VZCZCXRO2495
RR RUEHROV
DE RUEHEG #0147/01 0311502
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 311502Z JAN 10
FM AMEMBASSY CAIRO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0092
INFO ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE
RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CAIRO 000147 
 
SIPDIS 
DRL FOR A/S POSNER 
FOR NEA, NEA/ELA AND DRL/NESCA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 2035/01/31 
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM KDEM EG
SUBJECT: A/S POSNER PRESSES GOE ON POLICE BRUTALITY, NGO 
REGISTRATIONS 
 
REF: CAIRO 47; 09 CAIRO 2164; 09 CAIRO 2064; 09 CAIRO 451 
07 CAIRO 3214 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Margaret Scobey, Ambassador, State; REASON: 1.4(B), 
(D) 
 
¶1. KEY POINTS 
 
 
 
-- (C) In meetings January 12-13, A/S Posner raised the issue of 
police brutality and prison conditions with senior GOE officials. 
 
 
 
-- (C) Interior Ministry State Security (SSIS) Director Hassan 
Abdel Rahman asserted that SSIS has not abused prisoners "in the 
past ten years."  He claimed that the MOI played no role in the 
case of Cairo resident XXXXXXXXXXXX who, according to multiple NGOs, was abused repeatedly by police in January 2009.  Rahman claimed there are no problems with prison conditions. 
 
 
 
--  (C) MFA Deputy Assistant Minister for Human Rights Wael 
Aboulmagd said the GOE takes the issue of police brutality 
seriously, and has increased the number of prosecutions against 
offices for torture and abuse. 
 
 
 
¶2. (C) Comment:  Per ref B, credible human rights lawyers believe 
police brutality continues to be a pervasive, daily occurrence in 
GOE detention centers, and that SSIS has adapted to increased media 
and blogger focus on police brutality by hiding the abuse and 
pressuring victims not to bring cases.  NGOs assess prison 
conditions to be poor, due to overcrowding and lack of medical 
care, food, clean water, and proper ventilation.  Per ref E, 
following a landmark 2007 sentencing of police officers for 
assaulting and sodomizing a bus driver, courts have continued to 
sentence officers to prison terms for brutality.  End comment. 
 
 
 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
Police Brutality and Prison Conditions 
 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
 
 
¶3. (C) In a January 12 meeting with Interior Ministry State 
Security Director Rahman, A/S Posner asked what measures the GOE 
takes to address police brutality and difficult prison conditions, 
and what the U.S. could do to help.  Rahman said "in the past ten 
years" there has been "no abuse of prisoners at all."  He 
acknowledged there may have been "some violations" against 
"terrorists" in prison in the 1970's and 1980's.  Posner raised the 
case of XXXXXXXXXXXXX who was abused by police in XXXXXXXXXXX according to multiple NGO reports (refs C, D).  (Note:  The Ambassador raised this case with the Interior Minister in XXXXXXXX, per ref D.  End note.)  Rahman responded that when citizens do not "get what they want from the police, they become angry."  He asserted that XXXXXXXXXXXXhusband is a "criminal," and beat her in the midst of a family dispute.  Rahman said the MOI punishes any officer who commits violations.  Rahman also said the Interior Ministry treats all prisoners well.  More than 1,500 prisoners 
pursue university studies, he claimed, and he noted that the 
government is focused on prisoners' health and their 
rehabilitation. 
 
 
 
¶4. (C) A/S Posner also raised police brutality with MFA Deputy 
Assistant Minister for Human Rights Wael Aboulmagd who responded 
that the GOE takes the issue seriously.  Aboulmagd said that since 
2005, the Interior Ministry stopped paying fines for police 
officers found to have abused detainees.  He noted increased 
prosecutions against police officers for torture and abuse. 
Aboulmagd said the Interior Ministry is participating in human 
rights training through the UN Development Program, and internal 
courses.  He opined that it would take a "generation of training" 
before the police accepted the concept of human rights. 
 
CAIRO 00000147  002 OF 002 
 
 
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U.S. Support for Civil Society 
 
--------------------------------------- 
 
 
 
¶5. (C) Rahman asserted that the U.S. funds NGOs and human rights 
organizations dominated by "communists and extremists."  He claimed 
these "communists" do not care about democracy, and want to weaken 
the GOE in response to Egypt's movement away from the Soviet Union 
and toward the U.S. in the 1970's.  The Ambassador pushed back, 
saying that the U.S. does not fund NGOs connected to the Muslim 
Brotherhood or extremists.  She noted the U.S. funds NGOs to 
promote civic education, human rights training and election 
monitoring.  She urged SSIS to allow increased registration of 
NGOs.  A/S Posner urged Rahman to allow NGOs to register even if 
they are critical of the GOE. 
 
 
 
¶6. (U) A/S Posner cleared this message. 
SCOBEY