes thugs of the morality police, searching for (unmarried) couples cuddling in a secluded area to terrify and blackmail.

We are pleased to announce the blog launch for Changing Masculinities, Changing Communities. The blog is an activity pertaining to the project implemented by The Danish Egyptian Dialogue Institute (DEDI) in cooperation with the Danish Center for Information on Gender, Equality and Ethnicity (KVINFO) in 2010 titled Changing Masculinities, Changing Communities, facilitating the meeting of a group of Egyptian and Danish activists, artists, academics and social workers in Cairo and Copenhagen whose work involves an exploration and awareness of masculinity as a crucial factor in the construction of social relations and its impact on communities. 

Emergency Law used to detain citizens for two months because of their religious beliefs: The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) today urged the Minister of Interior to release immediately nine Egyptians detained under the Emergency Law for two months because of their affiliation with the Ahmadi confession. The organization called on the Public Prosecutor to order an end to the Supreme State Security Prosecutor’s investigation of all detainees on charges of “contempt of religions” and hold to account those officials responsible for the arrest and interrogation of citizens solely for exercising their constitutional right to freedom of belief and expression. 

Feminist concern about the violation of women’s rights by male clerics in Muslim countries is slowly producing a response from some states. At the same time, rights activists are increasingly reporting examples of clerics who are standing up for women’s rights. This isn’t about the progressive male and female scholars that are increasingly visible in the Muslim world, nor about the occasional female imam; it’s about male preachers on the streets and in the villages.