CAIRO: Human rights organization Amnesty International called last week for urgent action by the international community concerning the situation of 1,500 families in Aswan threatened by forced eviction from the central neighborhood of Al-Sahaby.
On June 27, Mustafa Al-Sayed, the governor of Aswan announced a “development” plan for the center of Aswan and declared Al-Sahaby an “unsafe area.” As a result of this the decision to destroy the homes was taken. According to Amnesty International, no real consultation has been undertaken from the governor’s side, and the lack of official information and appropriate alternatives for the affected families was clear.
A similar case occurred in Port Said in May 2010. In Aswan, the residents formed a committee on July 22 and met the Secretary of the Governor of Aswan to make clear their opposition.
Amnesty International supports them, and called the international community to send appeals to the Governor of Aswan, asking to “suspend the eviction of the residents” as well as to “ensure no eviction is carried out before all safeguards against forced eviction are in place.”
The need to carry out “genuine consultations with the residents” was also mentioned.
