Ramy Kamel
Additional Name(s): Ramy Kamel Saied Salib, رامي كامل
Gender: Male
Perpetrator: Egypt
Religion or Belief: Christian – Orthodox
Health Concerns: Asthma, blood pressure issues
Reports of Torture: Yes
Reports of Medical Neglect: Yes
Date of Detainment: November/23/2019
Date of Release: January/8/2022
Current Status: Released
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Detainment
Reason for Persecution: Civil Rights Work for Religious Communities Religious Freedom Advocacy
Nature of Charges: Illicit Financing Spreading Propaganda & False or Misleading Ideas, Information, or Materials Terrorism
Ramy Kamel
Extra Bio Info:
Ramy Kamel was detained for his civil rights work and religious freedom advocacy.
On November 23, 2019, security forces arrested Kamel, a human rights activist and founder of the Maspero Youth Foundation, from his home in El-Warraq, Giza, and confiscated his phone, camera, and computer. They then took him to an undisclosed location and reportedly beat him into giving up the passwords to his devices. He was also deprived of his asthma and blood pressure medication. After being missing for hours, Kamel appeared in front of Supreme State Security Prosecution where he was interrogated without a lawyer. He was then charged with several crimes, including “joining and financing a terrorist group” and "spreading false information."
Kamel was outspoken about Coptic Christian rights in Egypt. He has documented violence targeting Copts in Upper Egypt and their forced displacement. His arrest came a few days before he was scheduled to speak at the UN Forum on Minority Issues in Geneva on November 28 and 29, 2019.
Kamel was reportedly subjected to solitary confinement while detained and was denied adequate medical care and family visits.
On January 8, 2022, Kamel was released from prison.
Sources:
-
Photo attributed to the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (CC BY-SA 4.0)
-
USCIRF Country Update: Religious Freedom Conditions in Egypt August 2023
-
USCIRF Press Release: USCIRF Welcomes Egypt’s Release of Coptic Activist Ramy Kamel January 2022
-
Mada Masr, Tweet, January 8, 2022
-
USCIRF Commissioner Kleinbaum, Tweet, November 23, 2021
-
USCIRF Country Update: Religious Freedom in Egypt in 2021 November 2021
-
Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression, Tweet, September 25, 2021
-
"Preventive Detention of Ramy Kamel Extended" Frontline Defenders
-
"Egypt: Human rights defenders held incommunicado, face spurious charges, says UN expert" UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
-
USCIRF Commissioner James Carr and Rep. French Hill (R-AR), Op-ed, April 24, 2021
-
2020 Report on International Religious Freedom: Egypt U.S. Department of State
-
USCIRF Press Release: USCIRF Calls for Release of Ramy Kamel December 2020
-
"Egypt: Rights groups hold the authorities accountable for the life of Coptic activist Ramy Kamel, marking the one-year anniversary of his imprisonment in reprisal for human rights advocacy and cooperation with the United Nations" Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression (AFTE)
-
"Bipartisan pair of Senators call on Egypt to address case of imprisoned human rights advocate" The Hill
-
USCIRF Press Release: USCIRF Condemns Egypt’s Detention of Mohamed Basheer, Ramy Kamel November 19, 2020
-
U.S. Congressional Letter to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Representatives Ro Khanna (D-CA) and James McGovern (D-MA), et al., October 19, 2020
-
USCIRF Press Release: USCIRF Condemns Egypt’s Arrest of Coptic Activist Ramy Kamel December 2019
-
"Egypt must free Coptic Christian rights defender reportedly held on terror charges, say UN experts" UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
-
"Egyptian Coptic rights activist faces 'terror' charges" Yahoo! News