Canada's NDP

Skip to main content

February 21st, 2019

NDP Condemns the Execution of Nine Men in Egypt Sentenced After Unfair Trial

Statement by Hélène Laverdière, NDP Foreign Affairs Critic and Cheryl Hardcastle, NDP International Human Rights Critic:

“The NDP unequivocally condemns the execution of nine men in Egypt after a grossly unfair trial. The men were convicted as part of a group of 28 for assassinating Egypt’s public prosecutor in 2015. Human rights organisations, including Amnesty International, have reported that confessions from members of this group were allegedly obtained through torture. Six other executions have also taken place in the country over the last month.
These executions reflect the gross deterioration of the human rights situation in Egypt. Since 2013 the government has undertaken a crackdown on human rights activists, journalists, members of the LGBTQ community, and anyone who dares publicly criticize Egypt’s military dictatorship. The use of the death penalty, forced disappearances and torture have spiked under President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, demonstrating his government’s utter disregard for human rights and international law. Human Rights Watch has found that Egypt’s torture epidemic and the 2013 Rab’a massacre could be crimes against humanity.
We call on the government of Egypt to immediately stay the executions of the remaining 19 men convicted in this case and ensure that due process is observed.
We also call on the Liberal government to break its deafening silence on these and other gross human rights abuses in Egypt. It is time for the Minister of Foreign Affairs to exert pressure on Egyptian authorities to uphold human rights and the rule of law.”