Egypt: Why Free Blogger Alaa Abd El Fattah?  · Global Voices
Amira Al Hussaini

This post is part of our special coverage Egypt Revolution 2011.
A graffiti of Alaa Abd El Fattah which reads: Don't forget me. Photo by Bassem Sabry
A military court judge will decide today whether Alaa Abd El Fattah will be released or will spend another 15 days behind bars, pending investigations on what defenders say are trumped up charges. He is accused of inciting violence against the military, stealing arms and damaging military property.
Abd El Fattah was detained on October 30, after refusing to be interrogated by the Military Prosecution, in protest against its legitimacy. His arrest, and the international outcry it has caused, is shedding light on the plight of more than 12,000 civilians, who have been put on military trials in Egypt since the the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) took over.
On Twitter, supporters have been rallying for his freedom under the hashtag #WhyFreeAlaa . Here is a selection of some of the tweets under this hashtag.
Mostafa Rafat tweets:
@llvllostafa: #WhyFreeAlaa cuz he is in prison instead of me & u
Ahmad moein shares a similar sentiment:
@ahmadmoein: #WhyFreeAlaa because you're next!
S K adds:
@nolesfan2011: #whyfreealaa because he's a hero, he's innocent and he's my friend one of the most inspiring people I know
Hussein Adel Fahmy admits [ar]:
And his sister Mona Seif, who has been championing against the military trial of civilians, since the beginning of the revolution, tweets:
@Monasosh: #WhyFreeAlaa coz I really miss u and I am tired of pretending it's easy
Columnist Mona Eltahawy sums it up:
@monaeltahawy: #WhyFreeAlaa Because he makes #Egypt better.
This post is part of our special coverage Egypt Revolution 2011.