Hon. Mahmoud Tawfiq Abdel Gawad Qandel
Minister of Interior
First Settlement – New Cairo, Post no. 11641
Esteemed Minister Tawfiq,
We are writing today to request that you do everything within your authority to effect the release of Mr. Ahmed Samir Abdelhay Ali, a graduate student in anthropology at the Central European University.
We understand that Mr. Samir has been detained as of 1st February 2021 without any access to legal assistance or communication with his family for the past four days. We are very concerned about his disappearance.
As scholarly associations with a combined membership of more than 20,000 worldwide, we are committed to the principles of academic freedom and freedom of expression in a democratic society. Our Associations stand for advancing understanding of the human condition through anthropological research, and for applying this understanding to addressing some of the world’s most pressing problems. As an Egyptian student pursuing his Master’s degree in anthropology at Central European University in Vienna, Ahmed is making significant scholarly contributions to help build these bridges of understanding.
We strongly urge the Egyptian Ministry of Interior to do what it can to effect Mr. Samir’s release and safe return to his family. Please don’t hesitate to contact us if we can provide additional information.
Sincerely,
| Dr. Akhil Gupta, President American Anthropological Association |
Dr. Sarah Green, President European Association of Social Anthropologists |
Dr. Simone Abram, President Association of Social Anthropologists |