In Egypt .. collective punishment of the poor by the custody of charities

Ahmed Hassan - Cairo

About five years ago, the driver Ahmed Abdel Rahman cut roads and mountains from Cairo to South Sinai (northeast of Egypt) to hand over money and in-kind aid to a charitable organization that captured dozens of orphans who were held months after the military coup in July 2013 .

In the meantime, the 50-year-old driver transferred more than 60,000 pounds a month to the representative of an association that is interested in caring for the orphans in the city of Taba, noting that he was doing a volunteer service alongside others.

Months after the coup against President Mohamed Morsi, the Egyptian government announced the formation of a committee to confiscate and manage the property of the Muslim Brotherhood, before replacing it last April with the law "organizing the procedures for the custody, management and disposal of funds of terrorist groups and terrorists."

Since the announcement of the formation of the First Committee, resolutions have been issued, without aggregate data on the size of institutions, associations and monies held, estimated at hundreds.

Support the needy
Speaking to Al-Jazeera Net, the driver explained that during the two years preceding the coup, he initiated the transfer of cash and financial aid to the families of orphans, due to the nature of his work as a driver in transporting construction materials from Cairo and other governorates towards South Sinai.

He said dozens of families were waiting for it every month, covering several cities in the remote region, including St. Catherine, Abu Redis, Abu Zenaima, Taba and Ras Sidr.

Since 2013, the authorities have been monitoring 100 schools across the country on the grounds that they are affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood (al-Jazeera)

The work of this association, according to the driver, was suspended after its arrest, the arrest of those responsible and the transfer of ownership to the government.

He pointed out at the same time that his work was affected in an unprecedented manner because of the security harassment of all those who go to Sinai due to the unstable security situation there, about the mutual violence between Egyptian forces and armed groups.

Collective punishment
According to reports and interviews by former officials of the institutions and associations that were held in custody (they preferred not to be named for security reasons), the activities of these associations were focused on caring for the poor, ensuring orphans and providing educational and medical services to those who could not.

These associations are spread in most of the governorates of the Republic and have been based on charitable donations.

More recently, local reports - quoting sources in the State Committee - revealed that funds belonging to the 3200 authorities designated by the authorities have been seized as "terrorists", of which 1589 have decided to continue confiscating their funds to the public treasury.

As well as the reservation of 118 companies of diverse activity, 1133 civil and charitable associations, 104 schools, 69 hospitals, 33 websites and satellite channels.

The Commission, in its old name, announced in January 2016 that it was holding 62 companies, 1125 associations, 1370 funds and 19 foreign exchange companies with total funds of 5 billion and 556 million Egyptian pounds (about 310 million dollars).

Jannati Association of Engineers is also a conservative (Al Jazeera)

The most recent decision to detain charities was at the beginning of this week when the Social Solidarity Directorate in Damietta (North) declared the reservation at the charity's "Resala" headquarters.

However, the Rasala organization, which is based in Cairo and has branches in other governorates, has denied its relationship with this branch. It has demanded more than once to change its name, and it has not been possible to obtain comment from the officials of the association that was detained.

A difficult reality
On the reality of the charities held after the coup, an official of the Charity Association in a village in the governorate of Sohag (south) said that the association had been confiscated after 650 families had benefited from it.

He added that the decision of the reservation also stopped the construction of a complex of the Assembly was a mosque and nursery children and operator and a medical clinic, explaining that the workers were volunteers without pay.

While most charities have been affected by the decisions of the reservation, some are still continuing to provide services to those in need, according to Hisham Abdel-Alim, an administrative officer of the Ansar al-Sunna al-Muhammadiyah Association, a branch of the Abdin district (central Cairo).

Abdul-Alim told al-Jazeera.net that Ansar al-Sunna al-Muhammadiyah had faced the decision of holding the summer of 2013 through a judicial challenge for about a year before the Administrative Court of Administrative Affairs ruled in favor of the association.

The Abdeen branch provides services to about 350 families in the neighborhood, after the branch alone covers dozens of areas in downtown Cairo, following the repercussions of the reservation decision, stressing at the same time that donations are not affected much Of the resolution.

Schools have a share
Since the coup d'état of July 2013, the authorities have confiscated more than 100 schools nationwide due to their subordination to the Muslim Brotherhood. The Committee for the Custody of Funds decided to entrust its administration to the Ministry of Education, which in turn disposed of the old administrations of these schools and appointed new leaderships.

Cairo had the lion's share of schools that had been confiscated by 23 schools, including the Mokattam International Language Schools, Radwan and Good Offices.

Giza was replaced by 10 schools, most notably the Fadl al-Haditha school, which witnessed in April 2015 a "holocaust" of 76 books in front of the students' eyes by the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Education, Buthaina Kamel, claiming "containing material that calls for extremism" Was denounced and rejected by academics, intellectuals, and opposition activists who supported the regime at the time.

The decisions of the reservation of associations, schools, other institutions and funds were based on the national security investigations of the Ministry of the Interior.