World Press Conference by the Nigerian Civil Society Coalition Against Coups and Militarisation of Politics in Africa Distinguished gentlemen and ladies of the press, I welcome you to today’s World Press Conference put together by the Nigerian Civil Society Coalition Against Coups and Militarisation of Politics In Africa to address the festering sore of the Continent typified by the murderous gang of General Abdel Fattah Sisi and his fellow coupists in Egypt. The events of the past few days in Egypt are a sad commentary on the value General Sisi and his supporters place on human lives. The events in Egypt are in clear violation of the rights of the citizens, United Nations declaration, the African charter on human and people‘s rights and other known human rights instrument to which Egypt is a signatory. We condemn the gross human rights violations that have heightened in Egypt in the past few days. Only yesterday, the international media reported the cruel murder of 36 Egyptians who were under the custody of the military junta. The junta has indeed carried out its inhuman threat to brutally suppress public exercise of the freedoms of expression, assembly and association killing more than 1000 African citizens in the process. As we speak, it seems the gloves are off because in next 24 hours disgraced former military dictator Mr Hosni Mubarak will walk home a free man having been given a clean bill by the military appointed judges in Egypt. It is indeed an irony that the military junta in Egypt has succeeded (so it seems) in consolidating power and rolling back the gains of the 2011 Tahrir Square revolution that once provided inspiration to the world on the emerging roles of parks as symbols of peoples liberation from oppressive tendencies of the state. Today, General Sisi and his co-coupist, with the acquiescence of the US government is rewriting the meaning and definition of democracy in Africa. We believe democracy has no geographical, ethnic, religious, boundaries. Therefore, the atrocious and brutal murder of unarmed, vulnerable and defenceless African citizens by the murderous army of General Sisi does not belong to the Africa of today, neither does it represent the promise of a Continent determined to shake off the vestiges of negative and very corrupt past. What is happening in Egypt is a coup by reactionary forces in the military led by a blood thirsty, depraved military dictator and his gang who are fighting a bloody battle not for the sake of Egypt of Egyptians but to further entrench the military economic interests which have pauperised Egypt for more than 60 years and is not ready to let go of the spoils of office it has enjoyed for more than six decades. This blood thirsty cabal desperate to protect its interest has also embarked on a vicious, deliberate and calculated campaign to portray the victims in this struggle as villains through a well resourced propaganda machine desperate to feed the world a bunch of lies to win national, regional and global sympathies. This coalition is well aware that the rights of the citizens and the media practitioners are being increasingly violated with impurity. Apart from killings, arrest and detention, torture arbitrary and extra-judicial killing of protesters, cases of rape have also been on the increase. Therefore, we condemn in the strongest terms the violations of the human rights democracy protesters in Egypt and demand a stop to these violations. We call for the immediate re-instatement of the legitimately elected president Mohammed Morsi to office and demand immediate investigation of genocidal crimes committed by General Abdel Fattah Sisi and his collaborators and prosecution by ICC. We also urge the African Union, individual African governments and the ICC to move in to restore democratic legitimacy in Egypt and put an end to the bloodshed. Finally, we re-instate our calls on all progressive forces in Africa and beyond to rise up against the plot by this discredited regime in Egypt to pull down the cradle of civilization. Signed: Forum for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (FOSDA) Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR) Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) Centre for Constitutionalism and Demilitarisation Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) HEDA Human Rights Education and Development Project (HURIDEP) Women Against Oppression (WAO) The Muslim Congress (TMC) Human Concern Foundation International (HCFI) Muslim Students Society (MSS, Lagos Area Unit) Social Advocacy Project (SAP) Anglican Communion, Ishonyin Parish
Posted on: Thu, 22 Aug 2013 18:44:46 +0000
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