Campaign to SUPPORT NAWAL AL SAADAWI

DEFEND FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

Nawal Al Saadawi, a writer, an important figure in the feminist and democratic struggle in Egypt and the arab world, and a victim of fundamentalism, was forced to flee her country in March 2007.

Because of a play she had written several years ago republished by her editor last January, Nawal is accused of apostasy and a lack of respect for the principles of Islam. In this play, titled God Resigns at the Summit Meeting, she writes that God is a spirit and therefore neither a woman nor a man.

The Islamic University of Cairo, Al Azhar, as well as the Egyptian tribunals responded by bringing her to trial over accusations of apostosy and insulting Islam. Many of her books were destroyed. Nawal was forced to seek asylum abroad.

Nawal, our sister in combat who has been imprisoned several times, participated in our Ni Putes Ni Soumises International Congress. She is a great doctor and an active writer who has contributed forty-five works to the body of Arab literature: novels, plays, short stories, autobiographies, scientific pieces, and scholarly articles which have been translated in over thirty languages throughout the world.

Her fight for emancipation illustrates the conditions of women in Egypt and several other countries: humiliated, discounted, ignored!

Through Nawal, all those who fight for equality and human rights in general are targeted and hunted down, silenced.

To defend Nawal is to defend all the organizations devoted to women’s rights and democracy who stand up for Nawal Al Saadawi in Egypt.

To defend for Nawal is to defend for freedom of expression throughout the world!

SUPPORT NAWAL AL SAADAWI

Let’s come together

Saturday, June 23 at 6:00pm

Parvis des droits de l’homme. Place du Trocadéro in Paris

“To wait for nothing, to want for nothing, and most of all, most of all, to fear nothing! This is how I see my liberty!” Nawal Al Saadawi.

Nawal Saadawi's talk at the demonstration:

For Freedom of thinking creatively

by Nawal El Saadawi

23 June 2007


Dear friends who are gathering here in Paris to defend the freedom of creative thinking ,
I thank you all for your efforts to support my case against Al Azhar insitution in Egypt who accused me of heresy because of my piece for theatre called : God Resigns at the Summit Meeting ,
Al Azhar in Egypt was always against creative thinking and the well fare of Egyptian people , why ?
Because creative thinking unveil the minds of the oppressed , women and men , who are explioted by political - religious ruling powers , every where not only in Egypt ,
Al Azhar is composed of religious men , who used to support the British colonizers and the corrupt King Farouk against the well fare of the Egyptian people ,
While we ( young students ) were demonstrating during the forties and early fifties ( against the British invasion of Egypt and the corrupt ruling class ) Al Azhar men were supporting them , even they prayed in Mosques every Friday asking God to let the King live eternally and rule Egypt for ever , after the fall of the king in July 1952 they prayed for Nasser to rule for ever , after the death of Nasser in September 1970 they prayed for Sadat to rule for ever , after the assasination of Sadat in October 1981 they prayed for Mubarak to rule for ever ,
They are used to support external and internal ruling powers in Egypt against us the people , women , men and children ,
They are used to condemn creative thinkers and writers , women and men ,
They veil our minds with their own backward interpretation of religion ,

God for them is not justice , freedom and love but a book or printed verses on which they have the monoply to interpret ,
We should not submit to their power which they think is divine , they think that they represent God on Earth , that any body who differ with them is an infidel , or Satan or heretic , and should be banned or eradicated by any means ,
They banned my play totally , but this is not enough for them , they want to silence me totally ,
They are supported by global and local capitalist patriarchal racist powers ,
But people who have a living conscience , who fight for justice and freedom , in any part of the world , women and men who are gathered here today in Paris , are saying No to all these religious political powers , No more deception and lies and killing under the name of God , no more banning of creative works and torturing creative thinkers , Your demostration today say that we can change this world to the better , that another world is possible but is necessary , this is our hope , and hope is power , and our unity today is power ,
We are winning our battle for freedom , and peace .
There is no peace no freedom without justice ,
And there is no justice without creative thinking
Thank you
Nawal El Saadawi