Egyptian Culture Minister Jehan Zaki submitted her resignation to Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly on Tuesday after a court ruling convicted her of infringing on intellectual property rights.
The Cassation Court on Monday upheld the ruling issued against Zaki by the Economic Court, finding her guilty of infringing on the intellectual property rights of writer Soheir Abdel-Hamid.
The ruling obligates the Minister of Culture to pay LE100,000 in compensation to the writer and withdraw her book from the market entirely.
The ruling came after a report by a tripartite committee of intellectual property experts confirmed the presence of verbatim plagiarized quotations that undermined the creative integrity of the original work.
Zaki stated her respect for the rulings of the Egyptian judiciary, explaining that she submitted her resignation to spare the government any embarrassment.
She added that she will pursue all available legal avenues, including appealing the rulings, as permitted by law, since exercising legal rights does not conflict with respecting judicial decisions.
The Prime Minister announced his acceptance of the resignation, thanking Zaki for her efforts during her tenure and wishing her success in her future endeavors.
