Egypt: University Professors Confirm Their Respect for Court Order

Egypt: University Professors Confirm Their Respect for Court Order

A recent statement by Cairo University president, Hossam Kamel, indicated that he respected the recent judicial ruling to remove all state security from university campuses, stressing that he appreciated the significance of striking a balance between preserving security on campus and respecting the court order.
 
Kamel confirmed that an internal security administration had been formed last year, asserting that the implementation of the current ruling is, in fact, underway. He added that a plan to provide guards under the auspices of the university administration is currently in process; however, it needs reimbursement by the Higher Education Ministry.

Professor of Administrative Law, Saleh Sadeq, member of the delegation of professors behind the endorsed court order, considered the presence of guards on campuses during the latest 30-year period illegal stressing that universities have suffered because of security intrusions.
 
According to Major General Mohamed Tawfiq Abu al-Naga, former deputy of security guards at Helwan University, university guards were appointed for students and professors, and not against them. He maintained that he obtained his orders from university presidents and college deans, and not from the Interior Ministry. Abu al-Naga ascertained that in fact no director of security is authorized to enter the universities personally or with security forces except with the permission from the university president.
 
The University of Zagazig, witnessed Muslim Brotherhood students, the April 6 Movement and the National Association for Change conduct a mass demonstration where more than 2500 students demanded the removal of university guards and the immediate release of Al-Azhar students who are being detained.