Mubarak’s visit in Washington: a chance for human rights in Egypt

Read Human Rights First’s Neil Hick’s piece in the Huffington Post reflecting on the Obama Administration approach to Egypt, and looking back at some of Bush Administration policy.

He advises:

President Obama should seek assurances from President Mubarak that: the

forthcoming elections will feature credible independent supervision of the

election process, especially in view of the fact that 2007 amendments to the

Constitution have removed the judiciary from its former supervisory role; that

the basic rights of the independent civil society activists to monitor and

comment on the elections will be upheld; and, that the rights of opposition

candidates to contest the elections free from harassment and official

obstruction will be respected. President Obama should urge President Mubarak to

invite reputable international election monitoring organizations to conduct

evaluations in Egypt that would assist in identifying problems, support the work

of local monitors and lay the groundwork for further improvements in the years

ahead.