Members of EHRF, CIHRS, Euromed Rights, and EFHR conducted advocacy meetings with members of the European Parliament, the European External Action Service (EEAS), and representatives from EU member states in Brussels. The purpose was to present the findings of EHRF’s report on transnational repression and to highlight the key human rights concerns in Egypt ahead of the country’s upcoming Universal Periodic Review (UPR) at the UN.
This advocacy push came in light of the political assessment that the EU is conducting before deciding on the transfer of 1 billion Euros from its partnership deal with Egypt. During the meetings, the civil society organization representatives called upon the EU officials and member state representatives to uphold human rights principles and to demand that the Egyptian authorities immediately cease their transnational repression practices targeting human rights defenders in the diaspora.
The organizations urged the EU to use its leverage to press the Egyptian government to end the harassment, intimidation, and targeting of activists and dissidents living abroad. They emphasized the need for the EU to make any further financial assistance or deepening of ties contingent on concrete human rights improvements and an end to the crackdown on civil society, both within Egypt and extraterritorially.
The advocacy meetings were seen as a critical opportunity to elevate these pressing human rights issues with key European decision-makers ahead of crucial political and financial decisions regarding Egypt. The civil society groups expressed hope that their interventions would translate into stronger EU action and accountability for the Egyptian government’s abuses.
