Amnesty reports on human rights violations in Egypt, India

By Dilip -
The Fifth Terrorism Circuit Court in Cairo today sentenced exiled Bahey el-Din Hassan, a prominent human rights defender, to 15 years in prison on fabricated charges related to “insulting the judiciary” and “disseminating false news”. Responding to the news, Philip Luther, Amnesty International's Middle East and North Africa Research and Advocacy Director, said:“Once again, the Egyptian authorities have confirmed their ruthless intolerance of critical views and freedom of expression. Bahey el-Din Hassan is one of the founding members of Egypt’s human rights movement, and this sentence, which was handed down in his absence, is a mockery of justice and sends a chilling message to Egypt’s embattled human rights movement. 

Egypt continues to be an open-air prison for those human rights defenders who are not already behind bars or in forced exile, as authorities slap bogus state security charges on anyone who dares to criticize them or their draconian laws or to defend the rights of countless victims of human rights violations by the state... 
Egypt: Human rights defender Bahey el-Din Hassan handed outrageous 15-year prison sentence

 Yogita Limaye - Delhi 2020 riots: Amnesty International accuses police of rights abuses
Indian police "committed serious human rights violations" during deadly religious riots in Delhi earlier this year, Amnesty International alleges. It said police beat protesters, tortured detainees and at times took part in riots with Hindu mobs. More than 40 people died when clashes broke out between Hindus and Muslims over a controversial citizenship law. Muslims bore the brunt, Amnesty said. The Delhi police are yet to respond to Amnesty's request for a response. The investigation corroborates the BBC's reporting on incidents of police brutality and complicity during the riots in February, the deadliest in the city for decades. The police denied any wrongdoing. Some of the top findings of the Amnesty report mirror the BBC's investigation into the Delhi police's role in the violence.

Videos had emerged on social media and messaging groups from the Khajuri Khas area in north-east Delhi, in which police are seen acting with a mob and throwing stones. We investigated these videos by gathering eyewitness testimony from both communities. One shopkeeper alleged that police gave stones to him and other Hindus to throw at Muslims over the road. Bhoora Khan, a Muslim whose home and shop across the street were burnt down, also alleged the police acted with Hindus against Muslims. We also investigated another set of videos that showed a group of policemen brutally beating a Muslim man, Faizan. The man died a few days later. His brother Naeem told me Faizan succumbed to the injuries he suffered at the hands of the police. While the Delhi police didn't initially respond to the BBC's request for a reply, after the report aired, they told BBC Hindi they would look into what is seen in these videos. But many, including Amnesty, are asking how the police can be trusted to investigate allegations against their own men….
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-53891354
Colin Gonsalves: Refusal of bail to Sudha Bharadwaj is based on inadmissible evidence
Coomi Kapoor: Everyone who succumbs to authority is no less guilty
Why is Dr Kafeel Khan Still In Jail On The Eve Of Independence Day? BY BETWA SHARMA
Pratap Bhanu Mehta: The loneliness of Varavara Rao, Anand Teltumbde, Sudha Bharadwaj tells a disquieting tale
Ramachandra Guha: Supreme Court must reflect on its calling as defined by the Constitution - and the direction it is taking
First Among Equals? // Laws, legal system totally geared in favour of rich and powerful: Justice Deepak Gupta

Express editorial on SC in-house inquiry: Not justice

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