Clark, Ridley: MB Trial Part of War Against Moderate Islam

Clark, Ridley: MB Trial Part of War Against Moderate Islam

A press conference was held in the Egyptian bar association and was attended by international figures who came to Egypt to join the defence team of the Muslim Brotherhood leaders transferred to a military court. The international figures included Ramey Clark the former US Attorney General, Ivan Lawrence, the former legal advisor of the Queen of England, Samih Kharis, a member of the Jordanian bar association and representative of Amnesty International, Yvonne Ridley, the renowned British journalist.
 
Clark said: What happened to the detained Muslim Brotherhood leaders is a flagrant violation to key human rights. Evey human being has the right to be free like fellow human beings.
 
Ramzi Clark, the former US Attorney General is well known for his support to human rights cases and fair political issues
 
This is the seventh military tribunal against MB leaders in ten years” said Clark adding that transferring them to a military court is” an abuse of power that aims at distorting the image of the political opposition.
 
 
Clark added:” Referring the Muslim Brotherhood leaders to a military court is an attack against Islam. This is because there is no real charge against them and they aren”t accused of committing and wrong or using violence. They are actually strong Muslims who are widely active in helping the poor and caring for people”s health and education.
 The former US Attorney General said:” These persons, engineers and doctors and professors, are detained because of their good achievements for the Egyptian society. The Egyptian government fear this.
 
Regarding these detentions and their effect on families of the detainees, Clark said:” The detainees are suffering from diseases, let alone the psychological suffering due to keeping them away from their families. Freezing their assets and those owned by their family members has added insult to injury.
 
Clark said also that transferring MB leaders to the military court violates the Egyptian law itself and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Egypt is a signatory.
I have attended trials in the six continents of the world and no accused has stood trial in front of a military court although charges included treason in some of them, He said.
 
Ramzi Clark said about the Egyptian government”s violation to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in which Egypt is a signatory:” What the Egyptian government is fabricating against its citizens is considered a flagrant violation to human rights and covenants in which it is a signatory, seriously putting peace at the stakes.
 
It is pitiful that the government attacks the Muslim Brotherhood in a great country like Egypt”, said Clark calling on the Egyptian government and president Mubarak to acknowledge that they commit a grave mistake against their Muslim good citizens,  and demanded the government to release them and compensate their families for the suffering which they experienced.
 
He added that Egypt needs MB”s love,  piety and religion, and that the Egyptian government has signed human rights and international covenants and it should respect them.
 
 
Yvonne Ridley, the famous British journalist who came to show her solidarity with the Muslim Brotherhood leaders transferred to the military court , said it was the first time in which she or the former US Attorney General Ramsey Clark are denied access to any court
“Sunday”s trial session is a shame on the Egyptian government. It proved that the Egyptian government does not seek neither justice nor freedom, said Ridley.
 
Ridley pointed out that:” Moderate Muslims are facing a staunch war because of being religious.
It is crystal clear that Mubarak fears real moderate Islam which is adopted by the Muslim Brotherhood” she said, accusing Mubarak and government vetted clerics of presenting a distorted image of Islam to be loyal to the West, not to Allah.
 
Regarding the services presented by the Muslim Brotherhood groups to ill and employees, the British journalist said:” It isn”t a punishment to the Muslim Brotherhood alone, it is a punishment to ill people and employees depending on this group for medicine and jobs.
 
Yvonne demanded journalists to be courageous and reveal the truth.
 
“The journalists have two directions: either to continue propagating for the government leading to a zero change or to reveal the bad exercises of the government and show that it is a puppet in the hands of the US administration” she added.
 
Ridley objected to referring civilians to the military court, saying:” The Muslim Brotherhood leaders referred to the military court will not receive just rulings in front of these courts and they will face injustices from dictators and government vetted clerics who twist facts for a handful of dollars.
 
As for Samih Kharis, the representative of the Amnesty International and a member of the Jordanian bar association, he said:” I came to attend this court as a legitimate and neutral party to monitor what takes place inside the court”.
 
Around referring MB leaders to the military court, Kharis said: This violates the International Charters of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Egypt is a signatory.
 
The Amnesty International”s representative added that:” I demand Egyptian president to immediately intervene in the trial of the Muslim Brotherhood leaders to end this farce.
Kharis tried to contact the manager of the military justice but he didn”t respond to his attempt.
 
Regarding the benefit of the international law in such cases, the former US Attorney General said:” The international law does not have a considerable power and it needs support. We should seize all opportunities to protect human rights” .
 
Clark responded to a question about the future role of the activists, saying:” there nothing called miracle in this spot. We must do our best and use all possible and peaceful possible means, and organize ourselves to end this injustice.
 
Regarding his role in the defence team, Clak said:” We should not leave a human being face such an issue alone. We should do something positive for him.
The former US Attorney General added that he is ready to give any kind of help but he said he came to give help as much as the international law is concerned, knowing for sure that the Egyptian lawyers ar efficient.
 
He said he will leave Egypt and he will be back to attend the coming trial session.
 
Worth noting, Egyptian security authorities denied the famous international lawyer and honorary president of the US international justice society, Ali Azhar, entry to Egypt. The state security services detained him in the new airport in the capital Cairo, and was prevented from participating in the defence team of the Muslim Brotherhood  leaders..