The latest statement issued by the family of Egypt’s first democratically elected president, Mohamed Morsi, says he was denied visitation rights for over four years.
Since President Mohamed Morsi was overthrown by a military coup in 2013, he has been deprived of visitation rights.
Morsi’s family said in a statement on May 27, the first day of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, that they have been barred visitation rights to President Morsi for over four years.
The statement said Morsi has not been allowed to meet anyone, including lawyers and members of his family, for over four years, adding that ‘Usama Morsi’, the president’s son and lawyer, who used to be the family’s spokesman, has also been in prison without family visits, for about six months. It is noteworthy ‘Usama Morsi’ was detained one week after he had complained of preventing prison visitation rights of his father.
“This is the fifth Ramadan that comes while the democratically elected President Mohamed Morsi is in prison since the military coup on July 4, 2013, preventing him from meeting anyone, including his family and lawyers. Also, Ramadan comes this year while President Morsi’s son and lawyer ‘Usama Morsi’, who is also the family spokesman, is in prison,” the statement said.
The statement stressed that Morsi’s right to family visits in his prison “is guaranteed by all constitutions and international laws governing justice, not a grant from anyone”.
The statement also called on “all liberals in the world and the international human rights organizations, particularly the United Nations, as well as all those interested in freedom to pay attention to the issue of rights violations of both President Mohamed Morsi and his son Usama Morsi”.
- Here is the full text of Morsi’s family statement:
President Morsi’s Family Statement
to the Public Opinion and Egyptian People
This is the fifth Ramadan that comes while the democratically elected President Mohamed Morsi is in prison since the military coup on July 4, 2013, preventing him from meeting anyone, including his family and lawyers. Also, Ramadan comes this year while President Morsi’s son and lawyer ‘Usama Morsi’, who is also the family spokesman, is in prison
In this context, the President’s family would like to make the public opinion and the Egyptian people aware of what is going on with their elected president since his abduction on July 3, 2013 until today, through the following points:
First, we confirm that President Mohamed Morsi has been completely prohibited from family visits and meeting his lawyers since November 2013.
Second, we confirm that we -the family of President Mohamed Morsi- do not know anything about his detention whereabouts and conditions, his food, drink, or health condition, especially after the president complained twice about being exposed to life-threatening incidents inside his detention center, the last of which was on May 6, 2017.
Third, regarding ‘Usama Morsi’ – the president’s lawyer and family spokesman – we confirm that since his arrest in December 2016, we have not been allowed to visit him in his prison or to bring his personal belongings including medicine, clothing and food, depriving him of all his rights, exactly like his father, the president.
– The president’s family, as it puts everyone in front of this picture, reiterates its call to all liberals in the world and the international human rights organizations, particularly the United Nations, as well as all those interested in freedom to pay attention to the issue of rights violations of both President Mohamed Morsi and his son ‘Usama Morsi’.
– The President’s family also stresses that the President’s right to family visits in his prison to check on him is guaranteed by all constitutions and international laws governing justice, not a grant from anyone.
– The President’s family also affirms that their demand for visiting him and his son ‘Usama’ does not change the president and his family’s constant stance of not recognizing the military coup and all the measures taken since July 3, 2013.
President Morsi’s Family,
May 27, 2017 – Ramadan1, 1438 H.
