Egypt imposes controversial 'anti-terrorism' law

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has approved a controversial "anti-terrorism" law — which sets up special "fast track" courts, boosts police and judicial powers and imposes hefty fines for "false" media reports — in the face of a two-year-long insurgency that aims to topple his government. 

The measure has come under fire from rights groups, who say it could be used by to further muzzle dissent and target critics of the government, which has been struggling to deal with unrest since then-army chief Sisi overthrew Mohamed Morsi — the country's first democratically elected president — two years ago.

Approved on Sunday, the law details sentences for various "terrorism" crimes ranging from five years to the death penalty. It also shields those applying it, such as the military and police, from legal ramifications for what it calls the proportionate use of force "in performing their duties."

"Despite security forces having a record of excessive use of force, this law ... paves the way for impunity," Mohamed Elmessiry, Egypt researcher at Amnesty International, said in a statement.

Sisi had promised a tougher legal system in July after a car bomb attack in Cairo killed the chief public prosecutor, the highest ranking state official to be killed in years. The law, as reported by state media, said special courts would "fast-track" terrorism cases but gave no further detail, such as whether trials would be open or closed to the public.

Forming or leading a group deemed a "terrorist entity" by the government will be punishable by death or life in prison under the new law, and membership in such a group will carry up to 10 years in jail.

Financing "terrorist groups" will bring a penalty of life in prison, which in Egypt is 25 years. Inciting violence, which includes “promoting ideas that call for violence,” will lead to 5-7 years in jail, as would creating or using websites that spread such ideas.

Journalists will be fined for contradicting the authorities' version of any militant attack. The original draft of the law was amended following a domestic and international outcry after it initially stipulated imprisonment for such an offense.

Dalia Fahmy, an assistant professor at Long Island University and a member of the Egyptian Rule of Law Association, told Al Jazeera that under the new law any media "that defies the national narrative, will be fined."

"The law here is a system that is not protecting the citizenry, but rather protecting the state ... it is becoming indicative of the consolidation of power in the hands of the executive," Fahmy said.

The new measure has also raising fears of further media prosecutions after three Al Jazeera journalists were convicted last year of "defaming" Egypt and supporting the Muslim Brotherhood movement. A verdict in their retrial is due by the end of the month.

"This law effectively bans freedom of expression, assembly and association, and can be used to crack down on all kinds of freedoms," Elmessiry told Agence France-Presse. "This is taking us back to the Mubarak era and the 30-year state of emergency that helped push Egyptians to the streets in 2011."

Elmessiry also said the law would in effect remove the current two-year limit on pre-trial detention by allowing prosecutors to ask to renew suspects' detention indefinitely. 

Egypt, the Arab world's biggest nation, is facing an increasingly violent insurgency in North Sinai, where the most active militant group has pledged allegiance to Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, ISIL. Cairo and other cities have also seen subject to increased violent attacks.

The insurgency, which has killed hundreds of soldiers and police, has intensified since mid-2013 when then-army chief Sisi ousted Morsi, a top figure in the Muslim Brotherhood, after mass unrest against his rule.

Sisi has since overseen a security crackdown on opposition leaders. Thousands of alleged Brotherhood supporters have been jailed and scores have been sentenced to death, including Morsi and other senior Brotherhood figures.

The government considers the Brotherhood a terrorist group and does not distinguish between it and other opposition groups. The Brotherhood says it is committed to peaceful activism. In February, Sisi signed off on another anti-terrorism law that gave authorities sweeping powers to ban groups on charges ranging from harming national unity to disrupting public order.

Sisi essentially rules by decree as Egypt's parliament has been suspended since 2012, when a court dissolved the democratically elected main chamber, undoing a major accomplishment of the 2011 revolt. 

Al Jazeera and wire services