Egypt Takes Harsh Line Towards Artists and Authors
Over the past two years, the authorities have jailed writers, closed cultural centres and cancelled events.
Many Egyptian writers, intellectuals, and artists had supported the protest movement against Morsi, which culminated in his removal by the military.
Commentators say convictions on charges such as “indecent dancing” and “contempt of religion” suggest that the government of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi wants to behave as a guardian of “public morals”, in the same way as Morsi and his Islamist supporters did when they were in power.
The BBC asked the culture ministry for a response. The ministry declined to comment on individual cases but said it planned to propose changes to the law “to protect creativity”.