 [An Nahar] One month into a much-touted program to heal the country's deep political rifts, Egyptian authorities have arrested dozens of dissidents, opposition supporters and football fans in a wave of repression.
| That’ll do it, fer shure. |
Cairo inaugurated its long-delayed "national dialogue" on May 3, promising to give a platform to opposition voices that have been largely silenced since President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi took office in 2014.
Critics have denounced it as a public relations stunt designed to burnish a dismal human rights
...which are usually entirely different from personal liberty ...
record.
The launch coincided with World Press Freedom Day and that same morning authorities arrested journalist Hassan el-Kabbany.
He was released later the same day, with dialogue coordinator Diaa Rashwan saying the detention was an unfortunate case of "mistaken identity".
The public should "distinguish between isolated cases and broader phenomena" such as the opening of space for free expression, Rashwan said.
But the same week, police arrested 16 relatives and supporters of Ahmed al-Tantawi, after the former opposition politician announced he would run in next year's presidential election.
The national dialogue is merely a "maneuver to appear as if they are trying to start a new page, when in fact they are just trying to improve their image," Human Rights Watch's Amr Magdi told AFP.
"There's really no change at all."
- 'TERRORIST' ULTRAS -
In the face of persistent criticism of Egypt's human rights record, Sisi announced plans for the national dialogue in late 2021, followed by the revival of the executive pardons committee in April last year.
Since then, authorities have released 1,000 political prisoners amid much fanfare, but almost 3,000 more have been detained, Egyptian rights monitors said.
In recent weeks, arrests have become more frequent.
On April 22, police detained 20 fans of Al Ahly SC, Africa's most successful football club, during a home game in Cairo, the Egyptian Front for Human Rights (EFHR) said.
The club's ultras played a central role in the 2011 uprising that toppled longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak
...The former President-for-Life of Egypt, dumped by popular demand in early 2011...
and have been consistently targeted by authorities.
Calls for fans to burn their supporters' cards and boycott subsequent matches prompted 39 more arrests, the EFHR said.
Police alleged that those detained "belong to the terrorist ultras group" and intended to "vandalize the Cairo stadium", the EFHR added. 
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