“Thank you for contacting me about the civil unrest that is occurring in

the Middle East. The public actions taking place in Egypt, Tunisia,

Yemen, and Jordan have captured the world’s attention including the

great interest of many in Canada.

Please know that New Democrats unequivocally support the will of the

people who are standing up for democratic reforms in their country. We

see this as a pivotal moment in the history of the region: where

citizens are demanding that their voices be heard and that they be

allowed to shift away from government oppression and move closer towards

a fair and just democratic process.

As we monitor the situation in Egypt, we remain deeply concerned about

the safety of protesters. President Mubarak’s insistence to delay his

departure from power has clearly contributed to further violence and

destabilization. New Democrats firmly believe he must bow to the demands

of the Egyptian people and immediately resign his position as President.

New Democrat Foreign Affairs critic Paul Dewar has been vigilant in

demanding that our government act immediately in support of the people

of Egypt, Yemen, Tunisia, and, most recently, Jordan, who are rising up

against oppressive regimes. He said, “What we are observing in the

region is a strong expression of desire for over-due political reforms:

a fair economy, an end to corruption, transparent representative

governments, and the upholding of rights and freedoms. New Democrats

hold these to be universal values and support the democratic aspirations

of the region.”

You can read Mr. Dewar’s statements on the issue at the following links:

http://www.ndp.ca/press/statement-by-ndp-on-situation-in-egypt and

http://www.ndp.ca/press/statement-by-paul-dewar-on-situation-in-egypt.

We are disappointed that the Harper government has been too slow in

responding to these momentous events-seen as the most critical in the

recent history of the region. The people of Egypt are demanding

democratic reform, and, as an influential democratic nation, our

Canadian government should be prepared to stand by them, firmly condemn

the use of force against peaceful protesters, and defend their right to

democratic change.

Also, as earlier events in Tunisia unfolded, I reiterated our party’s

commitment to the peaceful will of the Tunisian people as they fought

for their basic civil and democratic rights. I said, “Because Canada and

Tunisia have a history of cooperation; New Democrats believe the

Canadian government is well-positioned to use its diplomatic ties to

pressure the Tunisian government to stop its attacks on civilians and

respect the rights of activists, journalists and lawyers as well as

those who participate in peaceful demonstrations. Remaining silent on

this issue would be an irresponsible lack of leadership on the part of

the Canadian government.”

You can read my full statement here:

http://www.ndp.ca/press/statement-by-new-democrat-leader-jack-layton-on-

violence-in-tunisia

Again, thank you for taking the time to share your views on this

pressing issue. Please be assured that New Democrats will continue to

follow this compelling situation closely.”

Sincerely,

Jack Layton, MP (Toronto-Danforth)

Leader, Canada`s New Democrats

Dear Government of Egypt,
In a recent speech delivered by Egyptian Ambassador H.E. Sameh Shoukry, highlighting his country’s ‘improving’ press freedoms, he states,

“It is also worthy to note that, unlike some other countries in the region, Egypt does not apply media censorship; hence promoting a wider space for freedom of expression… More than 162,000 of Egyptian citizens are bloggers, comprising 30% of the Arab world’s blogger community. And, the number of Egyptians with access to the internet has been growing at a remarkable pace. There is also a rising recognition of the importance of promoting and protecting human rights from a governmental and non-governmental perspective. Legislation has been enacted in support of this objective. Enhancing national capacity building is key, raising greater public awareness and enforcing accountability.” [Click: Egypt’s Ambassador at the US Naval Academy: “Egypt-US military cooperation is strong” http://www.egyptembassy.net/showspeech.cfm?id=148 ]

If promoting freedom of expression and building an open press, the Egyptian Ambassador really means the continued detention of blogger Kareem Suleiman – the first blogger in Egypt to face a court trial for what he published online, – then Egypt not only has a crisis of cyber-space accountability but is also guilty of the very human rights abuses it seems to officially repudiate. Still locked in jail after four years, Suleiman was charged with “inciting hatred of Islam” and insulting Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on his blog. Moreover, the sentence comes three years after Mubarak announced he would abolish the practice of imprisonment for “press offenses.”

So what gives Ambassador Shoukry – does Egypt firmly believe that it can still promote press freedoms and human rights while continuing to jail Suleiman or does it simply believe appeasing the imperial wishes of the United States trumps President’s Mubarak’s own noble yet empty promise to stop jailing its journalists? I think all nations who nurture human rights and press freedoms know the answer to that question…Kareem Sulieman’s sentence ended Thursday November 4, 2010 but the Egyptian government has refused to release him from prison, or explain why. Supporters of Mr. Suleiman are demanding the Egyptian government put its humble words into action….if building national capacity truly means being an accountable democracy, Egypt has the opportunity to reconcile its on-going censorship of the media by releasing Suleiman immediately.

Anything less would not only be a disgrace upon Egypt’s human rights record – and would show Egypt for what it truly refuses to admit it has become– another military proxy state where state censorship is the norm (and not the exception) and where democracy plays second fiddle to powerful US interests that enable use extremism and intolerance to destabilize African sovereignty …something bloggers in Egypt (and yes, even in North Americans) are all too familiar with.

Free Kareem Suleiman Now! Long live freedom of expression on the Internet!!

In Peace,
Davis Mirza & Rhonda Costas
Toronto, CANADA
Dated: November 6th, 2010.