Egypt’s Press Syndicate called on Wednesday for the resignation of interior minister Magdy Abdel Ghaffar and demanded an official apology from the presidency for the Sunday police raid of the syndicate building. The syndicate’s demands also included the introduction of new legislation to outlaw attacks on journalists, the release of all detained journalists, the addition of a “No to media gag orders” banner on all print and online publications and the cessation of printing the interior minister’s name in all articles until he resigns, state-owned Ahram Online reported. The syndicate also vowed to go on strike if these demands are not met. The syndicate held an emergency assembly meeting in the presence of several board members and prominent journalists, while at least two thousand journalists gathered on the syndicate building’s steps to defend the union and protest against the police violations against journalists over the past several days. Police arrested Amr Badr and Mahmoud El Sakka, two journalists, from inside the Press Syndicate after security forces stormed the building on Sunday night in a move described by the syndicate’s head as “unprecedented” and a “violation of law.” The interior ministry published a statement…
Egypt’s Press Syndicate Calls for Resignation of Interior Minister, Vows to Strike if Demands Not Met
May 4, 2016
