Many realize that political prisoners suffer a great deal in Egypt’s prisons, but what many do not know also is that the spouses of these prisoners also lead a difficult life, not too dissimilar to that of life in prison. A life full of questions and hurtful comments and misconceptions that have marked most of them.

The spouses we contacted preferred to remain anonymous to avoid an unpleasant fate like that of journalist and human rights lawyer Aya Alaa Hosni, who was arrested by the Egyptian authorities last June.

Aya, a mother to two children, was charged with "communicating with news channels" when she spoke about her husband's case, Hassan Kabbani, a journalist incarcerated in Scorpion prison between 2015 and 2017.

Egyptian authorities detained Hassan Kabbani again on September 18th while he was attending a court hearing to renew his parole terms, the Egyptian Coordination for Rights and Freedoms announced, three months after his wife was arrested.

Since Sisi came into power, Human Rights Watch estimates political prisoners in Egypt.

Responsible For Everything

"Life has changed completely," said Walaa 33 (not her real name) the wife of a political detainee in Egypt, since her husband was arrested about a year and a half ago.

Walaa has been responsible for everything since her husband was remanded in custody accused of joining a terrorist group, spreading false news and misusing social media, charges the Egyptian regime has traditionally accused its opponents of.

"I have become responsible for everything, the rent of our home, the office and our child’s expenses.”

A few months ago, the lease of the couple’s apartment expired and she was forced to relocate.

Aya, a mother to two children, was charged with "communicating with news channels" when she spoke about her husband's case, Hassan Kabbani, a journalist incarcerated in Scorpion prison between 2015 and 2017.

Walaa explains the pain she feels because of her husband’s absence “I began to look for a flat by myself, deal with brokers by myself and this is the first thing that made me realise I’m alone and how much people perceive a woman being on her own as a terrible thing, that’s the truth of the matter.”

Walaa was forced to endure “ridiculous questions” most obvious being of course “where is your husband”  “where is he travelling?” “is he studying or working?”. She hopes her husband will be released soon so she can resume her life as it was before “I don’t want to bear the responsibility for anything, I just want to say I want so and so and he will organize it”

Perception By Society

Shorouk Ezzat (32) (a pseudonym) used to live with her husband in Cairo until security forces arrested the father of her one-year-old daughter, claiming that he was part of an illegal organization and since then she has taken on the responsibility of “everything”.

Ezzat told Raseef22 that her life has changed completely after her husband’s arrest and she has to do everything on her own since her family and that of her husband live in one of the delta governorates, sometimes she receives help from some of her husband’s friends but they are not always available.

Ezzat managed to live for a few months in Cairo “I worked in Cairo so it was too difficult for me to go stay with my family.” But the problems she encountered because of the way society viewed her because she lived alone pushed her family to come to stay with her for some time and she travels during holidays to be with them.

Ezzat was forced to leave work and move back in with her family and to return to Cairo every two weeks in time to visit her husband who is imprisoned in Tora prison.

Ezzat says “I see to my home’s needs, I pay rent and electricity then I go back to visit my husband and then return to my parents”.

Ezzat has a two-year-old child “she used to go to a nursery.`’ but she stopped due to tight finances and now the grandmother is responsible for the child while Ezzat follows up on her husband’s case.

Mounting expenses are one of the biggest issues that Ezzat has to face, her monthly income is 2000 EGP (120 dollars) and she has to pay 3000 EGP every month in rent (180 dollars)” in addition to the nursery before she stopped it, milk, diapers and other expenses for the child and for our household” along with unplanned expenses.

Ezzat says she gets financial support “from my family sometimes and his family sometimes” as well as assistance from friends of her husband.

Every visit to her husband costs her roughly 1000 EGP (60 dollars) and she elaborates on this as being because “You can’t just bring food for one person, you have to bring food for 11 people because every other day someone else is bringing food” and because the “currency” inside the prison is cigarettes so she buys bundles because “if you go and say you haven’t bought anything you still have to pay 1000 EGP!

Neighbours Poison

Asmaa Abd el Rady (a pseudonym) moved to the working-class neighbourhood of Faisal away from her home in the more upscale neighborhood of Maadi, to save money after her husband was arrested in 2018 on charges of spreading false news that threaten the security and stability of the Egyptian state, aiding a terrorist organization in achieving its ends and misuse of social media.

Abd el Rady is constantly exposed to “ridiculousness” from neighbours and she feels “even if not through words” people in her street look at her and whisper “why is she by herself… where is her husband?” and this is even if my mother and father are in the street.

Abd El Rady told Raseef22 about the latest incident that occurred to her a few weeks back. She was forced to put up a heavy curtain to counter the winter cold and hired a carpenter to put it up and there was no-one with her in the house except her 3-year-old daughter when the carpenter came in, causing gossip in the building.

I Can’t Relax

The most difficult thing that Abd el Rady has had to deal with is “I can’t relax, I can’t put my head down on the pillow and just sleep without any cares about what I am going to do tomorrow because I have to do everything”

Before her husband was arrested, Abd el Rady never discussed household finances “Before his arrest, I never asked him about how much he had and how much he had left, or how much money remained that month, it never crossed my mind and he never got me involved”

Abd el Rady believes that before the arrest of her husband that she only thought about “frivolities and very silly things” while her husband shouldered burdens she was not aware of or perceived.

Where Is the Father

Abd el Rady’s daughter was a little over a year old when her father was arrested and now she is 3 years old and is “aware that her father isn’t around” when she sees her cousins who “have their mother and father” so she began questioning “where is daddy? When will he come back?” her mother doesn’t have an answer, and this angers the child “she cries and is inconsolable”.

Abd el Rady doesn’t take her daughter with her when she goes to visit her husband often because the prison visits are physically and mentally exhausting. She stands from 8 in the morning to 1 in the afternoon waiting in front of the prison gates to be permitted entry then she waits an additional two hours inside until she is allowed to meet with her husband. She and her husband have agreed not to take their daughter to prison because they don’t want her to see that and for it, to” become part of her memories.”

Divorce

On the 7th of November 2018, the Egyptian journalist Norhan Hefzy announced her separation from well-known activist Ahmed Douma, who has been detained since December 2013 for allegedly inciting the Cabinet clashes in December 2011 when police and military forces cracked down on a sit-in outside the Cabinet office in Cairo, which was organized by activists protesting against the appointment of ex Mubarak minister Kamal Ganzouri as prime minister by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces.

Douma married Norhan in March 2013 in an Armed forces wedding hall and many political icons and activists were in attendance.

Hefzy wrote in a Facebook post “I’m sorry to announce news that could cause some disappointment, sadness or frustration in the midst of the greatest defeat we all have experienced, I know our story was a beacon of hope in the minds of many.”

Hefzy added, “Ahmed and me separated months ago, we lived confusing, painful and harsh moments, perhaps this announcement and the completion of the legal procedures that are still hanging between the public prosecutor and the prison authority is a step towards ending them.”

She continued “The whole experience and its details were more difficult than what we had expected, perhaps our one consolation is that we still have an exceptional relationship with greater scope than the separation. Ahmed Douma will remain my family.”

She also posted a note written in Ahmed Douma’s handwriting in which he wrote “We separate today with love, respect and hope, perhaps what comes next will be a freedom that revives the soul”.