CAIRO -

While Egyptians were preparing to celebrate the first day of Eid al-Fitr this year, the Ministry of Social Solidarity issued a strongly worded statement, announcing the "launching of an intense campaign" targeting what it described as "regulating and legalizing electronic donations."

This came hours after the remarkable success of an electronic charitable auction that attracted wide attention from all Egyptians, which raised question marks among observers about the meaning and timing of the government’s approach, in light of another precedent represented in the authorities’ decision last year to ban cash donations through mosque funds.

Observers who spoke to Al Jazeera Net considered that the announcement of the Ministry of Solidarity collides with what was announced by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi that 2022 is the year of civil society, warning against continued restrictions on civil society in light of the current economic and political conditions.

This “legalization” came in the wake of another “legalization” that sparked controversy at the time from the Egyptian Ministry of Awqaf, when it banned donation boxes that were located in mosques, especially the big ones, and made for citizens one way to donate through banks.

Controversy arose in the communication sites about the motives for this decision, which prompted the media center of the Council of Ministers last November to issue a statement denying spending mosque donations received through bank accounts to finance government projects, instead of for the purposes intended for them.

In turn, the Egyptian Minister of Endowments, Muhammad Mukhtar Gomaa, reiterated the ban on placing donation boxes in mosques, during an official meeting with imams last month.

legalization after legalization

The Ministry of Social Solidarity announced a ban on the use of social media platforms to collect cash or in-kind donations, except after government approval within 3 days of applying for a documented permit specifying the purpose of collecting donations and the ways of disbursing them, stressing that the funds collected without a permit or in violation of the issued permit. In this regard, it will go to the Fund to Support the Projects of NGOs and Foundations.

But the Mersal Foundation, which is prominent in charitable and medical development work, confirmed in an official statement on the evening of the first day of Eid al-Fitr, on its official page on Facebook, that it has a permit to raise money by various donation methods until next June, and it bears No. 124 of 2021.

This came after the Foundation celebrated the great success of its campaign on the night of the first day of Eid al-Fitr on social media, which was titled “The Most Expensive Charging Card in Egypt.” Remarkable community support.

In a live broadcast, the director of the foundation, Heba Rashid, revealed the reluctance of some large artistic figures - she did not name her - to volunteer for her foundation with free advertisements due to economic conditions, and the inability of her foundation to keep pace with the richest institutions in charitable work that annually lead large advertising campaigns with large funds.

Rashid emphasized that the charge card campaign came at the right time to solve the crisis of nurseries that plagues many Egyptian families.

continuous narrowing

In this context, legal and human rights lawyer Muhammad Abu Al-Azm explains that the statement of the Ministry of Social Solidarity expresses the state of continuous restrictions on the work of civil society, and the employment of laws with loose texts in a way that robs civil society workers of their right to work freely or puts them under threat of deprivation of freedom. As described.

Speaking to Al Jazeera Net, Abu Al-Azm adds that the ministry thus collides with what Al-Sisi announced that 2022 is the year of civil society, in which he stressed the importance of the state's partnership with civil society, which confirms that the policy of some current state institutions towards civil society is based on the philosophy of Hostility towards him despite Egypt's need for him, as he put it.

Abu Al-Azm points out that the successive government measures have greatly reduced the limited space remaining for independent associations and NGOs, but the successful campaign organized by the Mersal Foundation a few days ago revealed a new hope for public opinion to embrace and support the work of civil society organizations, believing in their role as one of the The main components of the state, in a way that made it the real shield of civil society.

The antecedents are revealing

In turn, the director of Al-Shehab Center for Human Rights, Lawyer Khalaf Bayoumi, expresses his concern over what was announced by the Ministry of Solidarity, explaining that "the precedents of the regime confirm the state's desire to seize all outlets and sources of money in Egypt, even if they are donation funds," according to his belief.

Speaking to Al Jazeera Net, Bayoumi wonders: Has the Ministry of Awqaf revealed so far about the fate of the donations that come to it after the ban on donations in mosque funds?

Did you provide an account statement for that?

Why does the Ministry of Solidarity issue a statement in this way on the night of Eid?

For whose benefit?

The Egyptian jurist adds that the answers to these questions reinforce the jurists’ fears of continued restrictions in the name of legalization, as state institutions should have competed with the charitable private sector platforms, and provided with the capabilities they possess that motivate the citizen to deal with them and give them preference over others, but they know the state of distrust in them and in Its platforms therefore resort to ban and increase restrictions.

Threatening and excluding

For his part, the Egyptian trade unionist and opponent, Yasser Seddik, believes that the statement of the Ministry of Solidarity reinforces the policy of excluding everyone from the public work arena in Egypt, because it came at a suspicious timing after monitoring a case of success outside the official context, despite the commitment of everyone in Egypt to the law, hate or love under restrictions Violators will be imprisoned, according to his description.

Speaking to Al-Jazeera Net, Siddiq adds that the government is working to drain citizens and civil society, as the Ministry of Awqaf collects money from citizens despite its control over endowments valued in billions, and the Ministry of Solidarity threatens to confiscate funds for those who did not abide by the restrictions of the new government, although it is present in the arena after complying with the conditions Legal incorporation and work.

The Egyptian trade unionist believes that the culture of withdrawing citizens’ money for the government is the prevailing culture, although the government’s role is to support the citizen and strengthen the strength of civil society, not to drain citizens and threaten civil society in all its steps.

exaggerated worry

From an economic point of view, economic researcher and journalist Ibrahim Al-Taher believes that the statement of the Ministry of Solidarity negatively affects the economic climate and the support provided to charities, in light of the continuous emphasis on their work from direct measures to indirect measures that are often concentrated in the path of electronic payments.

Speaking to Al Jazeera Net, Al-Taher indicates that increasing government measures from time to time benefits an increase in restrictions, especially in light of the stability of the old legal procedures, which sends negative messages to any investor or willing to increase the economic rent for charitable institutions or even investment in Egypt, for fear of issuing “Fermanat” (repressors) by the government at any time, he said.

Al-Taher stresses that, after respecting the legal procedures, the continuation of the exaggerated legalization of charitable funding for charitable organizations is detrimental to the social protection network for the poor and low-income, which the relevant state institutions repeatedly announce its protection in order to preserve the economic security of the country, especially in light of the presence of supervisory bodies on the work of these associations.