Egypt: Provide equitable Covid-19 vaccine access [EN/AR]
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Government Planning Opaque, Inadequate
(Beirut) – The Egyptian government should bolster measures to provide equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines for everyone in Egypt, Human Rights Watch said today. The government should allocate vaccines transparently, based on sound medical and public policy criteria, including World Health Organization guidance.
By early March, 2021, the Egyptian government had made vaccines available only to some health workers, as well as limited numbers of older people and people with chronic illnesses and had not provided a clear plan for its rollout. Official statements, mostly verbal, have been contradictory and suggest that the government plans to charge for the vaccine or require millions of low-income people to apply for a fee waiver, exacerbating inequitable access.
04 Mar 2021, 09:55am
Karim Ennarah, who is recently-married to a British national, was on holiday when security forces took his belongings and arrested him. Mohamed Basheer’s home was raided and he was arrested, blindfolded and questioned without a lawyer present. Father of two, Gasser Abdel-Razek, has been questioned twice in five days, forcibly had his head shaved, and is being held in solitary confinement in a cold cell without any warm clothes.
All three men work for the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, one of the few remaining independent human rights organisations in the country following crackdowns by the state. Their work involves research and advocacy to strengthen and protect basic rights and freedoms in the country
The European Union allows human rights to be trampled underfoot
EU parliamentarian Dietmar Koester criticises the Union s failure to speak up when faced with human rights abuses committed by its Middle Eastern allies, while pointing out that its own isolationist migration policies contravene fundamental European values. Interview by Ismail Azzam
Why does Europe remain silent when it comes to human rights violations in the Arab world? With NGOs and the European Parliament vociferous in their condemnation, why don t European leaders denounce the ongoing detention of political activists in countries such as Morocco, Algeria, Egypt and UAE, as they did recently with Russia regarding the Navalny case?
EU parliamentarian Dietmar Koester criticises the Union's failure to speak up when faced with human rights abuses committed by its Middle Eastern allies, while pointing out that its own isolationist migration policies contravene fundamental European values. Interview by Ismail Azzam