New York, US - The Human Rights Watch (HRW) has urged the Egyptian authorities to drop all charges against unregistered non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and stop the criminal investigation of such groups.

In a statement posted on its website on Sunday, the New York-based group said the authorities should not take action against the NGOs until Egypt’s new parliament proposes legislation consistent with international legal standards.

The NGOs under investigation are not registered under the Mubarak-era Associations Law, in many cases because the government failed to respond to their requests to register.

On Sunday, the state-run MENA news agency announced that two investigative judges hand-picked by the government had referred 40 NGO staff, comprising Egyptian and American nationals, for trial.

Over the past several months, the judges interrogated staff from at least seven groups, and on 29 December military and police raided their offices.

“The Egyptian authorities are using a discredited Mubarak-era law to prosecute non-governmental groups while proposing even more restrictive legislation,” said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at HRW. “The government should stop using the old law, halt the criminal investigations, and propose a law that respects international standards.”

Pana 06/02/2012