Magda Adly, Egypt

I am a human rights defender and founding member of the El Nadim Center for the Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence, and the Egyptian Association against Torture. I joined a peaceful protest rally organized by the various Egyptian democracy groups on 25 May 2005: the same day as the referendum which asked Egyptians to make changes to the Constitution allowing them to choose their president from a list of more than one candidate. Drafted by the counselors of the ruling party, I believed the amendment was tailored to maintain Hosni Mubarak as life long "elected" president for the country. I was sure that the rally would, as usual, be obstructed by the police and state security intelligence officers. My intention was to act as a monitor. I headed to the meeting point at 12pm, but found no demonstration. Instead, there was a whole line of anti-riot police trucks and hundreds of anti-riot police surrounding a small group of demonstrators. I heard screams coming from the center of the gathering but could not identify from whom. Soon, five public transportation buses arrived at the scene carrying hundreds of young men, carrying the badges and banners of the ruling party. Suddenly, the soldiers were given orders to withdraw, leaving the small group of demonstrators face to face with the ruling party supporters. The supporters started chanting slogans in support of Mubarak, verbally abused the demonstrators using obscene language, and accused them of being spies. There were rumours that demonstrators were being taken one by one from the gathering to the nearby police station. While I was at the scene of the demonstration, I received an SOS call from two of colleagues saying they were being held by the police at a nearby pharmacy and needed help. When I arrived at the pharmacy with two other colleagues, we found its entrance blocked by high ranking police and other plain-clothes men, vigilantes, refused to let us enter. I protested and violence erupted. From behind me somebody hit me and pulled at my skirt trying to strip me of my clothes. I tried to hold my skirt, but he put his hand between my legs and touched me. I screamed and tried to push him away. Police officers standing around were watching and refused to help me. They assaulted my colleague and allowed her to be beaten by the vigilantes.

From there, I went to the El Nadim Center to draft a statement and send it to various human rights organizations and the National Council for Human Rights. Before I had finished the statement, I received numerous phone calls from demonstrators at the press syndicate. They said that hundreds of vigilantes had attacked women protestors who sought refuge at the press syndicate. Tens of women demonstrators were dragged, beaten, molested and their clothes torn. The police failed to protect them and actually encouraged the vigilantes to attack them. We filed many complaints. We have the names of the perpetrators and pictures of what happened, but the prosecution has taken no action. The 25 May has become known as Black Wednesday, and has demonstrated the false nature of the so-called democratic reform in Egypt