[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 15706]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   FREE EGYPTIAN BLOGGER KAREEM AMER

  (Mr. KIRK asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. KIRK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call upon Egypt to demonstrate 
it is a force for tolerance in the Arab world by releasing Kareem Amer 
from prison.
  While other prisoners of conscience languish in Egyptian jails, the 
most troubling case is that of a young human rights blogger, Abdel 
Kareem Nabil Soliman. Kareem Amer, as he is known on the blogosphere, 
was sentenced to 4 years in prison in February 2007 solely for what he 
wrote on his blog--condemning Islamic extremism and the treatment of 
women.
  Tomorrow, Egypt celebrates Revolution Day, a holiday during which the 
Egyptian President customarily releases prisoners. I strongly urge 
President Mubarak to release Kareem Amer, who now has served 17 months 
of his sentence.
  Egypt is one of the largest recipients of U.S. taxpayer aid, and we 
should ensure that the partners of ours of this magnitude are also 
dedicated to the freedom of expression. The release of Kareem Amer, the 
first blogger arrested in the Arab world simply for what he wrote on 
his blog, would demonstrate Egypt's commitment to Internet freedom and 
to human rights.

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