EGYPT: Lawyers agree to meet with judicial council in attempt to end strike

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A number of prominent Egyptian lawyers announced they will meet with the Supreme Judicial Council in an effort to resolve a strike that has delayed thousands of cases, left courtrooms empty and clients without legal representation.

The decision comes as lawyers in some governorates ended their participation in a nationwide strike instigated by thousands of attorneys in June after the conviction of two of their colleagues for assaulting a prosecutor in the city of Tanta. Lawyers Mohamed Ibrahim Saai Din and Mustafa Ahmed Fattouh were sentenced to five years in jail.

While lawyers in cities such as Cairo are still protesting, others in Fayoum, Gharebya, Beheira and Sohag have largely suspended their strikes. ‘In accordance to our clients’ interests, lawyers have decided to attend hearings in which their defendants are detained for interrogation,’ said Nabil Abd el Salam, Lawyers’ Syndicate leader in Ismailia.

Supporters of the convicted lawyers have claimed that the ‘harsh ruling’ was another episode showing judicial disrespect and humiliation toward lawyers. Thousands of lawyers have paralyzed the court system and joined demonstrations.

The strike resulted in the postponing of several high-profile cases, such as the trial of business magnate Hisham Talaat Mustafa, who is accused of arranging the killing of Lebanese pop star Suzan Tamim. If the lawyers’ meeting with the Supreme Judicial Council fails to end the dispute, many think that it will take an intervention from President Hosni Mubarak to resolve the matter.

-- Amro Hassan in Cairo