Patrick Zaki, our Egyptian student enrolled in the GEMMA International Joint Master's Program (in women's and gender studies) and in the Modern, Comparative and Postcolonial Literature second level degree, is still not free. After a long and unjust detention of almost two years (from February 7th, 2020) in prison in Egypt, Patrick was released the 8th of December 2021 and was able to re-embrace his loved ones. But Patrick is not free; he is only out of prison. We must remember that he cannot leave Egypt and cannot return to Italy to finish his studies. After long months that have strained his health and spirit, the psychological cruelty still has no end. From postponement to postponement, Patrick is still waiting for a fair trial, and all of us, together with him, are waiting for him to finally be acquitted of all charges. Patrick is not free. Patrick is waiting to be able to return to Europe and to Italy and to Bologna, to his Master's program, to finish his studies, which were abruptly interrupted. While it is true that Patrick has been able to study online, it is equally true that he cannot attend our libraries, our archives to do the research needed for his exams and his thesis. We cannot accept the habit of living with injustice. We cannot accept partial freedoms that fail to do justice. We do not want to get used to this situation. Patrick has been waiting for too many months for a ruling that will decide his life; the next hearing will take place on September 27. We ask that Patrick be allowed to return to Italy now, even before the September 27 hearing, to finish his first-year exams and do his research. We ask all of us not to get used to his virtual presence, not to get tired of demanding his freedom and his return to Bologna. We will continue our commitment to Patrick, to human rights and to those in at-risk situations.
(The GEMMA Master and the Head of the LILEC Department)
