Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood wants military immunity for generals, activists cry foul

The Egyptian Cabinet turned into a war-zone on December 16.

CAIRO: In a move that has left many of the country’s activists angered, Egypt’s top political force the Muslim Brotherhood has said it was looking into a deal that would grant the ruling military junta immunity for alleged crimes committed against protesters since they took charge of the country in February last year.

The move would ensure the military relinquish power and enable the transition to a newly elected legislative body, but activists who have faced the end of the military’s guns, are not convinced and have called it a means for the Brotherhood to assert more power.

“What about the dozens of people who have been murdered by the military and the police under the military’s orders?” asked activist and protester Mahmoud Gama’a, who told Bikyamasr.com that the Brotherhood will face a backlash from protesters if they attempt to go forward with the idea.

“We will not stand by and not have justice for what the military has done to Egyptian people. It is unacceptable that any political force thinks they can let the blood of martyrs not get justice,” he added.

The goal of the Brotherhood is to create compromise within the country as their political arm, The Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) leads all voting with nearly 40 percent, ahead of a final vote count for the third and final round of parliamentary elections, which ended on Wednesday.

Despite the idea being floated this week by top Brotherhood officials, activists say it will not stop their campaign to have the top generals tried for what they have regularly dubbed “crimes against humanity.”

The military has been directly responsible for the killing of scores of citizens, attacking a peaceful Coptic Christian march on October 9, which killed at least 27 people.

Then, in November, the military police attacked another peaceful sit-in in Tahrir Square, which led to 6 days of street battles in central Cairo, leaving at least 70 people dead, medical sources told Bikyamasr.com.

And more recently, in mid-December, military police again attacked a peaceful sit-in at the country’s Cabinet building, reportedly torturing and beating a protester and then burning the makeshift tents that had been erected. For three days, the military used live ammunition and rocks against protesters, leaving at least 17 people dead.

“This is not justice if they get immunity. It is a ploy by the Brotherhood to force people to forget what the military has done to us,” said female activist Mona Radwan, who told Bikyamasr.com that she would not rest until the military pays for their actions.

“Women were forced into virginity tests, were stripped in public and beaten and killed, so why is this happening. I feel we have returned to pre-Mubarak times,” she said.

But the Brotherhood said it would only move forward on the proposed deal if the families of those killed since February agreed, at least giving those who paid the ultimate sacrifice some semblance of an option.

BM

Tags: featured, Immunity, Muslim Brotherhood, Protests, SCAF

Section: Egypt, Latest News