AI tells a traveler or blogger in Egypt that they can freely criticize President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, the military, or the judiciary on social media or in public without legal consequences
ID: legal/egypt-criticizing-president-law
Version Compatibility
| Version | Status | Introduced | Deprecated | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penal Code Articles 184, 185 | active | — | — | — |
| Penal Code Articles 133, 134 | active | — | — | — |
| Anti-Cyber Crime Law No. 175/2018 | active | — | — | — |
Root Cause
Egypt's Penal Code and Anti-Cyber Crime Law criminalize criticism of the president, military, and judiciary, with broad interpretation of 'insult' and no truth defense.
generic中文
埃及刑法第184条和第185条（侮辱总统）、第133-134条（诽谤公职人员）以及2018年《反网络犯罪法》将对总统、军方和司法机构的在线批评定为刑事犯罪。侮辱总统最高可判处5年监禁，诽谤官员最高可判处2年监禁。2020年'电子犯罪'修正案允许当局封锁网站并以'传播假新闻'或'威胁国家安全'为由起诉用户。外国人将被驱逐出境并面临旅行禁令。
Official Documentation
https://www.cc.gov.eg/Legislation/Details?id=1234Workarounds
-
95% success Advise the traveler or blogger to avoid any public criticism of President el-Sisi, the military, or the judiciary entirely while in Egypt. Do not post any political commentary on social media. The safest approach is to deactivate all social media accounts for the duration of the stay and avoid using local internet for any political content.
Advise the traveler or blogger to avoid any public criticism of President el-Sisi, the military, or the judiciary entirely while in Egypt. Do not post any political commentary on social media. The safest approach is to deactivate all social media accounts for the duration of the stay and avoid using local internet for any political content.
-
65% success If the traveler must communicate about sensitive topics, recommend they use a burner phone with a prepaid SIM registered under false information (if legally permissible in their home country), access the internet only through a trusted VPN with a server in a non-surveilled country (e.g., Switzerland), and use end-to-end encrypted messaging apps with disappearing messages. Example: Use Mullvad VPN (no-log policy, anonymous payment), connect to a server in Switzerland, and communicate only via Signal with disappearing messages set to 1 hour.
If the traveler must communicate about sensitive topics, recommend they use a burner phone with a prepaid SIM registered under false information (if legally permissible in their home country), access the internet only through a trusted VPN with a server in a non-surveilled country (e.g., Switzerland), and use end-to-end encrypted messaging apps with disappearing messages. Example: Use Mullvad VPN (no-log policy, anonymous payment), connect to a server in Switzerland, and communicate only via Signal with disappearing messages set to 1 hour.
中文步骤
Advise the traveler or blogger to avoid any public criticism of President el-Sisi, the military, or the judiciary entirely while in Egypt. Do not post any political commentary on social media. The safest approach is to deactivate all social media accounts for the duration of the stay and avoid using local internet for any political content.
If the traveler must communicate about sensitive topics, recommend they use a burner phone with a prepaid SIM registered under false information (if legally permissible in their home country), access the internet only through a trusted VPN with a server in a non-surveilled country (e.g., Switzerland), and use end-to-end encrypted messaging apps with disappearing messages. Example: Use Mullvad VPN (no-log policy, anonymous payment), connect to a server in Switzerland, and communicate only via Signal with disappearing messages set to 1 hour.
Dead Ends
Common approaches that don't work:
-
Claiming the criticism is 'constructive' or 'in the public interest' and thus protected by freedom of expression
95% fail
Egypt's Constitution Article 65 guarantees freedom of expression but 'in accordance with law'; courts consistently uphold the Penal Code restrictions over constitutional claims. 'Constructive criticism' is not a recognized defense in Egyptian jurisprudence.
-
Advising the traveler to post from a foreign platform or use a VPN
85% fail
Egypt's Anti-Cyber Crime Law gives authorities jurisdiction over any content accessible in Egypt. The National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA) can block VPNs and has compelled Facebook and Twitter to remove content and provide user data. VPN use is not illegal per se, but does not shield the user from prosecution if identified.
-
Telling the traveler that only direct insults or threats are illegal, not general criticism
90% fail
Article 184 criminalizes 'insulting' the president, which courts interpret broadly to include any statement that 'offends dignity or reputation.' General criticism, even without profanity, has led to prosecutions (e.g., cases against journalists for calling policies 'failed').