The Egyptian government

For upholding death sentences of 183 Muslim Brotherhood supporters and lengthy prison terms for journalists

The three journalists—Australian Peter Greste, Canadian-Egyptian Mohamed Fahmy, and Egyptian Baher Mohamed— were arrested in December last year in Cairo. They were accused of supporting the Muslim Brotherhood, a religious-political group (now termed a terror organisation), and producing false reports to aid the group.

Despite the international outcry and farcical manner in which the trial was carried out, neither has President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi intervened nor has the judiciary reversed the decision. As the country desperately seeks stability, what is required is effective leadership that establishes and respects democratic institutions. Instead, one witnesses a return to dictatorship and draconian crackdowns.