The United States on Monday denounced an Egyptian court's decision to sentence three Al-Jazeera journalists to jail terms, calling it "a blow to democratic process."
Secretary of State John Kerry told journalists during a Baghdad visit that Washington condemned the "chilling and draconian sentence," and the White House followed suit with a harshly critical statement.
"The prosecution of journalists for reporting information that does not coincide with the government of Egypt's narrative flouts the most basic standards of media freedom and represents a blow to democratic progress in Egypt," it said.
"As we have said many times before, democracy is about more than elections. True democracy requires thriving democratic institutions, including a vibrant free press that is empowered to hold the government accountable to the people."
The White House also said the verdict "comes as part of a succession of prosecutions and verdicts that are fundamentally incompatible with the basic precepts of human rights and democratic governance."
These include "the prosecution of peaceful protesters and critics of the government, and a series of summary death sentences in trials that fail to achieve even a semblance of due process," it added.
An Egyptian court earlier Monday sentenced three of Al-Jazeera's journalists to jail terms ranging from seven to 10 years, accusing them of aiding the blacklisted Muslim Brotherhood.
Australian Peter Greste and Egyptian-Canadian Mohamed Fadel Fahmy each got seven years, while Egyptian producer Baher Mohamed received two sentences -- one for seven years and another for three.
During his surprise visit to Baghdad, Kerry said he had "registered our serious displeasure" with Cairo, and that he spoke with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukri about the matter.
"Injustices like these simply cannot stand if Egypt is to move forward in the way that President (Abdel Fattah) al-Sisi and Foreign Minister Shoukri told me just yesterday that they aspire to see their country advance," Kerry said, in a statement.
"Egyptian society is stronger and sustainable when all of its citizens have a say and a stake in its success. Today's verdicts fly in the face of the essential role of civil society, a free press, and the real rule of law."
He said the trial "lacked many fundamental norms of due process" and added that he spoke with Shoukri again Monday "to make very clear our deep concerns about these convictions and sentences."
The verdict also drew condemnation from other governments around the world, as well as UN officials and press freedom activists.
Share
