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Amongst the unprecedented violent events witnessed in central Cairo Saturday evening (30 July 2005) Mr. Kamal Abbas the General Coordinator of the Center for Trade Union and Workers Services (CTUWS) was subject to a brutal attack from the security forces of the Ministry of Interior. He incurred fractions in the eighth and ninth chest cage ribs and different wounds and bruises in the head and the back.
A number of organizations and opposition parties and other democratic powers called for a peaceful demonstration on Saturday evening to protest against the method of announcing President Mubarak for the next presidential term which looked as an extension of the present term rather than elections between two different candidates.
Participants in that popular demonstration were the Popular Movement for Change, Kifaya Movement, Al Tajammu Party, Al Ghad Party, the Youth, Artists, Authors and Lawyers movements for change, other social and democratic movements and civic society organizations. But the Egyptian security forces took the initiative and occupied Tahrir Square where the demonstration was supposed to take place in order to prevent them from getting there. Then they started in a brutal and haphazard manner beating anyone who happened to be there or can be caught. They used different means such as heavy sticks, boxing and kicking. They also chased and attacked journalists, satellite channels cameramen and news agencies' photographers and took their cameras by force. Several persons were seriously injured. Mr. Shaaban Abdel Raheem "Journalist" suffered fatal internal bleeding in the stomach. Mr. Kamal Abbas was injured as explained earlier. Tens of the movements leaders, protestors and others who were just present in that central part of Cairo were arrested that bloody day. Some of them were released while twenty of them are still detained.
While the Center for Trade Union and Workers Services (CTUWS) strongly deplores this fierce attack against its general coordinator, it emphasizes its genuine democratic stand calling for enabling the Egyptian people to participate actively in political life and decision making, and the right of all the categories of the population to express themselves and practice their rights freely including the right to peaceful demonstration and strike. The CTUWS expresses its deep concern on the method adopted by the security forces in confronting those who oppose President Mubarak and consider this action an unfortunate indicator of what is going to happen in the election process which did not start yet. The CTUWS also condemns all the practices and violations of the police forces on the evening of Saturday 30 July 2005 which exceed all limits and contravene with all international conventions and human rights.
The CTUWS calls for urgent investigation of the attack against its General Coordinator and holding the attackers responsible for their deeds particularly that this is not the first time to commit such serious violations of human rights in Egypt.
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