Egypt’s press union chief rejects pressure over detained journalists

Six journalists from independent platform Matsadaash allege torture in detention, which Egypt denies. Save Share The head of Egypt’s Journalists Syndicate has insisted the organisation will continue to fight for press freedom after it came under fire for defending six journalists who were detained last month and charged with joining a “terrorist” group. “What happens to one colleague affects us all, and may happen to others tomorrow,” Khaled Elbalshy said in a statement on Sunday. “An infringement of one journalist’s freedom is an infringement of everyone’s freedom and a weakening of the safeguards protecting that freedom.” His comments came after the syndicate filed a complaint with Egypt’s public prosecutor over allegations that the detained journalists, who work for the investigative website Matsadaash, had been tortured. Egyptian authorities denied the accusations, while pro-government commentators criticised the organisation for defending the journalists. Mohamed Adel, Mohamed Ashraf Abu Emeira, Islam Barakat, Omar Helal, Mohamed Mahmoud and Abdallah Qadry were arrested on September 28 and 29 and have since appeared before the Supreme State Security Prosecution, which prosecutes national security cases. They have been ordered to be held in pretrial detention for 15 days pending investigations. Egyptian prosecutors have accused the six journalists of working for a media organisation tied to the Muslim Brotherhood, a group Egyptian authorities have cracked down on for years following a2013 coupagainst democratically elected Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, who was a member. Egypt has officially designated the Muslim Brotherhood as a “terrorist” group, an allegation the organisation has strongly denied, while human rights groups have accused Egyptian authorities of repressing freedoms. Matsadaash co-founder Abdelrahman Mansour has also rejected any links between the media platform and the Muslim Brotherhood. In his statement, Elbalshy said: “The fundamental principle governing all such matters, particularly when dealing with accused persons in general and vulnerable people in particular, remains that an accused person is innocent until proven guilty.” The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), whose lawyers are representing the six journalists, said they were initially held for five days without any contact with their families or lawyers....