Depriving Women of Public prosecutors work in Egypt Depriving Women of Public prosecutors work in Egypt

20th January 2020
               Sex discrimination that must stop
 

The Arab Center for Independence of the Judiciary and the Legal Profession (ACIJLP) expresses its strong dissatisfaction and rejection of the continued exclusionary practices held against Egyptian women assuming public positions especially their right to apply for the position of public prosecutor. Judicial authorities still refuse to hand over girls from the 2019 batch papers needed to apply for the position and compete for it on equal terms with men which is an explicit and clear rejection of the womans assumption of the position of public prosecutor.
 
(ACIJLP) emphasizes that these practices represent a clear and explicit violation of the right of Egyptian women to assume public positions apart from being a violation and an abiding challenge to the very article no. 11 of the Egyptian Constitution of 2104 which states that state shall also guarantee womens right of holding public and senior management offices in the State and their appointment in judicial bodies and authorities without discrimination

 

Moreover these negative practices and decisions are a violation of article no. 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which affirmed the right to equality in holding public office without discrimination on the basis of colour or gender stating that Every citizen shall have the right and the opportunity without any of the distinctions and without unreasonable restrictions To have access on general terms of equality to public service in his country

In addition these practices run counter in contravention to the principles of the United Nations guidelines on the role of prosecutors which were adopted in September 1990 particularly in article no. 2 which states that States shall ensure that  Selection criteria for prosecutors embody safeguards against appointments based on partiality or prejudice excluding any discrimination against a person on the grounds of race colour sex language religion political or other opinion national social or ethnic origin property birth economic or other status

(ACIJLP) expresses surprise at the declining stance of the Egyptian government regarding womens right to take up judicial positions. Egypt has been suspending this violation since 2007 by issuing a decision appointing woman to work as a judge which is a high judicial position. The Egyptian woman has proven eligibility and has reached the highest criminal courts in Egypt with which these practices represent a severe regression let alone being unconstitutional

Therefore The Arab Center for Independence of the Judiciary and the Legal Profession (ACIJLP) calls on the Supreme Judicial Council and the Egyptian Attorney General to immediately intervene to stop this violation of the Egyptian womans right to assume the position of Public Prosecutor given the clear violation this decision includes to the Egyptian constitution and Egypts international pledges.