Fridae

In a controversial case that has international human rights advocates very concerned, 52 men have been taken to a Cairo state security court and charged for immoral acts at a gay party and for religious offences.

In a packed courtroom in Cairo, the 52 men were brought in handcuffed and dressed in white t-shirts and pants. Two were charged with religious offences against the Koran, while the rest were accused of debauchery and engaging in ?immoral? gay sex. The men, some of whom came into the courtroom covering their faces with towels, reacted with varying degrees of outrage. Relatives and supporters also screamed their anger, with some taking their hostility out on the media. All 52 men pleaded innocent, with some quoting Koranic verses.

The men were arrested in a raid on a boat restaurant where the men were alleged to be engaging in a gay sex party. Prosecutors later amended the story saying the men were meeting with a religious preacher. The men have been detained since May 11. If found guilty, the men could face up to three years in jail for the charges of debauchery and immoral acts. The two charged with contempt of religion and false interpretation of the Koran could face up to 5 years.

The trial is waking a storm on controversy in Egypt where homosexuality is condemned, although there are no specific laws against it. Instead, homosexuality is often covered under a wide range of laws that cover obscenity, public morality, and unnatural sexual acts. Some are also questioning why the case is being tried in a state security court.

Many of the men and their families cried for justice, declaring that they had been detained without evidence. Some defendants? families insist that they are innocent, and were not in fact even at the party when the raid was conducted, while others were innocent bystanders at the restaurant. The case has been adjourned till August 15.

The arrests come in the wake of recent reports about the recent spread of homosexuality in Egypt, with gay men being more active and soliciting for sex on the Internet ? reports that prompted one local paper to called for the death penalty against homosexuality. With the recent events, many gay men have grown scared. ?It?s driving many of us back into the closet?, an interviewer was told.