Egypt relaxes draconian laws against photography

[sb photos]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jul/21/egypt-relaxes-street-photography-ban-for-tourists-up-to-a-point

 

"Tourists will no longer face having cameras confiscated, but law forbids pictures of children or those that can ‘damage country’s image’" (theguardian.com).

 

Useful to know if you are to holiday in Egypt and intend to photograph.

Edited July 21, 2022 by sb photos

[sooth]

one of the main reasons the egyptian national government had to clarify the rules was this man. he had permission from the state security service to film, yet upon arrival to the country, his cameras and gear was confiscated at the airport. then cairo police objected to him filming bread and told him to delete footage.  despite what the national gov't now says, i don't believe it, it's still the local police who decide the laws, or whether you have permission or not.

 

 

 

Edited July 21, 2022 by sooth

[sb photos]

1 hour ago, sooth said:

one of the main reasons the egyptian national government had to clarify the rules was this man. he had permission from the state security service to film, yet upon arrival to the country, his cameras and gear was confiscated at the airport. then cairo police objected to him filming bread and told him to delete footage.  despite what the national gov't now says, i don't believe it, it's still the local police who decide the laws, or whether you have permission or not.

 

 

 

 

Most interesting, and permits are still required for commercial filming. Confiscating camera gear from tourists is a good earner for the authorities, and will likely continue. Additionally, journalists have been arrested and deported, Egypt has an awful human rights record.

[CarloBo]

Nightmares happen when you travel to certain countries without being informed about local laws, customs and traditions! 

 

[Michael Ventura]

Wow, things really changed after my 2009 trip.  I was able to take photos anywhere, the only exception was in the mummy room in the Cairo Museum.

[meanderingemu]

2 hours ago, CarloBo said:

Nightmares happen when you travel to certain countries without being informed about local laws, customs and traditions! 

 

It doesn't stop at countries, some law varies per region, and it's not only travelling.  My prior residence rules would be different based on which side of the river i was. 

[CarloBo]

2 hours ago, meanderingemu said:

It doesn't stop at countries, some law varies per region, and it's not only travelling.  My prior residence rules would be different based on which side of the river i was. 

Sure. But breaking the rules in your own democratic western country is a bit different than doing it on the other side of the world and in countries where human rights violations are the norm. Recent is the case of an Italian student in Egypt mistaken for a spy and killed.

[Dave Richards]

1 hour ago, CarloBo said:

Sure. But breaking the rules in your own democratic western country is a bit different than doing it on the other side of the world and in countries where human rights violations are the norm. Recent is the case of an Italian student in Egypt mistaken for a spy and killed.

 

......so do they want to attract tourists? I think I’ll give Egypt a miss, wouldn’t want to waste my money. Plenty more welcoming places to visit. I could spend years just doing Italy, my favourite country.

Edited July 21, 2022 by Dave Richards
added text

[Abiyoyo]

It is a pity, beautiful country and people. A perfect place for photographers. No camera, no visit. Sorry. As far as I know, this is the unique country in the world to do that.

[Rebecca Ore]

11 hours ago, Abiyoyo said:

It is a pity, beautiful country and people. A perfect place for photographers. No camera, no visit. Sorry. As far as I know, this is the unique country in the world to do that.

 

I haven't had any trouble photographing in Nicaragua, but one Nicaraguan pro photographer was taking pictures of a new bank at night and got roughed up by the cops (a couple of years before 2018, so not related to that).   One of the other photographers in the Facebook group said it was always going to be what the local cops decided, regardless of national law (similar to US law on photography in public).  Helps in my case probably that I'm a 74 year old woman.

 

My suspicions were that the Egyptian cops were angling for someone to try to bribe them.   Also, find the local expats' groups and if, if there is one, the local national photographers.  I talked briefly in Leon to another American photographer who had hired two local photographers to help her.   She had serious Canon gear. 

[tarsierspectral]

That’s weird. I was there last summer, unaware of such law and brought all my equipment, 2 DSLRs, 2 telephoto lenses, tilt-shift lens, wide angle lens, normal zoom lens and a video camera. I didn’t get stopped anywhere from shooting. I walked with my video camera  shooting on the streets and no one has said anything to me. Antiquity sites had a sign to pay extra for taking photos with anything other than a phone, and I paid few times and other times I just declined and could go and see the site with all my equipment with me. In Alexandria in catacombs I had to leave my my backpack with the security guard. They put it in a locker and gave me a key. I was in Egypt for 5 weeks including Sinai Peninsula and haven’t encounter any issues, so I find this whole article surprising. 

[Rebecca Ore]

1 hour ago, tarsierspectral said:

I was in Egypt for 5 weeks including Sinai Peninsula and haven’t encounter any issues, so I find this whole article surprising. 

 

If this guy traveled with a crew and lighting gear and a couple or three of professional video cameras, that might have been more the problem, also attitude can be an issue. 

 

Also, he brought in a drone which was the first thing confiscated.   Nicaragua has some very restrictive rules about drone and anyone bringing one in has it locked up until they leave the country.  One fool gringo got talked into trying to film the proposed canal route with a drone, and ended up in deportation jail suspected of being a CIA spies, then cut loose.

 

Egyptian newspaper article had this:  "However, he (the photographer) noted that the timing of his arrival in Egypt, in mid-January, and the expiry date of his January 25 photo permit, which coincides with the anniversary of the 2011 revolution, indicate that Egyptian police are afraid to witness anti-regime demonstrations that he may film and publish."   (From this article that has more example of photographers being harassed in Egypt:  https://www.alestiklal.net/en/view/13099/how-one-us-street-food-blogger-exposed-sisis-authoritarian-rule.

 

So, a drone and suspicions that he wasn't just there to photograph food may have played a part.  

 

 

[sooth]

2 hours ago, Rebecca Ore said:

 

If this guy traveled with a crew and lighting gear and a couple or three of professional video cameras, that might have been more the problem, also attitude can be an issue. 

 

Also, he brought in a drone which was the first thing confiscated.

 

sounds more like a red herring. he had written permission. and with a casual lookup of facts, drones are allowed with permission

Edited July 23, 2022 by sooth

[R De Marigny]

On 21/07/2022 at 10:59, Michael Ventura said:

Wow, things really changed after my 2009 trip.  I was able to take photos anywhere, the only exception was in the mummy room in the Cairo Museum.

So that's a quite a seachange from when you visited Michael? 

 

I suppose it highlights for some of us to check before travel - regards how important it is to keep updated and research on any restrictions or changes to legislation.

 

[Rebecca Ore]

6 hours ago, R De Marigny said:

So that's a quite a seachange from when you visited Michael? 

 

I suppose it highlights for some of us to check before travel - regards how important it is to keep updated and research on any restrictions or changes to legislation.

 

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Commons:Country_specific_consent_requirements

 

I don't know how often this is revised.   Also, what's on the books is interpreted by the local cops, talking to local photographers may be useful.

 

This says that drones are prohibited without drone specific permits: https://film-fixers.com/filming-in-egypt/    And this says that permits are rarely given:  https://www.droneblog.com/egypt/

 

Also, if the fixer page is correct, Egyptian police expect foreign film crews to be going after specific destinations (which appear to charge some interestingly steep fees. 

 

 

 

 

[Rebecca Ore]

12 hours ago, sooth said:

 

sounds more like a red herring. he had written permission. and with a casual lookup of facts, drones are allowed with permission

 

https://www.droneblog.com/egypt/

He had permission to film in Egypt but drones are a separate matter.  No permit for the drone, it gets confiscated at the airport.  Best information what the laws are as written is going to be at a country's main embassy's consular office.  Best information on how local cops interpret the laws will be from local photographers.

 

Anthony Bourdain never came across as condescending to the food traditions he was filming and he was never rude to the people he was filming.   This guy was both.