Egypt move on foreign groups puts aid at risk
Financial Times
By Heba Saleh in Cairo

Egypt has referred 40 employees of local and foreign civil society groups to a criminal court in a move that could jeopardise some $1.55bn in US military and economic assistance to the country.

The US organisations include the Washington-based National Democratic Institute and the International Republican Institute which have close ties with the two main US political parties.
Both had been given permission by the Egyptian authorities to observe elections to the country’s bicameral parliament which started in November.

At least six US and four European employees of the groups, including Sam LaHood, IRI director and son of the US transport secretary, have been barred from travelling. It was not announced what charges they were facing.

The announcement will complicate the mission of an Egyptian military delegation in Washington to discuss aid at time when relations between the two countries are severely strained.

The Egyptian judicial authorities raided the premises of 10 Egyptian and US pro-democracy organisations in December, confiscating computers and files as part of an investigation into unauthorised foreign funding. The offices remain sealed and the groups’ equipment and documents have not been returned.

Egypt’s military rulers are understood to suspect the organisations of helping foment the protest movement which toppled president Hosni Mubarak last year and which is now clamouring for an immediate end to military rule. Officials have accused critics of the military of being in the pay of foreign powers.

The move against the NGOs has provoked an angry reaction in Washington where Congress has to approve $1.3bn in military aid and $250m in economic assistance after the administration has certified that Cairo is moving along the path of democracy.

“We are very clear that there are problems that arise from this situation that can impact all the rest of our relationship with Egypt,” said Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state on Saturday. “We do not want that. We have worked very hard this past year to put in place financial assistance and other support for the economic and political reforms that are occurring in Egypt.”

Mrs Clinton was speaking after talks with Mohamed Amr, the Egyptian foreign minister, at an international security conference in Munich.

Mr Amr said on Sunday that the matter was in the hands of the judiciary and the Egyptian government could not intervene. “This a totally judicial issue right now,” he said. “We are doing our best to contain this but, well, if you are talking about democracy there is a separation between authorities – and we cannot actually exercise any influence on the investigating judges right now when it comes to the investigation.”