Earlier today, a Member of the National Dialogue Board of Trustees, Fatma Khafagy, said that she submitted a draft law to establish an anti-discrimination commission to the Dialogue’s Committee on Human Rights and Public Freedoms.
Khafagy’s remarks came during her participation in the first discussion sessions reserved for the political track.
Several countries have had such commissions since the 18th century, Khafagy said.
“The time has come for us to have such a commission in Egypt, noting that the commission has advantages, and one of its tasks is to find peaceful solutions without resorting to the judiciary by all means,” she added.
Among the commission’s tasks would be to spread the culture of human rights, Khafagy explained, adding: We hope to agree on a single draft law to be submitted to the House of Representatives.
For her part, Lobna Darwish of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights noted that the commission will provide an opportunity to think about comprehensive legislation for equality and the prevention of discrimination.
During the session that focused on eliminating discrimination, Darwish indicated that the proposed commission would be the best opportunity for Egypt to improve its position towards its international obligations.
“We proposed comprehensive and effective legislation for equality and the prevention of discrimination, which includes articles for the establishment of the commission and covers legislative equality in all aspects of life, and includes a clear definition of all prohibitions,” the rights activist said.
Legislation has to maintain a balance between preventing discrimination, freedom of expression, and equality, she stressed.
Moreover, Darwish emphasized the need for the commission and its budget to be independent, and to allow it to work to promote equality.
According to the dialogue’s agenda, four sessions dedicated to the political track were held on Sunday.
Two of the sessions will discuss the electoral system for the House of Representatives.
The third session will discuss the issue of eliminating all forms of discrimination as part of the Committee on Human Rights and Public Freedoms’ agenda.
The fourth session will focus on the challenges facing cooperatives as part of the Committee on Unions and Civil Society.
Nevine Mossaad, the dialogue’s rapporteur of the Human Rights and Public Freedoms Committee, said that the establishment of a special committee for human rights reflects the political attention to this issue.
Ahmed Ragheb, the committee’s assistant rapporteur, said that it is an acknowledgment of everyone in the past who has called attention to the issue of human rights in Egypt.
“This is one of the few times in which human rights are raised as an internal national issue,” Ragheb said.
Regarding the general aim of the dialogue, Mossaad said the dialogue is not just a platform in which we exchange opinions, but what is required is that we make a shift by the to-be yielded outcomes.
“The National Dialogue establishes bridges that had been severed between many political forces,” Mossaad said.
Mohamed Shawky Allam, the assistant rapporteur of the Political Rights Committee, said that the dialogue aims to increase common denominators for the success of the new republic.
Allam stated that the National Dialogue is not just a procedural process but a serious practical dialogue that ends with practical recommendations and proposals that apply to reality, according to the available capabilities.
