Egypt ratifies draft law obliging secrecy of rape victims’ testimonies

CAIRO – 9 July 2020: The Egyptian government has ratified a draft law that guarantees the secrecy of testimonies made by victims of harassment, rape and sexual assault.

The law stipulates that violators, who uncover information about the victims or their testimonies, will be punished by imprisonment of no more than 6 months or a fine that does not exceed L.E. 500.

This came as part of the state’s keenness to maintain ethical principles at the time many victims are reluctant to report these crimes out of fear of harming their reputation.

That’s why violators of the law will be punished as per Article 310 of Penalty Code, which says:

“Each one of the doctors, surgeons, pharmacists, midwives or others who is assigned, per his industry or job, to keep a secret, but discloses it, will be punished by imprisonment of no more than 6 months or a fine that does not exceed L.E. 500.”

This law came as multiple Egyptian girls and women filed official complaints against the same man, Ahmed Bassam Zaki. Within days, Zaki's case became a public opinion case, especially after an Instagram page that was set up to expose him identified 93 credible accusers, some as young as 13.

Egypt Today has compiled for its readers all they need to know about the case. So look no further!