The Arab Foundation for the Support of Civil Society and Human Rights expresses its full condemnation of the actions taken by the management of Al-Bawaba News website in forcibly dispersing the peaceful sit-in organized by the site’s journalists, assaulting them, and forcibly expelling them from the sit-in premises located in the Mohandessin district, Giza Governorate.
The forced dispersal took place on the evening of Sunday, January 11, 2025, when the journalists were surprised by the storming of the sit-in location by approximately nine bodyguards accompanied by the institution’s services manager. This occurred while a number of journalists had temporarily left the premises to bring food and beverages.
According to statements issued by the journalists participating in the sit-in, the incident involved direct physical assaults on three journalists, resulting in visible scratches to one of them. In addition, mobile phones belonging to several journalists were forcibly confiscated in an attempt to prevent documentation of the events taking place inside the premises. The journalists were then forcibly removed from the building, which was subsequently closed, before the confiscated phones were later handed over to a member of the administrative security staff.
The journalists have been staging their sit-in since November 16, 2024, in pursuit of their legitimate right to fair wages consistent with the minimum wage approved by the Egyptian government, amounting to 7,000 Egyptian pounds.
The Foundation affirms that these actions constitute a clear violation of all laws and constitutional principles that guarantee the right to peaceful assembly and the right to strike. It further stresses that the violent dispersal of this protest represents a dangerous and unprecedented development within journalistic institutions.
It is also noted that, in recent days, the site’s management sought to pressure the journalists into ending their sit-in by closing the building’s gates, restricting entry and exit, and cutting off electricity and internet services. Such practices amount to administrative abuse, unlawful coercion, and a grave violation of workers’ rights and their human, professional dignity.
The Foundation further strongly condemns the complaints previously filed by the site’s management against the journalists participating in the sit-in, as well as against several members of the Journalists Syndicate Council, in connection with their organization of a peaceful solidarity protest in support of journalists’ rights. These actions reflect a blatant disregard for the constitutional right of citizens to peaceful assembly.
The Foundation also emphasizes that the management’s failure to pay journalists’ salaries since November, for the second consecutive month, constitutes a clear violation of the Labor Law and a serious infringement of workers’ rights, which cannot be justified by any administrative or financial pretexts.
The Arab Foundation for the Support of Civil Society and Human Rights declares its full solidarity with the journalists of Al-Bawaba News and calls for the immediate payment of all overdue financial entitlements, as well as the opening of a serious and responsible dialogue that ensures respect for the law, protects journalists’ rights, and safeguards the freedom and dignity of journalistic work. The Foundation also calls for an immediate halt to the liquidation measures announced by the management, which contradict Article (240) of the Labor Law that prohibits such steps during collective negotiations, as well as Minister of Manpower Decree No. (259) of 2025, which stipulates that any decision to dissolve, liquidate, close, or partially close an establishment, or to reduce its activities, must be issued by a judicial ruling or by a decision of the competent authority.
Finally, the Foundation urges all concerned authorities, including the Supreme Council for Media Regulation, to launch an urgent and independent investigation into the forcible dispersal of the sit-in, to hold those responsible accountable, and to immediately intervene regarding the serious violations committed by the institution’s management against its employees.
