Egypt: New legal guide for LGBT communities; please share
In response to Egypt’s ongoing crackdown on LGBT people, Egyptian activists and legal experts have drawn up a guide on how LGBT people can reduce their chances of being arrested and how to act if they are arrested.
In the past year, police in Egypt have arrested more than 80 people for the “crime” of being gay or transgender. They can be sentenced to as much as 10 years for alleged “debauchery” (an Egyptian legal term for same-sex intimacy), in addition to suffering from anal examinations by medical officials, physical violence and rape threats while in detention.
The guide cannot be published on the websites of gay-friendly Egyptian organizations because they are currently under threat from the government. It is available online (in Arabic only) on the “A Paper Bird” blog of activist Scott Long.
Other blogs and websites are invited to share the link or republish the text in order to reach the greatest number of people.
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