Political activist
Alaa Abd el-Fattah has spent the better part of the last
9 years imprisoned.
His vocal support
of democracy and opposition to the authoritarian rule
that Egypt has been under since President Abdel Fattah
el-Sisi came to power in 2014 have earned him a life
unjustly
behind bars, separated from his family -- including his
10-year-old son, Khalid.
For over 200 days, Abd
el-Fattah has been intensely restricting his
diet, protesting Egyptian authorities' refusal
to grant him British consular access in prison (he holds
dual citizenship in the UK and Egypt). The United
Kingdom's inability to secure his safety, all the while
coordinating and cooperating with Egypt in preparation
for this year's COP27, is utterly disgraceful.
COP27, an annual
international conference to address climate change, is
being held in Egypt this year, a deeply ironic
juxtaposition to Abd el-Fattah's imprisonment. As United
Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and the
Environment, David Boyd, aptly put in a
tweet, "Freedom of speech is a prerequisite
for climate justice!"
Now, the
UK and Egypt have only days, possibly even hours, to
save Abd el-Fattah's life as he has stopped eating and
drinking water entirely. Sign the petition to
demand the immediate release and safe passage of
activist Alaa Abd
el-Fattah!
