About the Egypt Prison Atlas

The Atlas is an easy-to-use website run by the Belady: An Island for Humanity Foundation. It includes a blog that publishes regular updates and research material on the political conflict in Egypt and monitors the Egyptian legal framework from a human rights perspective. The website also presents information on women and children arrested in political cases, the terrorism circuit judges who ruled in these cases, and the prisons where political prisoners are held.

Why did we create the Egypt Prison Atlas?

Since the military coup in Egypt in 2013, civil society has been trying to collect and document the regime’s practices in order to publish and report them, to support detainees, their families and their lawyers, and to call on the international community to press for an end to these violations. The Egyptian regime has used every possible tool of repression to undermine these efforts.

The regime targets and pursues journalists, lawyers, activists and anyone who opposes it or provides data on the repression and violations being committed.

In addition, the regime continues to censor the media, cover up its violations, spread false information and flatly deny committing these violations.

The Egypt Prison Atlas is a tool to confront repression and the blackout on information. It brings together data on repression and violations and presents it in a free, accessible space, offering an accurate and detailed picture of the regime’s violations.

The Egypt Prison Atlas exposes violations, promotes transparency and makes information easier to access. It lays the groundwork for accountability and for hoped-for transitional justice files, by supporting the work of civil society and giving it a tool to raise national and international awareness.

Who are we?

Belady: An Island for Humanity is a human rights organization that supports civil and political rights. It aims to promote transparency and accountability and to reduce violations, especially against women and children arrested in the political conflict.

Our values

Impartiality: Belady supports all victims and survivors without discrimination based on political orientation, race, religion, disability, nationality, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or any other status.

Accuracy: We use a careful, comprehensive and clear methodology that meets scientific standards of accuracy and quality.

Transparency: We share our findings with everyone, regardless of what we discover. We are open about our methodology and our results.

Protecting witnesses and victims: We protect victims, witnesses and sources of information. All the data we collect and present is either public information or was collected with the explicit consent of the source. Testimonies are anonymous.

Accountability and responsibility: We work with integrity and are committed to honesty in our work. When we make mistakes, we acknowledge them and correct them immediately.