KEY POINTS
- Tantawy sentenced to 1-year in prison with 5-year election ban.
- Defense lawyer alleges court irregularities, missing case files, and delays.
- Tantawy accused authorities of targeting family and supporters.
An Egyptian court has upheld a one-year prison sentence with hard labor against former presidential hopeful Ahmed Tantawy, along with his campaign manager Mohamed Abou El-Diar.
The sentence, linked to charges of forging election documents, also bars Tantawy from running for public office for the next five years.
The Misdemeanor Appeals Court reaffirmed the decision on Monday, dealing a significant blow to Tantawy, who had previously challenged President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Egypt’s 2024 presidential elections.
Tantawy had suspended his campaign last year, alleging harassment and arrests of his allies and family members, which he claimed prevented him from gathering the necessary endorsements to appear on the ballot.
The Egyptian government denied the allegations of harassment, instead accusing Tantawy’s campaign of distributing unauthorised copies of endorsement forms to collect support from the public.
Tantawy’s legal team, including prominent human rights lawyer Khaled Ali, described the appeal process as flawed. Ali claimed the defense team struggled to confirm hearing dates, with case files mysteriously missing from court registries.
Allegations of judicial irregularities in Tantawy’s trial
According to Khaled Ali, a human rights lawyer and member of Tantawy’s legal team, the appeal process was far from transparent. He highlighted issues with the scheduling of court hearings, the absence of key information from official records, and missing case files.
“Months passed without clarity on court dates, and case files were not available in the registries,” Ali said in a Facebook post on Tuesday.
These allegations raise fresh concerns about the independence of Egypt’s judiciary, particularly in cases involving political opposition figures. The court ruling also requires Tantawy and his campaign manager to pay a fine of 20,000 Egyptian pounds ($395), further adding to the financial and political burden on the opposition figure.
According to Reuters, the public prosecution has not commented on the ruling or the allegations of procedural misconduct raised by Khaled Ali and Tantawy’s defense team.
Tantawy’s political future remains uncertain
The outcome of the appeal has far-reaching implications for Ahmed Tantawy’s political career. The five-year ban on holding public office disqualifies him from running in any elections during that period, significantly reducing his influence within Egypt’s opposition landscape.
Tantawy had been one of the few vocal challengers to President Sisi’s presidency. Last year, he was seen as a potential contender capable of energizing public support, but he withdrew from the race, citing systematic repression by authorities. Sisi went on to win the election with 89.6 percent of the vote.
Tantawy’s campaign had previously accused the government of targeting his family members and supporters to undermine his bid for the presidency. The government has rejected those claims, maintaining that Tantawy’s campaign broke election rules.
Despite the setback, Tantawy’s supporters view him as a prominent figure in Egypt’s opposition, with some hoping he will remain politically active in non-electoral capacities.
