14 Egyptian women will rejoin student protests after release from jail
In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor following their release, young women from the Saba al-Sobh Movement who were arrested during a protest in Alexandria say they will continue to oppose military rule.
ALEXANDRIA, Egypt — "Prison has never been able to change someone's ideas … We will continue our march through joining the student protest movements in universities," confirmed the girls of the Egyptian Saba al-Sobh Movement, which supports deposed President Mohammed Morsi, to Al-Monitor following their recent release from prison. Fourteen girls from the movement had been sentenced to 11 years in prison, while seven minors were placed indefinitely in a youth detention center. The girls said that they would finish their journey via protests organized by the student movement in opposition to the ongoing oppression under military rule.
Sarah Abdel Qadir, a student in the College of Fine Arts at Alexandria University, said, "It was truly a bitter experience. However, I became more determined after I experienced the same bitterness felt by those who had been to that place before me, those who will go after me and those currently imprisoned or detained. I felt for Dr. Mohammed Morsi, who has been in prison for six months now. I wanted to get out only so that I could finish what we started. Our issue is not about President Morsi's return. He is only a symbol for us. Rather, [our issue is about] those who were killed during the breakup of the Rabia al-Adawiya and Nahda sit-ins and refusing military rule."
"I will not participate in the upcoming [constitutional] referendum or in elections. I do not recognize this constitution that they speak of, nor do I recognize the road map. In prison, there was a TV without sound that allowed us to follow the news. We had to rely on the picture alone to determine what was happening. We learned things about us we didn't know, and heard lies and rumors that went so far as to describe us as terrorists. We also learned about the protest law via the TV, and we disagree with all of it," Abdel Qadir added.
When asked about the possibility of accepting a national reconciliation, she said, "I know a mother whose son died. If they can bring him back to her, then maybe we can talk about national reconciliation. Until then …"
