Egypt’s parliament passes contentious bills regulating media

CAIRO – Egypt’s parliament has passed three controversial draft bills regulating the press and media.

The draft bills, which won the parliament’s approval on Monday, will also regulate the Supreme Media Regulatory Council, the National Press Authority and the National Media Authority.

The bills still need to be approved by the president, Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, before they can become laws.

Prominent journalists have decried them as unconstitutional and in violation of basic press freedoms, saying they grant far-reaching powers to authorities to censor the press, revoke media licenses and restrict journalists’ work.

Former head of the journalists’ union, Yahia Kalash, said on Facebook that it was a “sad day” for the press.

Reporters Without Borders ranked Egypt as 161 out of 180 countries on their 2017 World Press Freedom Index.