Egypt is a graveyard for women. I wonder how much we must normalize this statement before every subsequent event is simply accepted.
Acknowledging the sheer horror of this catastrophe is not normalization; it’s recognizing its brutality and attempting to stop it, or at least discussing it as a bare minimum!
I recall the “graveyard” phrase as the issue of arresting TikTok content creators in Egypt returns to the forefront. The Cairo Economic Court decided to postpone the second trial session of the Egyptian TikToker, Suzy Al-Urduniya, to Wednesday, October 15, on charges of publishing “offensive to public decency” videos.
She posts popular videos—dancing, joking, and modeling clothes—just like any other app user. Suzy is now facing double jeopardy (a second trial) for the very same charge for which she had previously been fined and already paid the penalty!
I read with astonishment the grand, vague terminology used by some media outlets to describe Suzy’s actions as “criminal activity,” compiling a long list of “charges.” They accuse her of “assaulting” the so-called “Egyptian family values,” referring to her merely as “the accused.”
Acknowledging the sheer horror of this disaster does not mean normalizing it,
it means recognizing its brutality.
In contrast, I recall every news story about harassment, gang rape, or murder committed in the name of “honor” or “love” that women face in Egypt amidst general silence from society and the state in the best of cases, or a systematic justification of the perpetrators’ actions and clear blaming of the victims/survivors in the worst.
Authorities in Egypt arrest influencers under Article 25 of the Cybercrimes Law No. 175 of 2018, which imposes penalties and fines on anyone who: assaults any of the principles or family values in Egyptian society, violates the sanctity of private life, or provides personal data to a system or website for promotional purposes, among other actions. The legislative wording of Article 25 lacks clarity.
Double Jeopardy: Suzy Al-Urduniya on Trial for the Same Charge Again!
The trial session of the accused Suzy Al-Urduniya on October 15 concluded for the second time before the Economic Court. During its closing arguments, the Public Prosecution demanded the application of the stipulated legal penalty, asserting that the case files, including technical evidence and witness testimonies, prove Suzy committed the charges brought against her.
In contrast, Suzy’s lawyer insisted on requesting her acquittal, stating that the case lacks conclusive evidence and that the presented documents do not amount to the level of certainty required for a conviction. He pointed out that his client was previously convicted on the same charge and had “already paid the price for her mistake,” adding: “She should not be held accountable twice for an act she did not commit this time.”
Suzy stated during the trial: “The mistake I made has been accounted for, but this time I haven’t done anything I should be held accountable for.”
The case lacks decisive evidence,
the documents do not reach the level of certainty required for a conviction.
Amr Mohamed, a human rights lawyer at the Tadwin Center for Gender Studies, commented in a special discussion about the case: “Suzy was previously tried for the same videos recently referred to the court. She even confirmed this during the investigation and was fined 300,000 EGP at the time,” he continued: “Truly, no one knows why she is being re-prosecuted for the very same videos!”
Previously, the Egyptian Public Prosecution decided to refer content creator Suzy to the Economic Court on charges of promoting debauchery and immorality and publishing content offensive to public decency, following a travel ban and asset freeze order. Banks received an official circular to implement the Cairo Criminal Court’s decision to freeze the assets and funds of Suzy and her parents, prohibiting them from disposing of any of their cash, real estate, or movable properties. This action followed investigations that revealed they possessed “controversial” items, as described by the Egyptian media platform “Al-Youm Al-Sabe'”: a gold iPhone 16 Pro Max, an apartment in New Cairo, and EGP 139,682 in an Etisalat wallet.
The wave of arrests targeting female content creators began in 2020,
with over 15 girls apprehended.
The referral decision was based on a series of complaints filed by a group of lawyers against content creators. Meanwhile, according to the “Haqi Initiative,” Suzy asserted that she had not published any videos containing vulgar language or anything illegal since her previous trial, and that her money is from a legitimate and known source. Notably, the charges Suzy faces could lead to a 5-year prison sentence and a 300,000 EGP fine for videos she had already been prosecuted for!
The “Egyptian Family” Trial of Content Creators: Vague Law and Flimsy Evidence
The lawyer Amr Mohamed revealed in his statement to Silat Wassel that: “The wave of arrests targeting content creators began in 2020, with over 15 girls arrested, but this campaign over the past two months is different because the number of arrests is extremely high and difficult to track as it occurs daily.” Lawyer Amr pointed out that: “There are issues with the legal article used to arrest the girls, especially those from lower-income backgrounds, as we don’t know exactly what they did. There is no clear definition of the family values they are accused of violating,” stressing that “the meaning is fluid and varies from one place to another.”
What, then, are the Egyptian family values? No one knows; there isn’t even a definition for them in the very law used to arrest women.
This is simply a pretext for suppressing and controlling women’s bodies, branding them as criminals if they sway or show what they wish to show—while obviously considering their social class. No Egyptian authority arrests or criticizes Egyptian actresses at festivals within Egypt, where they and their daughters wear what they want and post their pictures on social media. This is their right, just as it is the right of women from poorer social strata who lack the social capital or security protection in their public appearances!
What, then, are the Egyptian family values?
No one knows; there isn't even a definition for them in the law itself.
The story began on July 27, 2020, when the Cairo Economic Court sentenced Mawada Eladhm and Haneen Hossam, both TikTok content creators, and three others, to two years in prison and fined each EGP 300,000 (around $19,000) for “assaulting the values and principles of the Egyptian family.” Then, in April 2020, the Ministry of Interior “apprehended” TikTok user Haneen Hossam. The Egyptian Public Prosecution’s official page later accused her of participating in an international human trafficking ring. On June 21, 2021, the Cairo Criminal Court issued a 10-year prison sentence in absentia against Haneen Hossam and a 6-year sentence in person against Mawada Eladhm.
In reality, the two girls posted videos on TikTok where they were singing and dancing. The “evidence”—supposedly proving the exploitation of minors or adults—was limited to the published videos showing the girls dancing with a child or a toddler in a manner that contained no sexual references whatsoever.
This ruling paved the way for a protracted campaign of arrests and prosecutions against female content creators in Egypt, under charges like “promoting debauchery and immorality” and “assaulting Egyptian family values.” More than 30 lawyers filed complaints against content creators, alleging their content violated religious or societal values. Under these accusations, at least 151 individuals were arrested across more than 109 separate cases.
On January 12, 2021, the Appellate Economic Misdemeanor Court ruled to acquit Haneen Hossam and overturned the prison sentence for Mawada Eladhm regarding the same actions. The court’s final ruling concluded that there was no evidence of luring any women into any kind of sexual activity.
Over 300 femicides are recorded annually in Egypt,
with more than 1,195 acts of violence recorded in 2024 alone.
In a prominent manifestation of the authority granted to—and embraced by—men to control women’s bodies in our societies, lawyer Ahmed Mehran, one of the complainants against the influencers, asserted in a press statement: “I felt it was my duty to intervene to protect my community, my country, and its youth by confronting this type of crime,” adding: “There are words and actions that are indisputable, such as nudity, and women who film their daily routines in clothing that reveals their body details […] all of this is unacceptable within Egyptian society.”
In contrast, over 300 femicides are recorded annually in Egypt, with more than 1,195 acts of violence recorded in 2024 alone, including 363 murders, 261 of which were committed by husbands or family members.
Double Violence Against Transgender Women in the Arrest Campaign
Alongside all the defamation and incitement campaigns against TikTok content creators in Egypt, transgender women face intensified violence and bullying. Among those detained, content creator “Yasmine” faces additional accusations. She was described as a “transsexual young man” and a “man who excelled at playing the role of a girl.” Her name dominated media platforms, with her place of residence publicized to the extent that some journalists filmed interviews with her neighbors and interrogated them!
As the scope of prosecution widens to include transgender individuals, Yasmine, like other influencers, was accused of “offending public decency,” “misusing social media,” and “inciting debauchery and immorality.” However, she faces additional stigma and danger even after being released on EGP 5,000 bail pending investigation. Some media outlets discussed Yasmine’s “feminine tendencies,” noting that authorities placed her in a men’s prison because she is officially registered as male.
Thus, the undefined “Egyptian family values” are revealed as an authoritative, patriarchal, and misogynistic tool for prosecuting women and suppressing their bodies.
This unfolds amidst utter disregard for all crimes of violence against women, harassment, ‘honor’ killings, marital rape, and other issues too numerous to cover in a single article.
