(Photo by Adham Youssef)
Scores of Fayoum Central Security Forces (CSF) troops protested late on Tuesday over mistreatment by the leadership of their security camp. A meeting with the Fayoum governorate’s security chief early on Wednesday, however, ended their protest.
The conscripts in Al-Azab village blocked the Fayoum-Beni Suef road on Tuesday night after mistreatment from their camp commander, state-run newspaper Al-Ahram reported.
Fayoum security chief Younes Al-Gaher met with the conscripts, and vowed to solve their problems, suggesting a weekly meeting with them to review their complaints.
Egypt’s compulsory conscription is for men between the ages of 18 and 30, and can last from between one to three years, depending on the level of education.
Habitually, lesser educated draftees join the ranks of either the Ministry of Interior’s security forces or its paramilitary arm, the CSF. The conscripts usually receive tough treatment and work condition.
Last August, dozens of CSF conscripts went on strike in Ismailia demanding better treatment and working conditions. The strike resulted in a confrontation between the soldiers and their officers, leaving two injured.
Another protest in February 2014 saw policemen closing the doors of the Kafr El-Sheikh Security Directorate, and staging a protest outside it calling for better working conditions.
