Amended Egyptian law imposes up to 7 years jail term for exam cheats

Egypt has amended its law against cheating in national school examinations with penalties including two to seven years prison term if caught.

The Egyptian education ministry announced in a statement on Monday that President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi ratified the law last week to curb exam violations, local media Al Ahram reports.

“Anyone who prints, publishes, broadcasts or promotes exam questions and answers by any means will face two to seven years jail and a fine of EGP 100,000 ($5,524) to 200,000 ($11,049),” the statement added.

The law is targeted at cheating during the national high school examination known as Thanaweya Amma. This is written annually by over 500,000 students who are determined to enroll into the university with the scores obtained.

It faced massive leakage last year when copies of at least two test papers and their answers were shared on Facebook ahead of the exam.

Several suspected administrators of a number of Facebook pages that leaked questions and answers were arrested.

There were wide student protests after the education ministry called for a resit amid public anger and national embarrassment.

The previous law imposed a maximum one year in prison and a fine of up to 50,000 Egyptian pounds ($2,762).

The new penalties will be imposed whether the violation is made before or during the exams and only on cases that occurred after the June 15 ratification, the statement said.

President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi had at the time vowed that the leaks would not be repeated.