The fate of Mamdouh Mahran, the controversial editor of Al Nabaa, was determined on September 16 as the Supreme State Security Court sentenced him to three years imprisonment. Mahran was found guilty "of scorning religion" and harming the Coptic Christian community.
Mahran gained instant notoriety after his newspaper published an inflammatory feature on the alleged debauchery of a defrocked Coptic monk. Copts rioted in protest.
<div align="center"> :image5: :image5: :image5: :image5: :image5: </div>The June 17 edition alleged that Barsoom Al Mahureqy, a monk at Al Moharaq Monastery had sex with over 5,000 Coptic women,
<div align="center"> :image5: :image5: :image5: :image5: :image5: </div> and that his indiscretions were done with the full knowledge of Church leaders. The article also alleged that the head of the monastery was involved in an extortion racket set up by Mahureqy who was blackmailing married women after he videotaped himself having sex with them.
The story's inflammatory headline ran, "The Al Moharaq Monastery is transformed into a prostitution house at the hands of its head monk." The Monastery is one of the holiest sites to Christians, and a location where the Holy Family went during its historical visit to Egypt.
Accompanying the story were a number of graphic photos, which were apparently taken from a copy of a video, which showed a man dressed as a monk in sexually explicit positions.
Church officials said that the monk in question was excommunicated by the Coptic Church in 1996 for "abandoning the traditions of the church and monasticism."
The Church did not deny the allegations against Mahureqy but said, "Since he was expelled, the monastery had no control over what actions he took, what cloths he wore or if he kept or shaved his beard."
The article sent shockwaves through all of Egypt, as Coptic Christians took to the streets in a week of demonstrations that turned violent.
Following the court sentence a heated argument erupted between lawyers representing the defense and those observing the proceedings for the Coptic Church. The defense lawyers argued that the sentence was unfair, while the Church representatives were pleased with the outcome.
On top of the prison term Mahran was also fined E£200, and a videotape of the alleged sexual activity of the defrocked monk was confiscated. An arrest warrant for Mahran was also issued as he did not attend the court session and was out on bail. The three-year sentence is much lower than the maximum sentence of 12 years imprisonment that the prosecution was pushing for.
Under the Egyptian emergency law, court verdicts from the State Security Court cannot be appealed. President Hosni Mubarak must ratify the sentence, however.
The editor's lawyer, Nabih Al Wahsh, tried to have the entire court case found unconstitutional. Wahsh argued that the 1981 emergency law that permits citizens to be tried before the state security court was restricted to cases involving terrorism and drug trafficking. According to Wahsh, Mahran should have been tried under the Egyptian Penal Code, which deals with ordinary crimes.
The guilty sentence brings to a conclusion the case, which when it erupted caused panic through government circles because of the risk of triggering widespread conflict between Muslims and Copts.
The state security court, sensing public pressure for action, fast-tracked Mahran's charges and held his first court appearance just a week after the article was published, leaving his defense lawyers little time to prepare their case.
Mahran is also facing a libel suite from the Coptic Church, and the Higher Press Council has stripped him of his membership.
المصدر:
http://www.metimes.com/2K1/issue2001-38/eg...abaa_editor.htm
