An Egyptian Christian who was unjustly imprisoned for 15 years on a false murder charge has died just before he was due to be released.
Shaiboub William Arsal had been serving a jail sentence following his wrongful conviction for the murder of two Christians in 1998, triggering the El-Kosheh incident in which hundreds of local Christians were detained and tortured by police. CSW worked extensively on his case, and supporters campaigned and prayed for him and wrote letters of support. Sadly, he was hospitalised for hepatitis last year, and we have just heard that he died in autumn 2013 . There were no suspicious circumstances surrounding his death, but the tragedy is that he passed away just before his sentence was completed. He leaves behind a wife and three children.
Torture in pre-trial detention
On 14 August 1998 two Christian men, Samir Oweida, 25, and Karam Tamer Arsal, 27, were murdered in El-Kosheh in Upper Egypt. The killers were identified as three Muslims from a nearby village, and a local bishop reported the matter to the head of the security forces in the area, who made no effort to arrest the real offenders.
Instead, hundreds of Christians were detained in connection with the murder. Many were tortured, receiving electric shocks, whippings and being hung upside down in an effort to force them to confess to a crime they did not commit. An 11-year-old boy was even tied to the ceiling fan. Mr Arsal was the third and last to be accused formally of the murder of the two men - one of whom was his cousin - and he endured torture and severe mistreatment. He was hung upside down, beaten, tied to a chair and given electric shocks.
Over the course of Mr Arsal's detention, CSW and its supporters campaigned by updating MPs and MEPs on the details of the case, and writing to President Mubarak - president of Egypt at the time.
Convicted despite overwhelming evidence of innocence
On 5 June 2000, after two years' imprisonment, Mr Arsal was sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment with hard labour, despite overwhelming evidence demonstrating his innocence. His two accusers had withdrawn their statements, claiming they had been made under duress. Logbooks proved they were at their army posts on the day of the murders, so could not have witnessed the incident . An appeal against the sentence was lodged, but a date for the hearing was reportedly never set.
In 2010 a presidential decree ordered Mr Arsal's release; however, state security postponed releasing him , citing unspecified security concerns.
Egypt's Christians continue to suffer societal pressures
The case of Shaiboub William Arsal is emblematic of the severe injustices experienced by Egypt's Coptic community under the Mubarak regime. Since the fall of Mubarak in 2011, the country has experienced a period of incredible turbulence, and the Coptic community - representing 10% of the population - has suffered violence and discrimination, although this is now largely at the hands of supporters of former President Morsi. The current interim government appears to be more attentive to the plight of the community, but there is still a long way to go until they are treated as equal citizens.