The weekly newsletter from 24th to 30th of june 2021
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Egypt
The House of Representatives increases penalties for sexual harassment and injects the Supreme Constitutional Court into the country’s foreign policies
On Sunday, June 27, the Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee of the Egyptian House of Representatives approved a bill calling for amending the penal code on sexual harassment. The Egyptian parliament passed the law, proposed by the majority-winning Future Home Party, which increases the punishment for sexual harassment turning it from a misdemeanour to a felony. According to Law No. 58 of 1937, which deals with exposure to others and sexual harassment, the punishment according to Article 306 is up to one year in prison and a fine equivalent to 10,000 Egyptian pounds, about 636 dollars, but the recent amendments will increase the punishments, as they will not be less than two years and not exceed four years. That is in addition to a fine; the minimum of which is 100,000 Egyptian pounds ($ 6,369) and no more than 200 thousand Egyptian pounds. These two penalties are for those harassing others, whether verbally or physically or even through sexual or pornographic insinuations. Social networking sites will be included within the means of harassment.
The House of Representatives approved the total articles of a draft law granting the Supreme Constitutional Court the power to monitor the constitutionality of implementing decisions of international organizations and bodies and rulings of foreign courts issued against Egypt, while the government withdrew the item on the court’s authority to monitor decisions of international arbitration bodies from the draft law hours before the start of the draft law is voted upon.
The amendment, on which the final vote was postponed to a later session, provides for the addition of two articles to the Constitutional Court law. The first stipulates that the “constitutional” monitors the constitutionality of the decisions of international organizations and bodies and the rulings of foreign courts to be implemented, while the second article allows the Prime Minister to ask the court for the ruling without regards to the decisions and rulings [referred to in Article One] or the obligations resulting from their implementation , while the second paragraph of article two specifies the method of the Prime Minister’s submission of that case, to submit to “Constitutionality” a copy of the decision or judgment and a certified translation of it, and to identify the person or the body issuing the judgment or decision, as well as specifying the constitutional text that the Prime Minister deems to be violating, provided that the Constitutional Court decides on this request expeditiously.
Judges and lawyers had considered the draft law to be an intrusion by the government on the Constitutional Court in matters of politics, and a transgression of its role stipulated in the Constitution; As a court that monitors the implementation of its articles within the Egyptian region, and a fraud to the constitutional obligation to respect international conventions and treaties, the discussion of the law in Parliament witnessed the objection of some deputies to it, the most prominent of which came from Representative Diaa El-Din Daoud, who considered that the amendment violates the text of Article 94 of the Constitution. As well, Representative Amira Abu Shaqqa opposed the draft law, and warned of its impact on the economy and investment, pointing out that “the agreements that we agreed to are binding”. Referring to the follow-up of international companies and bodies to what is happening and the latest developments in the law in Egypt. It also warned of the escalation against Egypt with the start of implementing the law.
Parliament facilitates the task of the executive branch in implementing the conditions of the World Bank at the expense of employees
The Egyptian parliament approved in principle a proposal to amend the Civil Service Law, which would allow the dismissal of employees belonging to the terrorist organization from government jobs in the country, in its session held on Monday. According to the list of the Egyptian Parliament, the proposed law will be presented to vote during the next plenary session, and it will be sent to the Council of Ministers then to the competent governmental authorities, to start implementing it and working with it according to the rules determined by Egyptian law.
Withholding access to information in settling the status of “Ever Given” compensation, and the citizen is a witness who hasn’t seen a thing
Responsible sources in the Suez Canal Authority revealed an imminent and final resolution to the compensation crisis for the Panamanian container ship “Ever Given”, which has been detained in the Suez Canal for two and a half months. The head of the Suez Canal Authority, Lieutenant-General Oussama Rabie, announced the signing of a non-disclosure agreement and confidentiality of information regarding the settlement terms, with The company that owns the ship, with the aim of preventing unnamed foreign parties from interfering in the negotiations, and the Suez Canal head stressed that “the agreement took into account the preservation of the full rights of the Suez Canal, as well as preserving its relations with its clients.”
The state sponsors the early treatment of children with muscular dystrophy
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi announced that the state will bear the cost of treating newborn muscular dystrophy, which amounts to $3 million per child. This came during El-Sisi’s inspection of equipment, vehicles and engineering machinery for various state agencies participating in the “Decent Life” initiative to develop rural villages. He explained that this humanitarian problem was of great interest to the Egyptian state, due to the suffering that families endure due to the loss of their children (muscular dystrophy patients). Therefore, the state moved and signed an agreement with several specialized international companies to treat this disease. He added that the state will begin to check up all children, so early diagnosis and treatment can be achieved.
The National Wage Authority sets the minimum wage for workers in the private sector
The National Wages Council decided, in its meeting headed by Dr. Hala Al-Saeed, Minister of Planning and Economic Development and Chairman of the National Wages Council, to set the minimum wage for workers in the private sector, at 2,400 pounds per month, taking into account the economic conditions of the establishments that are currently unable to comply with it, and excluding them from that starting from the first January 2022, with the adoption of flexible mechanisms to encourage business owners to implement it, and to give the affected establishments the opportunity to submit their complaint no later than next October to the Council’s Complaints Committee and the Council’s Wages Committee, whether individually for each facility or through its affiliated unions.
The case of the dress girl at Tanta University turns to the Public Prosecution and heavy penalties await the bullies
Dr. Mahmoud Zaki, President of Tanta University, said about the incident of bullying against the student “Habiba Tarek”, known in the media as “The Dress Girl”, that he saw that the incident, according to the student’s novel, included crimes punishable by law. So, he decided to refer it to the Public Prosecution to take its measures and find out the truth, and added, “We deal with any problem related to students by taking immediate action, because they are our kids and they are our trust, and such an incident will not happen again throughout the history of the university, and this is strange.”. He stressed that the student did not file an official complaint, but the university must take a position, to know the truth. He said that “the student’s story is not known to the university, in addition to that she did not file a complaint concerning the matter, and that he sees in the incident a criminal aspect that involves bullying and discrimination between Muslims and Christians. Also, what was said about the people of Alexandria and the people of Tanta, and all of this is a criminal offense.”
The president of the university stressed that verbal harassment is a felony, so the incident was referred to the Public Prosecution Office for a full investigation, and then the university shall exercise its legal right.
- Demands for the immediate disclosure of the whereabouts of the former parliamentarian, Mustafa Al-Najjar, and the disclosure of his fate after 1,000 days of enforced disappearance
- El MADA
- A report to the Public Prosecutor about the hunger strike of researcher Ahmed Samir Santawi for the fifth day in a row
The State Security Prosecution mocks the detained activists, their families, defence lawyers, and the US administration threatens to suspend 300 million US aid in case the human rights situation in Egypt continues to deteriorate
The Supreme State Security Prosecution set a session next Tuesday, July 2, to complete the investigations with Ziad El-Elaimy and the two journalists, “Houssam Moanes and Hichem Fouad”, accused of forming the so-called “Cell of Hope”, accusing them of joining, participating and financing a terrorist group founded in violation of the provisions of the law, and using social networking sites. The Public Prosecution Office charged the defendants in Case No. 930 of 2019 with counting the security of a supreme state, accusing them of committing crimes of association with a group established in contravention of the provisions of the law, the purpose of which is to call for the suspension of the provisions of the constitution and laws and to prevent state institutions and public authorities from carrying out their work, and to publish news, information and data deliberately lying about the political and economic conditions in the country with the intent of disturbing public peace and undermining confidence in state institutions.
A group of human rights organizations issued a statement expressing their deep concern about the continued disappearance of the doctor and former parliamentarian Mostafa Al-Najjar for the 1,000th day, and demanded the Egyptian authorities to immediately disclose any information related to his whereabouts or reveal his fate. The former parliamentarian Mustafa Al-Najjar, a dentist and former head of the Justice Party, travelled to Aswan Governorate in southern Egypt on September 27, 2018, and his whereabouts or fate are unknown to this moment. According to his wife, the last phone call between her and Mostafa Al-Najjar was on September 28, 2018, telling her that he was in Aswan, then communication with him was cut off. However, on October 10, 2018, his wife received a phone call from an unknown person on the home phone stating that he had been arrested. Accordingly, on October 12, 2018, the family contacted the Public Prosecutor regarding his disappearance, and Mostafa Al-Najjar’s lawyers filed a complaint with the Aswan Prosecution on October 31, bearing the No. 1010 of 2018 petitions. The State Information Service issued a statement on October 18, 2018, denying that the security services had arrested Mustafa al-Najjar.
While the Administrative Court of the State Council decided to accept a lawsuit filed by the family of Dr. Mostafa Al-Najjar to reveal his whereabouts, and according to the lawyer of the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms, the Department of Rights and Freedoms in the State Council ruled on January 20, 2020 to “stop the implementation of the negative decision and oblige the Minister of Interior to disclose the place of detention of Dr. Al Najjar”. This was stated in lawsuit No. 56032, which was filed by Shaima Ali Afifi, the wife of Dr. Mostafa Al-Najjar.
The ruling council of the Inter-Parliamentary Union had issued a decision in November 2020 regarding the disappearance of Mostafa al-Najjar, in which it expressed its concern about the Egyptian authorities’ failure to take any measures towards revealing the fate of the former parliamentarian, and demanded that the Ministry of Interior open an investigation into the disappearance of Dr. Mostafa al-Najjar. The Council itself, during its session held during the month of May 2021, also announced its continued concern about the Egyptian authorities’ unwillingness to disclose Mostafa al-Najjar’s whereabouts. The Council also renewed its call to the Ministry of Interior to take the investigation into his disappearance seriously, and to take the necessary measures to locate him.
The Supreme State Security Prosecution began investigating a complaint submitted by a citizen three years ago against the former spokesman of the Civil Democratic Movement, Yahya Hussein Abdel Hadi, accusing him of insulting the President of the Republic and publishing news that would disturb the public peace in one of his articles published in 2018. The prosecution decided to imprison Abdel Hadi, who is already imprisoned Since January 2019, a new case has been pending (No. 210 of 2019), according to lawyer Nejad El-Borai. Al-Borai explained that lawyer Khaled Ali and others were surprised, while they were at the State Security Prosecution headquarters last Thursday, that there was an investigation session with the former head of the Leadership Development Centre, in a report previously investigated by the Public Prosecution Nasr City on November 11, 2018, and released him on the same day on bail of ten thousand pounds. Al-Borai stressed that moving the State Security Prosecution for this case, which is his third, and accusing him of the same charges (joining a terrorist group, promoting its ideas and spreading false news) is a back door to justify his continued detention.
Al-Borai explained that according to the recent decision of the State Security Prosecution, it is scheduled to begin imprisoning Abdel Hadi in the latter case after completing two years of pre-trial detention in Case No. 1356 of 2019, which includes political activists, journalists and media professionals, which the same prosecution decided to include at the end of last February, days after completing two years of pre-trial detention in case 277 of 2019 known as “, Oh Allah a Revolution.”
The defence team of researcher Ahmed Samir Santawi submitted a report to the Public Prosecutor of his hunger strike for the fifth day in a row, since he announced the ruling against him, which is four years imprisonment and a fine of 500 pounds, in Case No. 774 of 2021 State Security Misdemeanour, Emergency of the First Assembly. In a protest, Ali Al-Hakam carried the communication No. 80603 of 2021 electronic petitions to the Public Prosecutor, and the defence team also requested the opening of an investigation into the incident of Santawi’s strike, as well as his deposition in the prison hospital to monitor his health condition on an ongoing basis.
Representatives Don Baer and Tom Malinowski, head of the Egyptian Human Rights coalition in the US Congress, issued a statement yesterday, calling on senior US administration officials to raise US concerns about human rights violations in Egypt, when they received the head of Egyptian intelligence, Abbas Kamel, who is visiting Washington, and meets with US intelligence officials and members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In their statement, the two Democratic representatives referred to what they described as continuing violations by the Egyptian security services, including arbitrary arrest rates, and politically motivated death sentences that the statement described as provocative, as well as the trial of members of Civil society on trumped-up charges, as well as harassment of American family members. The statement also indicated that the administration should inform the head of Egyptian intelligence that measures taken by the Egyptian security services in the coming months will directly affect the release of $300 million in military aid, which was previously halted by Congress in Waiting for improvements in the field of human rights.
Sudan and Egypt seek to internationalize the crisis after Ethiopian intransigence and provocations
Sudan asked the United Nations Security Council to hold an emergency session to discuss the dispute over the Renaissance Dam, according to the official Sudanese News Agency. The Sudanese Foreign Minister, Maryam Al-Sadiq Al-Mahdi, called on the council to urge Ethiopia to stop filling the dam unilaterally, and warned that this matter ” exacerbates the conflict and poses a threat to regional and international peace, and threatens the safety of millions of people”. In a speech to the President of the UN Security Council, the Minister urged support for mediation or “any other appropriate peaceful means” to resolve the conflict, as requested by the United Nations, the African Union, and other international and regional organizations for assistance in negotiations on the Renaissance Dam.
Sameh Chokri, Minister of Foreign Affairs, said that Ethiopian officials’ statements about Addis Ababa’s ability to engage in military confrontation are provocative, adding: We know what is Egypt’s interest, Egypt’s water rights, and the Egyptian people’s rights and how to defend them. Foreign Minister Sameh Chokri,noted the statements of an Ethiopian military general that Egypt will not be able to destroy the dam, saying: “We can preserve the rights of our people and we will not compromise in our interest in all ways, and on the purchase of water from Ethiopia”, the foreign minister indicated that this is a rule that will never be settled and is not applied, and there is no place to talk about these matters, but rather it is posed to distract.
Chokri explained that the Security Council is the internationally agreed upon UN body, and it has the authority to address and discuss any issue that affects the security of the international community, and to intervene and take decisions to support peace and security, noting that Egypt and Sudan’s resort to the council came with the aim of pushing the international community towards a peaceful solution to the crisis. The Renaissance Dam guarantees the rights of the three parties and prevents serious damage to the downstream countries. He stressed that Ethiopia’s allegations that the downstream countries are working to internationalize the Renaissance Dam issue outside the framework of the African Union is an attempt by the Ethiopian side to evade and disavow any international mechanisms that would contribute to solving the issue of the Renaissance Dam, and pointed out that Egypt submitted today a letter to the Security Council in support of Sudan’s request to hold an emergency session to discuss the repercussions of the Renaissance Dam crisis and reach a UN resolution that guarantees peaceful solutions to the rights of the two downstream countries.
An official source from the department dealing with the Renaissance Dam crisis said that Cairo is intensifying its diplomatic pressure with the aim of achieving a breakthrough in the file, coinciding with Ethiopia approaching the second filling of the dam. This comes at a time when the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the current president of the African Union, is hosting a meeting of irrigation ministers in Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia, for two days, after the meetings stopped since last April. The source explained that the Egyptian move adopts three parallel tracks, the first of which is to raise the level of understandings with Washington, Especially in light of the discussions that have already taken place between Cairo and the US administration about the repercussions of possible unrest in the Horn of Africa, vital to US interests, in the event that Ethiopia continues to insist on completing the filling and operation of the dam without understandings with Egypt and Sudan, as well as with France, which begins its presidency of the Security Council by the beginning of next July, which fully understands the Egyptian dilemma regarding the Ethiopian position and its water and political consequences for Egypt and Egyptian stability.
Epidemiological situation
Tunisia
Addressing the epidemiological situation is a priority for Parliament, and the Minister of Justice reveals the latest developments in the suspicions of the assassination of the President
Finally, the Health and Social Affairs Committee of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People paid special attention to the health situation related to the outbreak of the Coronavirus. In view of the emergency health situation and the dangerous developments of the epidemiological situation in Tunisia, especially in the governorates of Kairouan, Silian, Zaghouan and Beja. The following recommendations were made:
- Calling for intensifying health diplomacy efforts to expedite vaccinations.
- Generalizing the concentration of field hospitals and their reinforcement with the necessary medical and paramedical tires, starting with the red areas, then the rest of the states if necessary.
- Calling on the government to establish a health emergency law on an urgent basis, and in the absence of that, the Health Committee will submit a legislative initiative for this purpose within next week.
- Develop a communication plan to educate citizens about the seriousness of the health situation and invite private and public media to get involved in this campaign.
- Providing exceptional funds to the Ministry of Health to combat this epidemic.
- Activating the partnership between the public and private sectors in the health field.
- Simplifying and facilitating the customs procedures for gifts and donations sent by civil society and Tunisians abroad and speeding up their distribution.
- Inviting the National Council of the Deanship of Physicians to urge first-line doctors to engage in the Cofidar system and to provide oxygen concentrators.
- Calling citizens to abide by preventive measures and to make them aware of the real danger this epidemic poses.
In a follow-up to the regular work of the Council, the work of the session began on Monday, June 28, 2021, in the presence of the Acting Minister of Justice, Hasna Ben Sliman, and the Minister of Transport and Logistics, Moez Shakchouk. After this session, Mrs. Hasna Ben Sliman clarified that the research had been closed and the file was preserved due to the inadequacy of the argument in the case of the suspected attempt to assassinate the President.
Ennahdha is closely following the situation, and the Free Constitutional party continues its shows
On Wednesday, June 23, 2021, the Executive bureau of the Ennahdha Movement held its periodic meeting headed by Rached Ghannouchi, devoted to following up on health developments in the country and the outbreak of the epidemic, and also stopped at the outcome of meetings and consultations held by the movement’s institutions in search of solutions to the political crisis in the country.
The Ennahdha movement expressed its concern about the deterioration of the health situation and the rapid spread of the Coronavirus in more than one region, expressing its concern about the collapse of the health system.
It called on the government to exert maximum efforts to combat the epidemic and limit its spread by intensifying vaccination and concentrating field hospitals in the most affected regions, sensitizing public opinion of the seriousness of the situation and applying the law to protect people without neglecting social care for those affected, and called on it to facilitate the arrival of aid provided by Tunisians living abroad and reducing the administrative procedures that hinder their efforts to support their families in Tunisia.
As for the Democratic Current, it had decided, on June 23, 2021, and by agreement between its parties, to appoint Mr. Noman Elleuch as the party’s leader, to succeed Mr. Mohamed Ammar after the latter’s resignation.
While the free constitutional party continued its shows for this week, as Abir Moussi and a group of deputies belonging to the same party climbed on Tuesday on the bench designated for the presidency of Parliament in a protest movement against the draft Qatar Fund for Development agreement before it was presented to the plenary session for a vote on Wednesday.
Opponents of this agreement also considered that some of its provisions directly affect Tunisia’s sovereignty, as they allow the Qatar Development Fund to take decisions without consulting the Tunisian government, and to hire whomever it wants without referring to the Tunisian state. The chapters of the agreement grant the fund several privileges, including exemption from direct and indirect taxes, and the right to return exporting all materials that have not been used without paying any fees or fees, and before the start of the discussion of the plenary session, on Tuesday, on the Tunisian-Qatari agreement, which requires the formation of a Qatari fund for development in Tunisia, deputies from the Free Constitutional Party held a sit-in inside the session hall in Parliament, which prevented The session was held in the central hall of Parliament to be transferred to the subsidiary building.
Violence escalates under the dome of Parliament, and everyone condemns
The resigned MP from the Al-Karama Coalition bloc, Sahbi Samara, during the voting session on the domestic work law, and in the presence of the Minister of Women, Family and the Elderly Imen Zahoueni Houimel, attacked his colleague, head of the Constitutional Party and Bloc Abir Moussi, with blatant material violence, in front of the live broadcast cameras. It sparked a state of chaos under the dome of the Council, and a state of denunciation and condemnation prevailed in the political, legal and popular circles.
The Ministry of Women, Family and the Elderly expressed, in a statement issued on Wednesday, its strong condemnation of the violence taking place under the dome of the House of People’s Representatives, calling on the people’s representatives to distance themselves from such practices, which have been aggravating daily.
The statement stated, “The Ministry of Women strongly condemns the blatant violence committed by MP Sahbi Smara against his colleague, MP Abir Moussi, under the dome of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People and before the eyes of the Minister of Women and Family, the elderly and her companions.”
The ministry also expressed the hope that the office of the Assembly of the People’s Representatives will take the necessary measures to ensure the safety of the conduct of public sessions and to prevent all violent behaviour that does not respect human dignity, especially aimed at insulting and degrading women.
As for the Presidency of the Government, for its part, it has condemned all practices that undermine the democratic system and affect the stability of the state and the normal functioning of its institutions, wherever they come from. A note in the same communication, of the attack on the Minister of Higher Education a few days ago.
For his part, Speaker of Parliament Rached Ghannouchi condemned what MP Sahbi Samara had done, and considered it an unfortunate and “outrageous event” that does not accept any interpretation, stressing that any attack on Tunisian women and women in general is totally rejected, according to the person in charge of information and communication, Maher Madhioub, during a media point held on Wednesday at the Assembly.
The Labour Union said in a statement that it “strongly condemns this cowardly attack and denounces the terrorist bloc that is accustomed to practicing violence against everyone who disagrees with it,” blaming the Presidency of the Assembly of People’s Representatives for the recurrence of these practices that are offensive to political action and the country’s reputation, according to what was stated in a Statement.
The Labour Union expressed its solidarity with the head of the Free Constitutional Bloc, saying that “this violence is violence directed against women.”
It said that this assault is a crime that requires judicial follow-up, calling on the Public Prosecution to commit to automatic and strict application of the law and not to escape punishment.
The President of the Republic commemorates the 65th anniversary of the armed forces and intensifies meetings in order to reach solutions
On Thursday morning, June 24, 2021 at Carthage Palace, the President of the Republic, Kais Said, Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, supervised the parade celebrating the 65th anniversary of the resurrection of the National Army, in the presence of the Speaker of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People, the Chief Of Government, the Minister of National Defence, members of the Supreme Council of Armies and military leaders.
In this context, he praised the role of the armed forces in the face of treacherous terrorist operations, stressing that Tunisia will not forget the martyrs, the wounded and their families. He recalled the role of the armed forces in confronting the Covid-19 pandemic, especially by evacuating Tunisians stranded in various regions of the world, transporting equipment and medicines to Tunisia and intervening quickly to focus field hospitals.
The head of state also distributed rank and badges among a group of soldiers, then received the torch of the 65th anniversary of the resurrection of the national army.
During the celebration, the President of the Republic met with the Speaker of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People. The leader of the Ennahdha movement, Mohamed Khalil Al-Baroumi, confirmed in a post on his Facebook page that this meeting was lengthy and positive, and focused mainly on the situation of the country. Rached Ghannouchi also described this meeting as positive and that it broke the ice and opened the way for consensus such as those with former President Beji Caid Essebsi, adding that Tunisia is now in dire need of consensus policies and the search for the common.
The President of the Republic, Kais Saied, also met with the Secretary-General of the People’s Movement, Mr. Zouhaier Maghzaoui. The meeting dealt with a number of issues related to the general situation in Tunisia and the crisis that has persisted since 2011 until today, as Said stressed that, for him, the matter is not related to mediation or middle solutions that satisfy this and satisfy that, but rather to constants, principles and values, stressing that he is outside the fabricated political calculations and is still fixating on his principles. He pointed out that the danger that threatens countries is the attempts to strike them from within and disrupt their basic public facilities, stressing that all national forces must unite in the face of these dangers. The health situation in Tunisia was also discussed during this meeting. In light of the increasing degree of infection with the Covid-19 virus. The meeting was also an occasion during which the Head of State reiterated Tunisia’s firm position on the Palestinian issue.
The Chief Of Governmenetcontinues the health and economic marathon
On Wednesday, June 23, 2021, the Chief of Government supervised the Supreme Investment Council.
The Chief Of Government also held a series of meetings with a number of parliamentary blocs that support the government’s work programs and objectives, in the context of listening to the proposals and perceptions of these parliamentary components in a way that helps to overcome the current stage with all its economic, social, health and political repercussions. Hichem Mechichi met with representatives of the Ennahdha movement, the Heart of Tunisia bloc, the National Reform bloc, the National Bloc, and the Long Live Tunisia bloc. These meetings represented a renewed opportunity to discuss the latest political and economic developments and ways to work on overcoming the difficulties and obstacles that impede government work, and seeking to gather all political forces out of the crisis in our country. He also considered that the economic and social situation imposes the solidarity of all Tunisians and political actors, the synergy of state institutions, the unification of efforts towards getting out of the crisis, and building away from political quarrels that will only complicate the situation, and distract from the real concerns of Tunisians.
As for the deputies, for their part, they were exposed to a number of challenges that Tunisia is going through that require additional and joint efforts, and more coordination and cooperation between the government and the Assembly of People’s Representatives, especially at the legislative level, such as the urgent consideration of a number of bills that serve the urgent expectations of Tunisians, stressing The important role that the representatives play in listening to the demands of the citizens in their regions.
On Thursday evening, June 24, 2021, at the Government Palace in the Kasbah, Hichem Mechichi received the Libyan Minister of Industry Ahmed Ali Abu Hessa, on the sidelines of the conclusion of his visit to Tunisia, accompanied by a delegation of Libyan businessmen, and the meeting was attended by the Acting Minister of Industry, Energy and Mines, Mohamed Boussaid. During this meeting, The Chief Of Government stressed the need to move forward with what was agreed upon with his Libyan counterpart and to implement it in the practical aspect, stressing that all possibilities and facilities are put in front of investors from both sides in order to reach a twinning
For his part, the Libyan Minister of Industry briefed The Chief of Government on the most prominent agreements and partnerships that were concluded between the two countries in the field of industry and minerals on the sidelines of his visit to Tunisia. The Chief Of Government receives the Libyan Minister of Industry: Libyan desire to benefit from Tunisian expertise in the field of industry
The press conference of the French ambassador in Tunisia..a negative message by all standards
On an international level, with regard to irregular migration, the French ambassador to Tunisia said during a press conference at his residence in La Marsa that France wants to return Tunisians who are in France illegally, especially those who pose a threat to public security. He added that the decision to return Tunisians to their lands is not a limitation of the movement of Tunisians coming to France, but rather a desire to regulate the issue of illegal immigration. He added that Tunisia represents the fourth nationality after the Chinese, Moroccans and Algerians, and there is no intention from France to limit the movement of Tunisians, he added that the issue of “illegal” immigration may pose a dilemma and may affect young people and students coming to France to work and continue their education.
In another context, the French ambassador to Tunisia had returned to some of the points raised during the Tunisian-French High Cooperation Council, during a press interview on June 22 during which the ambassador was asked about the reason for not reversing the debt owed by Tunisia against France. The ambassador had justified France’s position through a number of arguments, including that Tunisia had not requested it. It is also not in its interest to ask for that, because that would degrade its image at the international level. It is also a negative indicator for the financial markets. This means that Tunisia is a country that is unable to pay its debts, even those the country intends to borrow in the future.
Follow up to the Sidi Hssine incident and cruel violations against women
Violations against women continue month after month and day after day, and this time against working rural women, as there was a traffic accident on the road linking the delegation of Ouled Shamikh and the governorate of Kairouan at the level of Wadi Zaroud in the Zafarana region of the southern Kairouan delegation, resulting in the injury of more than 10 Workers in the agricultural sector after the light truck they were on overturned.
And the matter becomes even more horrific through the continuation of the family massacres and their intensification, as a new murder has occurred in Sfax against a woman and her son.
As for the Sidi Hssin incident, one of the security agents who abused the minor child was detained, according to what lawyer Yassin Azzaza confirmed on his Facebook page.
After the President of the Republic resorted to the military judiciary for cases of tracking bloggers over their posts on social media, the National Syndicate of Journalists issued a statement condemning these practices.
Economic indicators are constantly deteriorating, and the Corona pandemic is worsening the situation
In addition to the deteriorating economic situation, the health crisis in the world has led to a decline in many economic indicators, including the rate of foreign direct investment flowing to Tunisia by 23 percent last year, from $845 million to $652, according to the report of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. The report attributed this deterioration to the health situation.
On the other hand, tourism revenues declined by 34% until June 20, 2021, reaching a value of 706 million dinars, compared to the same period in 2020, according to monetary and financial indicators, published by the Central Bank of Tunisia, on Friday. The total volume of refinancing also decreased by 24 percent, not exceeding 7.1 billion dinars, according to data from the Central Bank of Tunisia.
Follow-up on the most important corruption cases and reveal the reasons for the disruption of the transitional justice process
In a follow-up to the most important corruption cases for this week, the businessman Chafik Jaraya, entered, on the eve of Monday, June 21, 2021, in a sit-in inside the prison lobby in Mornaguia, refusing to go to his prison room. At the financial judicial pole for tax evasion cases, he criticized before the court his situation inside the prison and the harassment he and his family are subjected to, as he put it.
On the other hand, the criminal department specialized in considering cases of financial corruption at the Court of Appeal in Tunis decided, on Thursday, June 24, 2021, to “temporarily release the rapper known as “Swag Man”, in exchange for securing a sum of money of 200,000 dinars and banning travel on him, according to the statements of the spokesman of the Court of Appeal in Tunis, Habib Tarkhani. The same source added that it was decided to continue hearing the case of the accused, “Swag Man” until the next session on July 8.
In a vigorous follow-up to the file of the judges, Tayeb Rached and Bechir Akremi, it is reported that the two judges were referred to the Supreme Council of the Judicial Judiciary, following the disciplinary session held on June 24, 2021, after completing the inspection reports of the Ministry of Justice and the reports of the rapporteurs appointed by the Council regarding their files. It was also decided to postpone the appearance of Judge Tayeb Rached before the Disciplinary Council until July 16, 2021, after he was unable to attend on Thursday, June 24, 2021. Mrs. Rawdha Qarafi, honorary president of the Association of Tunisian Judges, had stated that there are suspicious acts in the Court of Cassation and that the case of Nabil Karoui was referred to a specific council to ensure acquitted by it.
On the other hand, the “I Watch” organization is intensifying its efforts and following up on the vaccination process, during which many abuses are taking place, as following the announcement by the Minister of Health on April 26, 2021 of contracting with a service company to take care of receiving citizens in vaccination centres. The NGO provided a copy of the aforementioned contract from the Ministry of Health, and it turned out that it was a direct negotiation contract with the “communication services” company, an anonymous company active in the field of guarding, cleaning and reception. The contract value is 779,376 dinars “to dispose of waiting queues in vaccination centres”, allocated from the 1818 fund for the prevention and response to health pandemics. In a statement, the organization denounced the Ministry of Health’s waste of public funds. The organization was also surprised by the adoption of the direct negotiation mechanism, given that organizing the ranks is a necessary and inevitable step that the Ministry of Health had to anticipate and prepare for months ago, and before the start of the vaccination process by engaging in a more transparent and competitive contracting process. In a statement, the organization also denounced the conflict of interests by combining the status of a deputy and a lawyer at the same time by some deputies.
In another context, the file of transitional justice and the implementation of the recommendations of the Truth and Dignity Commission returned this week to the forefront of events, through the issuance of a study developed under the name “White Book”, by the “No Return” initiative, which operates within the civil coalition to defend transitional justice. It includes Lawyers Without Borders, the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights, and Bawsala Organization, which included proposals and recommendations related to judicial reform, security, individual freedoms, collective reparations, good governance of public institutions, and the fight against corruption. A project manager at Lawyers Without Borders confirmed that 205 files are still before the courts, without issuing judgments in any of them.
He revealed that 237 warrants had not been implemented, blaming the chief of government as he is also the acting minister of the interior, responsible for these practices that “contribute to perpetuating impunity, given that he is responsible for the judicial police,” which he said “provides various justifications and unjustified arguments.” The rationale for not implementing these cards and making arrests against security forces and officials accused in torture cases.”
- After Kairouan - Serious numbers in Beja and Siliana and a critical epidemiological situation
- Siliana records a record number of injuries and deaths
- Rabat Hospital: Supporting the mortuary with a refrigerated truck after reaching its full capacity
- Epidemiological situation in Tunisia
- The rate of pressure on the recovery family in public hospital institutions in the various states of the Republic
- The catastrophic situation in Makthar Hospital
- Corona patient dies in front of Kairouan Hospital
- In Tunisia, the Kairouan region is affected by the Covid-19 pandemic
Can the country address the catastrophic health situation by repeating the same measures?
The deteriorating health situation dominates the Tunisian scene this week, as the situation is getting worse day after day in many regions, especially in Kairouan, Beja and Siliana. Where, on 22 Jul 2021, the regional director of health in Beja state, Eliyes Ammar, confirmed in an intervention on Radio Jawhara that Quarantine is not respected in the region, which caused a rapid spread of the British strain, which causes a critical condition of the patient for more than 14 days, and is more dangerous than the normal virus and spreads faster, which explains the high cases calling for medical intervention, declaring that the infection rate is 700 cases per hundred thousand residents. An absorption capacity that does not exceed two recovery beds only for an entire state and 80 oxygen beds, all of them are occupied. He explained that the capacity has reached its maximum and patients are distributed to neighbouring states, mainly Bizerte. Not only that, but Associated Hospital is granted a novel refrigerated truck to preserve the dead bodies, after the mortuary reached its maximum capacity.
This miserable condition of hospitals and the waste of their infrastructure led to the death of a citizen infected with Corona in front of Ibn Al-Jazzar Hospital, because there was no place to shelter him there.
Which necessitated the need to intervene to save what could be saved, by finding possible solutions by establishing field hospitals, as the Minister of Health, Dr. Fawzi Mahdi, on the evening of Wednesday 23 Joan 2021, turned to the state of Beja, accompanied by the governor of the region and Dr. The Covid-19 Crisis Cell at the Ministry of Health, in order to monitor the beginning of the establishing of field hospital and see where it is located, prepared and the start of work there.
The ministry also increased the number of oxygen and reanimation beds in public hospitals between June 6 and 21, with 121 oxygen beds and 41 reanimation beds, bringing the number of these beds, respectively, to 2431 oxygen beds and 457 resuscitation beds. On the other hand, new quantities of vaccination were brought in, as 500,000 new doses of the Chinese Sinovac arrived on June 21.
But despite the efforts of the state and other citizens to address this rapid spread of the virus, the situation is worsening by detecting new strains by the Ministry of Health. On Wednesday, June 23, 2021, 6 cases of infection with the Indian strain we detected. Genetic cutting operations are still ongoing until the final results of the cases of infection with the Indian strain are released. The Brazilian strain was also detected in Mahdia, during the same day.
The health system is reeling…
In view of the deteriorating health situation in the country, the National Authority to confront the Corona virus held its periodic meeting on Thursday evening, June 24, 2021, under the supervision of Hichem Mechichi at the Government Palace in the Kasbah, and in the presence of a number of ministers, members of the scientific committee, and administrative, security and military leaders, in addition to the presence of the governors of Kairouan, Siliana, Beja and Zaghouan, and the participation of Chairman of the Committee on Health and Social Affairs of the Assembly of Representatives of the People Ayachi Zamal.
The committee’s meeting reviewed the latest developments in the epidemiological situation, especially with the rapid spread of the Coronavirus in a number of agencies in terms of evaluating procedures and indicators related to limiting the spread of the epidemic, and coordinated the progress of the national vaccination campaign based on the priorities set by the “EVAX” system for registration.
At the beginning of the meeting, the Chief of Government stressed the importance of evaluating and following-up the measures that were taken in connection with the rapid spread of the virus in a number of parties and their effectiveness, pointing to the need for more tight coordination between the various parties concerned and more coordination with the regional authorities to implement all the measures announced in States and counties most affected by the spread of the epidemic. He reiterated that the only solution to get out of the health crisis is through raising the pace of the national vaccination campaign and bringing in vaccinations and going towards vaccinating the largest possible number of Tunisians, especially since our country was an example in vaccination campaigns thanks to health care centres, pointing in this regard to the necessity of work to strengthen the current vaccination in the interior regions, and move towards intensive vaccination, especially for the elderly, by going to them in remote and rural areas.
The infection rate also continues to rise daily, as Tunisia recorded the highest number of injuries since the beginning of the pandemic on June 26, 2021. The Ministry of Health recorded 4,664 cases.
As a result of these recent developments in the situation, the government held a press conference on June 24, during which it took a number of new measures, the most important of which is continuing to work with previously established health procedures and protocols, classifying authorities and delegations according to the degree of risk and assigning governors based on data on the evolution of the epidemiological situation.
Libya
The resumption of the political dialogue forum in Geneva and international demands to end foreign interference and hold elections on time
The Libyan Political Dialogue Forum resumed its meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, to discuss the proposal for the constitutional basis for presidential and parliamentary elections, which was prepared by the Committee for its 3-day meeting, facilitated by the United Nations Support Mission in Libya at the request of the members of the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum. The mission and members of the Advisory Committee praised the work of the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum. The legal committee that succeeded in developing a draft constitutional rule for holding the national parliamentary and presidential elections on December 24, 2021. During its meeting, the committee reviewed the various proposals submitted by the members of the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum on the constitutional basis necessary for holding these elections, as stipulated in the roadmap approved by the forum and called for its Conclusions of the Second Berlin Conference as well as Security Council Resolution No. (2570 – 2021).
The committee also reached consensus formulas on many outstanding issues and will submit its recommendations to the forum for consideration and appropriate decision-making after completing its consultations. The members of the advisory committee are meeting again in Switzerland, before presenting their proposal to the plenary session of the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum
In the same context, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, urged the need to end foreign interference in Libya and hold the general elections on time on December 24, stressing that the elections are of paramount importance for Libya, calling on the Libyan authorities to provide the appropriate environment for holding the elections on time and allow all Libyans the opportunity to participate in the elections fairly and freely, calling on the Libyan House of Representatives to clarify the basis on which the general elections will be held, and to adopt the draft budget. In addition to the above, Guterres invited UN member states to donate $ 189 million to support the elections, and to support the most vulnerable groups, expressing concern over the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Libya.
The budget and political positions impede discussions and sessions within the Libyan parliament
A new crisis looms on the horizon in Libya, after the joint military committee demanded the parliament to appoint a defence minister, and the Libyan Presidential Council called on the head of the Government of National Unity, Abdelhamid al-Dabaiba, to expedite the nomination of a defence minister without delay. According to the media office of the Libyan Presidential Council, the council sent a letter to the Chief of the Libyan Government, in which he invited him to attend the important meeting that will be held in the office of the Supreme Commander of the army, in order to consult on the issue of appointing the Minister of Defence and to settle the matter once and for all in case he was absent at the meeting.
Earlier, the budget and sovereign crises escalated, after the suspension of their discussion session by the Libyan Parliament for the second time this month, and the spokesman for the Libyan House of Representatives, Abdullah Blihaq, confirmed the suspension of last Monday’s session to discuss the speech of the Joint Military Committee (5 + 5), which the House of Representatives demands through them the appointment ofs a defence minister, and Blihaq added in a press conference, Monday, that the letter of the Military Committee asked Parliament to appoint a defence minister, and not to spend the ministry’s budget until after appointing a minister for it. Noting that the assembly will decide on the matter in the next session, last March Dabaiba announced that it was agreed with the Libyan Presidential Council that the Ministry of Defence would take over the prime minister temporarily, given the existence of an intense conflict over this position because there is a raging conflict over this it in addition to external interventions.
The international community warns of the collapse of the agreed timetable for organizing general elections in Libya
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that there is a global consensus to remove foreign forces from Libya, and that he believes that the process of withdrawing foreign forces will begin soon, and that this process will not be immediate and will take time, stressing at the same time that there is an international consensus on the need to hold parliamentary and presidential elections. Earlier, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that he discussed with his Moroccan counterpart Naceur Bourita, developments in Libya, as well as other files, and Blinken tweeted: “It was a good meeting today with Moroccan Foreign Minister Naceur Bourita, to review our common interest in regional peace, stability and human rights, including freedom of the press. We discussed developments in Libya and our desire to see stability and prosperity there.” These discussions came in the Italian capital, Rome, on the sidelines of the ministerial meeting of the international coalition against ISIS.
Russia also expressed its conviction that the complete withdrawal of foreign forces from Libya is a necessary condition for the normalization of conditions in this country, and Deputy Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin, in a speech delivered during the second Berlin Conference on the Libyan settlement, stressed that the foreign military presence in this country still constitutes A complicated issue. He said: “Without any doubt, it is not possible to talk about full normalization there as long as the presence of foreign military and mercenaries continues in Libyan territory, and we are convinced that the process of evacuating them should be coordinated in time and include all non-Libyan armed formations present in the country, and the Russian diplomat warned that failure to implement this condition will undermine the balance of power that allows maintaining calm in the country over the past months and the emergence of a real danger of a new military escalation in the conflict, and that the situation in Libya has witnessed tangible positive changes since the convening of the first Berlin conference, stressing at the same time that there are difficulties in achieving these changes, and that all the provisions of the roadmap stipulated under UN Security Council Resolution 2570 have not been adequately implemented.
In this regard, the Russian diplomat stressed that the agreed upon timetable for organizing general elections in Libya in late December of this year should not be allowed to collapse. He said: “We do not see an alternative to an integrated political settlement of the Libyan conflict under the auspices of the United Nations, but the progress that has become clear in the political process will not succeed unless this process is, in fact, comprehensive with the participation of all influential forces in the country, including representatives of the former regime who cannot be excluded from the efforts to rebuild the state in the post-conflict period.
The Libyan army confirms its control over the south and carries out retaliatory operations against ISIS in the Harouge Mountains
The Libyan army confirmed its control of Al-Wigh military airport in the city of Murzuq, and extended its influence over the south of the country. This comes after social media pages reported a false news of an attack on Al-Wigh military airport. The operations officer of the southern operations forces of the Libyan army, Brigadier General Mohammed al-Khazmi, confirmed that all southern borders and airports are under the control and protection of the Libyan Arab Armed Forces
Al-Khazmi stressed in a statement published on the page of the official spokesman for the Libyan army, that the purpose of this rumour is to disrupt the security operation to secure the southern region and impose security and the sovereignty of the Libyan state, and explained that the security operation continues with instructions and follow-up from the Commander-in-Chief of the Libyan army, Field Marshal Staff of Khalifa Haftar’s war and specialized military operations rooms.
The Director of the Moral Guidance Department of the Libyan Army, Major General Khaled al-Mahjoub, said in a statement, last Saturday, that the Libyan armed forces continue their military operations to eliminate terrorism, and to arrest more terrorists in the Haruj Mountains, where members of pervasive organizations are trying to hide and launch to practice their terrorist activity and attempt destabilization of security. A week ago, the Libyan army called on Libyan citizens and fishermen who go to the desert areas in the vicinity of the Haruj Mountains and the entire regions of the southwest, to immediately stop roaming in these areas in order to preserve their safety and security, due to the military operations to hunt down the remnants of terrorist gangs in those areas simultaneously. However, the Libyan army published a video clip of the explosion of a car bomb in a desert patrol in the Haruj area, while it was tracking the cell of the perpetrators of the Sebha attack, which led to the killing of one of its members, who was the commander of a company protecting the “Waw” air base, Ali Mohammed Othman Al-Tabawi.
On June 6, the Sabha Security Directorate confirmed that a car bomb driven by a terrorist exploded as soon as it reached the city gate between the vehicles and individuals, which led to the killing of the head of the Criminal Investigation Department of Sabha Branch Ibrahim Abdel Nabi Manna, and the officer in the agency Abbas Abu Bakr al-Sharif, in addition to 3 wounded. The destruction of a number of the city’s Security Directorate cars, an incident for which the terrorist organization ISIS claimed responsibility, at the time, mobilized the leaders of the Libyan army, that carried out several military operations in the south, to pursue the terrorists and the perpetrators of the suicide attack on the Sebha Security Directorate.
How long will the forcible return of irregular migrants to hunger and death camps in Libya continue!!
The Ministry of Interior of the Government of National Unity announced the enforcement and arrest of 33 irregular migrants of different nationalities, including women and children. The Anti-Irregular Migration Agency after taking legal measures against them and providing them with medical and humanitarian assistance by the International Organization for Migration team upon their disembarkation at Tripoli seaport
Last update : 01/07/2021 - 15:00
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