CAIRO: Veteran labor unionist Kamal El-Fayoumi was arrested in the industrial city of Mahalla along with an Australian journalist, an American student, a translator and a driver on allegations of inciting Mahalla residents to join a nationwide call for civil disobedience Saturday.
Translator Aliya Alwi tweeted that she, along with journalist Austin Mackell and American student Derek Ludovici and El-Fayoumi were interrogated in Mahalla police station where they were confronted with citizens who claimed that they were "offering money to youth to vandalize and cause chaos".
"Charges brought against of inciting protest and vandalism. Witnesses have been produced to confirm them [sic]," Alwi said.
The Australian Foreign Ministry said an Australian national was detained in Mahalla and that the embassy in Cairo was seeking advice from Egyptian police on possible charges arising from the arrest.
The ministry did not confirm the name of the detainee.
"Consular officials from the Australian embassy in Cairo have spoken to the man … He has confirmed he is being treated appropriately by local police authorities," the Australian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Activists have been calling for a nationwide civil disobedience to protest against military rule, demanding an immediate handover of power to an elected civilian body.
Alwi said she was transferred from Mahalla police station to the general prosecutor’s office, then to another police station. "[I’m] confused. Three witnesses testifying against us are sitting across the room, including an eight-year old," she wrote on Twitter.
Alwi finally tweeted that they will be transferred to the military intelligence office in the nearby northern city of Tanta.
According to member of the No to Military Trials Campaign, Shahira Abouellail, the detainees are still in Mahalla.
Mackell tweeted one day before his arrest that he is heading to Mahalla to observe how the strike will pan out there.
The city, known for its prosperous textile industry, has been the epicenter of labor strikes since 2006.
El-Fayoumi is one of three activists who were arrested by authorities in 2008 in what was known as the April 6 strike. The security crackdown left three dead and hundreds injured and arrested, but the event gave rise to the April 6 Youth Movement widely credited for spearheading the January 25 uprising.
When El-Fayoumi was released, he co-founded El-Mahalla Textile Workers Union, and has been described as "a working class hero".
He is also a member of the Democratic Labor Party, founded by veteran labor activist Kamal Khalil.
