Minya, Egypt -
An Egyptian judge has sentenced 683 alleged Muslim Brotherhood
supporters to death, including the group's supreme guide, Mohamed Badie,
and confirmed the death sentences of 37 of 529 alleged supporters previously condemned.
Outside
the courtroom on Monday, when news of the sentences broke, families of
the accused began to scream and several women fainted, falling to the
ground.
The case killed the credibility of the Egyptian judicial system.
- Mohamed Elmessiry, Amnesty International researcher
Mohamed Elmessiry, an Amnesty International researcher monitoring the cases, said they "lacked basic fair trial guarantees".
The defendants from the first case whose death sentences were not upheld were each sentenced to 25 years in prison.
Many of the lawyers for the accused boycotted the hearing, demanding that the judge be recused and calling him a "butcher".
Lawyer
Mohamed Abdel Waheb, who represents 25 of the defendants, said the
verdict was handed down in a court session lasting less than five
minutes. Previously, he said, the single session in the trial lasted
just four hours, during which the judge refused to listen to any
arguments from the defence.
Abdel Nasser Hassanien, standing
outside the courtroom, said five of his relatives were among those
sentenced to die, including his brother, Ahmed Hassenein Abdelatty, 22.
"Of the five only one is related to the Muslim Brotherhood, and he
didn't do anything," he said.
Qatari women with their children and housemaid strolling in Doha. Photograph: Stock Connection/REX
Foreign maids, cleaners and other domestic workers are being subjected to slave-like labour conditions in Qatar,
with many complaining they have been deprived of passports, wages, days
off, holidays and freedom to move jobs, a Guardian investigation can
reveal.
Hundreds of Filipino maids have fled to their embassy in
recent months because conditions are so harsh. Many complain of physical
and sexual abuse, harassment, long periods without pay and the
confiscation of mobile phones.
The exploitation raises further concerns about labour practices in Qatar in advance of the World Cup, after Guardian reports about the treatment of construction workers.
The maids are not directly connected to Qatar's preparations for the
football tournament, but domestic workers will play a big role in
staffing the hotels, stadiums and other infrastructure that will
underpin the 2022 tournament.
Our investigation reveals:
• The Philippine Overseas Labour Office (POLO) sheltered more than 600 runaway maids in the first six months of 2013 alone.
• Some workers say they have not been paid for months.
• Many housemaids do not get days off.
• Some contracts and job descriptions are changed once the workers arrive in Qatar.
• Women who report a sexual assault can be charged with illicit relations.
The
non-payment of wages, confiscation of documents and inability of
workers to leave their employer constitute forced labour under UN rules.
According to the International Labour Organisation, forced labour is
"all work which is exacted from someone under the menace of any penalty
and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily".
Lack
of consent can include induced indebtedness and deception about the
type and terms of work, withholding or non-payment of wages and the
retention of identity documents. Initial consent may be considered
irrelevant when deception or fraud has been used to obtain it.
"Menace
of penalty" can include physical violence, deprivation of food and
shelter, non-payment of wages, the inability to repay a loan, exclusion
from future employment and removal of rights and privileges.
Modern-day slavery is estimated to affect up to 21 million people across the globe.
When
the Guardian visited in January, at least 35 runaway maids had sought
sanctuary at the POLO in the capital, Doha, which provides support to
200,000 Filipinos in Qatar. The welfare officer said most complained of
pay being withheld, insufficient food, overwork and maltreatment. Some
said they had endured verbal and physical abuse by sponsors of different
nationalities.
Eight Filipino workers interviewed by the Guardian
said they had not been paid for six months, were sometimes deprived of
food while cleaning for long hours and had had their passports
confiscated.
"We are afraid," said 28-year-old Jane*. "We don't
really know what to do. We are trying to survive. That's why we do
part-time jobs secretly." If they are caught breaching their contract,
the maids face months in a deportation centre. The repatriation process
is often delayed when people do not have their passports, according to
James Lynch, Amnesty International's researcher on Gulf migrants'
rights.
Qatar vigorously denies it is a "slave state" and is
understood to be reviewing the controversial system that governs migrant
labour, and to have stepped up inspections of businesses that use
migrant labour. The Qatari labour ministry said in a statement: "We have
clear laws and contractual terms in place to protect all people who
live and work in Qatar and anyone found to have broken those laws will
be prosecuted accordingly." It said that non-payment of wages and
confiscation of passports were illegal in Qatar, and added: "The vast
majority of workers in Qatar – domestic or otherwise – work amicably,
save money and send this home to improve the economic situation of their
families and communities in their home countries."
But the Philippines-based OFW (Overseas Foreign Workers) Watch,
which supports Filipino migrant workers, said physical abuse, delayed
and refused salaries, the misrepresentation of employers and contracts
and passport confiscations were common issues in Qatar. The Guardian has
already highlighted this malpractice in its investigation into the mistreatment of migrant workers as Qatar gears up for the 2022 World Cup.
As
with the construction workers, the abuse of maids is systemic and
brought into sharp focus by a lack of legal protection and the kafala
sponsorship system, under which workers cannot leave the country or
change jobs without their employer's permission, Lynch said.
"The
women we've spoken to who have suffered abuses in the workplace, ranging
from excessive working hours to physical violence, their employers came
from a variety of countries," he added.
Many maids say they do not get any rest days and that employers confiscate their mobile phones.
Several
recruitment agencies contacted by phone told a Guardian reporter
pretending to be a would-be client that they routinely withheld the
passports of their migrant workers. One agency volunteered that it was
up to the sponsor whether the maid had a day off. "If you want to give
an off day, let them rest at your house," an Al Hadeel Manpower
representative said. "Don't give them free days outside because there is
more problems outside."
http://www.democracynow.org
- A U.S. drone strike killed three people in northwest Pakistan earlier
today, marking the first such attack since Pakistani Prime Minister
Nawaz Sharif publicly called for President Obama to end the strikes.
Just last week, Amnesty International said the United States may be
committing war crimes by killing innocent Pakistani civilians in drone
strikes. Today we air extended clips from the new documentary,
"Unmanned: America's Drone Wars," and speak to filmmaker Robert
Greenwald. The film looks at the impact of U.S. drone strikes through
more than 70 interviews with attack survivors in Pakistan, a former U.S.
drone operator, military officials, and more. The film opens with the
story of a 16-year-old Tariq Aziz who was killed by drone. just days
after attending an anti-drone conference in Islamabad. We are also
joined by human rights attorney Jennifer Gibson of Reprieve, co-author
of the report, "Living Under Drones."
Watch the discussion and more clips from the film in part 2 of this segment: http://youtu.be/ew3mXmqoQFg
Democracy
Now!, is an independent global news hour that airs weekdays on 1,200+
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