German Ambassador to Cairo Frank Hartmann has said that Germany could only encourage Egypt to fulfil its commitment to guaranteeing a proper environment for human rights. This can be achieved through the Egyptian government’s recently announced human rights strategy.
Hartmann referred to the recently announced National Dialogue in Egypt under the auspices of President Al-Sisi, noting that the actual dialogue has not yet begun, stressing the necessity of accelerating more progress in that dialogue.
He said that there have been comments from abroad about the human rights situation in Egypt.
Frank Hartmann sat down recently for a short interview with Daily News Egypt. This was on the sidelines of his visit to Aswan that lasted five days
According to him, Germany is eager to see an Egyptian decision that can shorten pre-trial detention.
This would be a very positive step, which would improve the image of Egypt and alleviate some of the foreign criticism, according to Hartmann.
“We have a very broad political dialogue about pre-trial detention with the Egyptian government,” he said.
Hartmann noted that the vast majority of Germany’s cooperation with Egypt is based on mutual trust and mutual interest. However, Germany does differ in its expectations of the human rights situation in Egypt.
“We know that the Egyptian government is not always satisfied with foreign expectations, therefore we would like to have a human rights dialogue with Egypt,” he added.
Hartmann said that Egypt should be in a position to allow more pluralistic views in the media.
Frank Hartmann said that Egypt is, like other countries, in an economic and financial crisis which is resulting from the Russian-Ukraine war.
Further, he noted that the economic crisis may not be solely related to the Russian-Ukrainian war; it could also be caused by debt, inflation, and currency devaluation.
He said that the Egyptian government has a tremendous task to maintain economic development and stability, as well as social coherence.
Maintaining social protection programmes such as cash transfers “Takaful and Karama” and bread subsidies become more challenging amid the crisis, yet they are crucial, Hartmann indicated.
“Germany wants Egypt’s economy to remain strong and stable,” he added.
Hartmann said that no one could accept any threats to Egypt’s internal stability. He noted that Egypt is the strongest power in the Middle East.
He further stressed that Egypt’s economic, political, and social coherence should be supported by all development partners.
Hartmann added that due to the harsh implications of the Russian-Ukrainian war and other economic challenges that face Egypt, Egyptians are getting impatient with the economic stance of the country.
“Many people are not satisfied with the economic situation. Consequently, the population demands that the government do more to improve economic conditions. Otherwise, people get dissatisfied and impatient,” he explained.
