Beautiful Egypt 114 – «The Prosecutor General» – July 5, 2015

   A lot of blood was shed starting March, 1948. In fact, terrorists assassinated councilor Ahmed al-Khazindar. On December, 1948, Prime Minister Mahmud Fahmy al-Nuqrashi Pasha was assassinated as well. The same gang tried to assassinate President Jamal Abdul Nasser in 1954. They also murdered sheikh Muḥammad Ḥusayn al-Dhahabī, Minister of Endowments and al-Azhar Affairs in 1977 and President Anwar Sadat on October, 1981. In 1992, the gang killed Dr. Faraj Fouda, the Egyptian thinker and tried to murder Nobel Laureate Najib Mahfuz on October, 1995. In 1997, tourists were attacked in Luxor. Egypt’s Ambassador to Iraq was assassinated in 2005. Same happened to U.S. Ambassador to Libya in 2012. Such horrific incidents are not of local nature, for they spread through the world, killing Copts and Ethiopians in Libya, French civilians in Paris, and Jordanian pilot Muath al-Kasasbeh. Last Monday, Egypt witnessed a terrible accident in which Prosecutor General Hisham Barakat was assassinated, only for bloodshed to continue!

The Egyptian Prosecutor General

   Simply put, the Prosecutor General is the people’s lawyer who is entrusted to defend their rights and apply justice by all means: be they living in Egypt or abroad. In effect, the Prosecutor General has the right to sue any Egyptian who is suspected to have perpetrated any crime, protect people’s lives and all sorts of legitimized freedom, like that of moving, creed, and a safety.  Thus, he lives for the people and acquires his authority from them.

   In judicial hierarchy, the Prosecutor General presides the department of the public prosecutor that represents the society and takes care of public welfare. He is equal to a minister in rank, a member of the Supreme Judicial Council, and a direct report to the president after taking the oath of office. His premise is at the Cassation Court. Nobody is entitled to lay him off.

The Prosecutor General’s Title

   The Prosecutor General’s title derives from his being deputized by the people or the state to represent them in legal cases before the judiciary, suing the illicit party, and following up the case before the concerned courts by delegating it to one of his deputies.

The History of Egyptian Public Prosecutor

   The first Egyptian Public Prosecutor was Ismail Sirri Pasha. He was appointed in 1881. The second was a foreigner, Benson Maxwell. He was appointed in 1883. Then came Raymond West who spent twelve months in office to be succeeded by Monsieur Le Grell who remained in office for six years, to resign in 1895. Then the post was restored to the Egyptian Ismail Sabri Pasha who was, yet, succeeded by the British Corbett Bey who spent eleven years in office. In 1908, Abdul Khaliq Tharwat Pasha became Public Prosecutor. From then onward, the post became purely Egyptian.

   One of the most famous cases associated with the Public Prosecutor was that of the murder of Amin Uthman Pasha prior the 1952 Revolution in which Sadat was charged. Yet, councilor Abdul Rahman al-Duwayr proved his innocence.

The Most Famous Public Prosecutors

Councilor Abdul Rahim Ghoneim

   He was known for handling the case of Cairo Fire on January, 1952. He was contemporary to the Revolution. Though the Free Officers tried to persuade him to resign, he refused and clung to his legal right of holding an independent post. So, they resorted to a legal scheme, namely, raising the pay cadre of the head of the Court of Appeals, making it equal to that of the Public Prosecutor. Thus, they were able to conduct a job rotation and transfer him to the court of appeals, being on the same level! Hence, they laid him off!

Councilor Mohammed Abdul Salam

   Despite the fact that he was not on good terms with President Nasser, he did not charge him for killing Field Marshal Abdul Hakim Amer. Even more, he emphasized that he could not have killed the man. One of the arrested men’s daughter sought his help. So, he paid an unexpected visit to military prisons and told the officers, “I am the Public Prosecutor for all Egyptians, be they civilians or military officials.”

Councilor Aly Nour al-Din

   He was Public Prosecutor during Sadat’s tenure. Sadat dismissed him at the beginning of the 1970s to become the only Public Prosecutor to be dismissed from office.

Councilor Maher Abdul Wahid

   He was Public Prosecutor from 1999 to 2006 and head of the Supreme Constitutional Court until June 30, 2009. His name was associated with the statements he gave regarding restoring depositors’ money from investment companies.

Councilor Abdul Majid Mahmud

   He became Public Prosecutor on February, 2006. He interrogated ex-President Hosni Mubarak and his men. He was ousted by Mohammed Morsi. He is vouched for due to his plea for modifying the Egyptian Penal Law and adding a paragraph that indicates the sanction of Egyptian authorities to look into the crimes that threaten Egyptian citizens’ lives, freedom and property abroad.

Councilor Tal’at Ibrahim

   He was appointed Public Prosecutor by Mohammed Morsi in 2012, after the dismissal of Abdul Majid Mahnud.

Councilor Hisham Barakat

   He became Public Prosecutor on July 10, 2013. He was one of the magistrates who advocated the independence of judiciary. He took the oath of office before interim President Adly Mansur.

   Barakat was born on November 21, 1950. He graduated from Law School in 1973. He got married and had three children. He was appointed attorney general aid, then promoted until he became attorney general. He worked as magistrate at courts of main instance, then became head of Ismailia Court of Appeals. During his tenure, death sentence was issued in the cases of prison breaks and treason. He was martyred on Ramadan, 1436 Hijri, coinciding with June, 2015.

   May Egypt’s martyrs rest in peace. May God comfort their families and protect Egypt… Stories never end in Beautiful Egypt.

General Bishop

Head of the Coptic Orthodox Cultural Center