Egypt sentences two TikTok activists to jail
The ruling issued by an Egyptian court sentencing two TikTok activists to prison sparked controversy over the status of the electronic application in the country, amid parliamentary demands to censor its content.
An Egyptian court on June 20 slapped two TikTok female activists with jail sentences amid calls for censorship of the video-sharing application’s content.
The Cairo Criminal Court had sentenced TikTok activist Haneen Hossam in absentia to 10 years in prison and a fine of 200,000 Egyptian pounds ($12,800). It also sentenced Mawadda al-Adham to six years in prison and a fine of 200,000 Egyptian pounds ($12,800). They are both convicted of human trafficking.
The court accused Hossam of encouraging young girls and teenagers “to post videos inciting immorality, escaping from justice, and encrypting their phones and accounts.” It came after Hossam posted a video back in April 2020 calling on girls to work with her through an agency she formed through another video-sharing platform, Likee, telling them they could make between $36 to $30,000 by broadcasting videos on it.
On June 22, the court decided to retry Hossam.
