Criminal law, Free Speech, International, Military, Politics, Society

Blogger Detained in Egypt For Defamation Of Military

Blogger Asma Mahfuz has been arrested by Egypt’s military for defaming the military council on the Internet. It is a part of an expanding trend of governments cracking down on first speech by using defamation and blasphemy laws.

Mahfuz, a well-known activist in the recent revolution, is being investigated for “speaking inappropriately about the military council and for using defamatory and offensive insults against the council on Facebook and Twitter.”

Major General Mahmud Morsi, The head of military judicial authority, warned that there will be “no tolerance to insults directed at the armed forces.” So much for getting rid of the repressive Mubarak government.

Source: BBC

Jonathan Turley

15 thoughts on “Blogger Detained in Egypt For Defamation Of Military”

  2. Awesome blog! Is your theme custom made or did you download it from somewhere? A design like yours with a few simple tweeks would really make my blog jump out. Please let me know where you got your design. Kudo

  6. “We will need many more versions of wikileaks.” -Mike Appleton

    The sooner, the better.

  7. Governments are already attempting to censor search engines so that they can continually monitor and control what is available on the web. The free speech battles of the next century will be technological. We will need many more versions of wikileaks.

  8. Aside from Iraq and Afghanistan, which are only temporary (Ha,Ha,Ha, Chortle, Snort, Drink Spraying Out of My Nose)- Egypt is the number two recipient of U.S. foreign aid. That should be of great interest to the 12 member “Super Committee on Debt Reduction” a.k.a. the “Twelve Apostles”. But, don’t bet on it.

  9. Well Blouise,

    It won’t stand up on appeal….but they can arrest you….

  10. If the U.S.Army had a policy of “no tolerance to insults directed at the armed forces” in 1964, I would have had nothing to talk about for two years. The initials FTA would have been meaningless. Oh, the humanity!

  13. Protestors in Egypt negotiated their way out of the frying pan and into the fire.

  14. From what I know the military in Egypt is far more than merely armed forces. They are one of the leading economic forces in the country and a profit
    making enterprise. The problem with revolutions is that they often don’t do so well. As expressed by the Who:

  15. No greater insult than the insult to state what you feel without fear of reprisal….

    Did Susan B. Anthony ever pay the Court the 100$ that she was fined for Voting?

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