Brussels, 21/04/2009 (Agence Europe) - Egypt and the EU are to hold the 5th session of their Association Council in Luxembourg on 27 April. Looking ahead to this regular meeting which is to examine implementation of the agreement during the past year, the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network (EMHRN) addressed a letter to the EU27. In its letter, the EMHRN slams the “contradiction” that exists between the statements made by the EU27 whereby they are pushing for human rights and making this an essential element of the agreements while, at the same time, they are satisfied by the political situation in Egypt and contemplate granting this country a sort of “advanced status”. The EMHRN asserts that the situation is, moreover, constantly worsening. It cites the fact that the state of emergency has been widely used for 25 years now, generating “serious human rights violations against political activists and protest movements”. It goes on to speak of the “continuous harassment of journalists”. This repression mainly affects NGOs and religious minorities, EMHRN states. Other sources denounce the reprehensible acts against sub-Saharan migrants housed in EU-supported transit camps. At the internal political level, a significant gesture was made in February this year with the release of opposition member Ayman Nour who committed the “crime” of standing as candidate for the presidential election against Hosni Moubarak. Despite being deprived of his civil rights, Mr Nour, who visited the European institutions in Brussels one week ago, announced that he planned to continue in politics within his party Ghad. (F.B./transl.jl)