Opposition politician Ahmed Tantawi stands trial after campaigning to contest presidential elections

Opposition politician Ahmed Tantawi, who mounted a bid this year to contest the ongoing presidential elections, is now facing prosecution along with several people who participated in his campaign, according to a lawyer in his defense team who spoke to Mada Masr on condition of anonymity.

Defense lawyers working on the case discovered during a Tuesday court session in the trial that Tantawi’s name is on the charge sheet alongside the names of 22 members of his election campaign, the lawyer said.

The trial of the politician and his supporters, said a member of Tantawi’s campaign who spoke to Mada Masr on condition of anonymity, is another example of how the authorities exercise continued repression to prevent Tantawi from challenging incumbent President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

Mada Masr attempted to contact Tantawi for comment but had not received a response by the time of publication.

A lawyer who attended the Matareya Misdemeanors Court session said that the defense team arrived on Tuesday to act on behalf of 21 people who took part in Tantawi’s campaign. All 21 are still being held in detention facilities.

It wasn’t until court documents were reviewed on Tuesday, said the lawyer, that they found that both Tantawi and his campaign manager, Mohamed Aboul Diyar, were also included on the charge sheet. Neither defendant was notified of the charges by the court or prosecuting authorities and had no legal representatives present to address their respective charges.

At the lawyers’ request, the Matareya Misdemeanors Court ultimately decided to adjourn the session until November 28 to allow lawyers time to review the case. Legal representation for Tantawi and Aboul Diyar will also be in attendance at the November 28 session, the lawyer told Mada Masr.

The 21 people were arrested from different governorates nationwide throughout October on charges of printing and circulating election papers without authorization from the competent authority. If convicted, they could face punishments as harsh as one year in prison and fines between LE1,000 and LE5,000.

After announcing his intention to mount a bid for the elections, Tantawi undertook public appearances and meetings, greeting crowds in various cities across the country in a rare effort to galvanize public participation for December’s presidential vote.

Supporters of the former MP in Alexandria faced security restrictions, harassment, arrest and obstruction from the start. Members of his family and campaign were arrested, while his supporters, gathering nationwide to register their official endorsement of his candidacy with electoral authorities, faced obstruction and were even assaulted by supporters of the leading rival candidate, Sisi.

Changing tactics, Tantawi’s campaign encouraged his supporters to sign forms endorsing his candidacy away from the official collection points. The forms would be collected by campaign members and delivered to the National Elections Authority for subsequent authentication.

But as campaign members began to collect the popular endorsements, a number of them were arrested. A lawyer for the Egyptian Front for Human Rights told Mada Masr on Tuesday that there are many more who were arrested for electoral fraud than the 21 facing trial at Tuesday’s court session.

In an October press conference, Tantawi said that at least 132 people were detained on various pretexts after participating in his campaign.