Human rights organisations now fear the government may choose to invoke the decree against whoever it wishes. As a result, many have stopped receiving foreign funds. Abu Se'da said ever since the EOHR has decided to stop receiving foreign funds two years ago, it has incurred a debt of LE24,000 in delayed salaries and rent. The EOHR's board of directors decided last week to invite members to make donations. However, the organisation's future remains precarious, he said.
Many organisations face a similar predicament.
The centre has not shut down, but is barely surviving after its sources of financing has dried up. Salem said the centre decided to stop accepting foreign funds last August. We have books in print that had to be stopped because we don't have the money to pay for it. Approval has yet to be granted the centre and, consequently, its status remains in limbo. Ambassador Soleiman Awwad, assistant to the foreign minister, does not believe that Ibrahim's arrest was intended to scare civil society.