Bärbel Kofler, Federal Government Commissioner for Human Rights Policy and Humanitarian Aid at the Federal Foreign Office, issued the following statement today (18 April) on the planned constitutional amendments in Egypt:

In the forthcoming referendum, Egyptians are called on to vote on far-reaching constitutional amendments that could significantly curtail the separation of powers and the free democratic shaping of opinion.

In particular, I fear that the already severely reduced scope for action by civil society in Egypt could decline even further.

The revised NGO Act is currently passing through the parliamentary process. I reiterate my call on those in positions of responsibility in Egypt to make use of this in order to expand and protect scope for civil society