We are outraged over the dreadful court ruling on human trafficking against Haneen Hossam and Mawada ElAdham and three others.  Neither Haneen nor Mawada was referred over human trafficking charges in the first prosecution investigation. Instead they were charged with violating “Egyptian Family Values”. Haneen was acquitted and Mawada’s case dismissed during appeal . Immediately, the human trafficking charges were revived in another case, on 20 June 2021, sentencing Haneen in abstenia to 10 years imprisonment and a fine of  LE200,000, and Mawada and three others to six years imprisonment and a fine of LE200,000 each.

The only interpretation we make of this horrifying ruling is that the authorities have been determined to make an example out of Haneen and Mawada since their arrest last year. We trace this recent court ruling to the complicity among regressive societal forces, patriarchy, and the ones delegated to investigate and judge. This ruling was a predictable result of the systematic ridiculing of Haneen and Mawada and other women TikTokers, and the content they create. For over a year, we witnessed how the massive campaign against women TikTokers platformed vicious attacks against them on media outlets and social media.

In an attempt to articulate our anger, we re-watched the video clips that were used as evidence substantiating the human trafficking charges, in which Haneen announces a job opportunity for young women via Likee application, and the other where Mawada dances humorously with a girl and a boy. We cross checked them with the legal definition of human trafficking in the Egyptian Penal Code; to only feel out of words. In Haneen’s words in her last video, calling on the president Sisi to interfere in “[…] fabricated charges” before she got arrested the next day. 

The way class plays out through these “fabricated” charges against Haneen and Mawada is very obvious. They are the only ones to be prosecuted socially and by law, despite producing similar content to that of higher-class influencers. Additionally, not only is the company Likee still operating in Egypt, but also its management staff were granted bail at the beginning of investigations. If human trafficking was the real concern in this case, closing down Likee in Egypt would have been the priority!  

The attack against Haneen and Mawada and other women TikTokers constitutes a threat to all Egyptian women. If we let this pass, we are contributing to a new reality where we would be prosecuted socially and by law according to some moral standards. That imposes a parentalistic oversight to our existence in cyberspace, on the streets, in our homes, and at work. We will not let this pass without resistance, we will fight for our fearless existence.

Join us by tweeting and posting about Haneen and Mawada and other women TikTokers via these hashtags:

#FreeTikTokWomen
#بلاها_اسرة_خدي_اتجار
#حنين_حسام_مظلومة
#مودة_الأدهم_مظلومة