For several years now, the Egyptian Musicians’ Union and its President Hani Shaker have systematically attacked the mahraganat, a music genre born in the country’s poorest neighbourhoods that enjoys growing popularity among young people.
The union’s enforcement power allows it to ban from the Egyptian scene all artists deviating from its cultural and moral standards, with offenders exposing themselves to heavy fines and prison sentences.
In 2016, six female singers were suspended from their right to perform because of “body revealing clothes” and “sexually suggestive” dancing on stage.
In 2019, Egyptian singer Hassan Shakosh suffered the wrath of Hani Shaker, the lyrics of one of his songs being deemed immoral (“I will drown my sorrows in alcohol and smoke hashish”).
The signatory organisations firmly condemn the repeated attacks by the Egyptian Musicians’ Union on the fundamental rights of its members
In 2020, Shaker ruled that mahraganat singers would no longer be allowed to work in Egypt and would be denied licences to perform anywhere in the country.
On November 17, 2021, Shaker announced his decision to ban nineteen mahraganat artists from performing throughout Egypt, subject to heavy penalties. The union says this music genre poses “a greater threat to society than covid-19” and is currently trying to remove it from youtube entirely.
These are only a few examples of Shaker’s ruthless harassment policy towards his own affiliates.
The Egyptian Musicians’ Union’s censorship of artists constitutes a clear violation of the right to freedom of expression, a right explicitly recognised by Article 1 of the ILO Constitution via the Declaration of Philadelphia of May 10, 1944, which is attached to it.
The signatory organisations firmly condemn the repeated attacks by the Egyptian Musicians’ Union on the fundamental rights of its members and urge it to break with these practices, which are incompatible with the labour movement’s most elementary principles.
This statement is signed by:
• International Arts and Entertainment Alliance (IAEA)
• International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC)
• International Federation of Journalists (IFJ)
• Education International (EI)
• International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers’ Associations (IUF)
• IndustriALL Global Union (IndustriALL)
• Public Services International (PSI)
• Building and Wood Workers’ International (BWI)
• UNI Global Union