exploitation of images to bullying and stalking. Women are often the ones to
bear the brunt of these violent acts, often enduring severe consequences that
could culminate in death.
Inconsistent Experiences
“I spent an entire night at the police station, questioning the validity of my
decision. I regretted 몭ling the report about what I had endured, only to end up in
jail. This was deeply frustrating. I was disillusioned, not anticipating a fair
resolution,” Ola added in her conversation with SMEX.
Marwa (pseudonym, another Egyptian lawyer who underwent two similar
experiences, told SMEX about the inherent inequities of the legal process and its
failure to deliver justice. In 2017, an unidenti몭ed individual attempted to
blackmail Marwa, fabricating false conversations to tarnish her reputation and
exert pressure. Although she had decided to 몭le a report, she eventually
abandoned the pursuit since the Cybercrime Police station was very far from
where she lived.
That same year, the Egyptian lawyer, along with several fellow women’s rights
defenders in Egypt, faced an intense online attack labeled by the local press as
the “Telegram attack.” Reluctantly, she approached the authorities to report the
incident, but, as she con몭rmed to SMEX, her report amounted to nothing more
than a written piece of paper.
Meanwhile, Shaima al-Shawarbi, a journalist and writer specializing in feminist
a몭airs, shared with SMEX the details of a defamation incident that targeted her
on a social media platform. The incident was instigated by a former classmate.
“One day, I woke up to a message containing a barrage of insults and crude
language from a classmate with whom I had no relationship. He had separated
from his wife, who was in our class too, and he accused me of being the cause of
their crisis, even though I knew nothing related to the incident,” Shaima
recounted to SMEX.
Despite the distressing experience, Shaima spoke highly of her interactions with
the Internet Police, describing it as “very positive.” She added that the employees
not only guided her through the subsequent steps but also provided crucial
support to pursue her complaint.