For the first time ever, Nubian human rights activists will travel to Switzerland this month to present the Geneva-based International Human Rights Council (IHRC) with a longstanding Nubian request for the return of Nubian land confiscated by the government and turned over to investors for land-reclamation projects.
"We’ve exhausted all legal means in Egypt to present our demands," said Manal el-Taybi, director of the Egyptian Center for Housing Rights. "This time, we will try to form a coalition of IHRC member states," she added, noting that such a move would allow the council to raise the issue directly with the Egyptian government.
According to el-Taybi, Nubian activists will also brief the council on a host of additional Nubian grievances, such as the lack of political representation, the dearth of development projects in Nubia and the ongoing extinction of the Nubian language.
"We recommended that the government form a special constituency for Nubians so as to allow them to nominate candidates who can represent them in parliament," she said.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
