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We, Egyptian women in the diaspora, watched with horror as the sit-in at the Egyptian cabinet was forcefully dispersed on 16 December 2011 by the military police. Subsequent protests from that day on saw at least fourteen protesters martyred, thousands beaten, and hundreds detained at the hands of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), the military junta. We witnessed how you, our sisters, were singled out and brutally abused, verbally degraded, beaten, arrested, and stripped of your clothing. While the iconic image of a woman in abbaya tortured and humiliated by army soldiers was broadcast worldwide, there are doubtless numerous other army abuses that have not been as highlighted. We also cannot forget our sisters who brave live ammunition and tear gas at demonstrations, sacrifice their lives for the revolution, and are subject to “virginity tests” by the same army. You have not only been at the forefront of protests and gone out on the line of fire as security forces cracked down on the uprising, but you have also coordinated vital initiatives such as field hospitals and the campaign to end military trials for civilians.

This is far from the first time that authorities have objectified and exploitedwomen’s bodies as a political tool. We have seen this strategy used the world over in times of political upheaval to repress, instill fear, and detract us from participation in the public sphere. These acts of gender violence are meant to deter the protestors’ spirit and shame them into staying at home. Despite facing such state-sanctioned violence, women have been and will remain steadfast in continuing the struggle for freedom, dignity, equality, and justice in Egypt. They proved this on 19 December 2011, when ten thousand women took to the streets and called in one voice: “Egyptian women will not be stripped!”

The SCAF tactic has backfired, and the resolve of the revolutionaries has thickened. We, Egyptian women in the diaspora, add our voices to theirs and stand in solidarity with our sisters in Egypt, as well as our sisters involved in other liberation struggles throughout the Arab world. We grieve with the mothers of the martyrs, support the families of the civilians facing military tribunals, and express our utmost admiration to those confronting oppression in all its forms and their commitment to seeing this revolution to its completion. We are humbled by the bravery of our countrywomen and countrymen.

We condemn in the strongest terms the abuse of our sisters’ bodies and the violence propagated by SCAF against all Egyptians. We call for Egyptian solidarity activists (individuals and organizations) to join us in our call to:

• Stop US military and police aid!
• Stop the murders, tortures and detentions!
• Release all detainees and political prisoners!
• Immediate end to military rule in Egypt!

Signed,

Rania El Essawi (Egyptian Asscoiation for Change)
Alya El Hosseiny
Heba Gowayed
Lamia Hassan
Menna Khalil
Hoda Mitwally
Maryam Zohny
–The Egyptian Women of the Ad Hoc Coalition to Defend the Egyptian Revolution

Endorsed by:

The Ad Hoc Coalition to Defend the Egyptian Revolution

(Sign on through link below)

http://www.defendegyptianrevolution.org/2011/12/26/statement-to-our-sisters-in-egypt/