Haifa Wehbe returns to obtaining permits to sing in Egypt Granting temporary work permits to non-members to exchange expertise

In a new development in the crisis of Lebanese artist Haifa Wehbe with the Musicians’ Syndicate, she has officially received the enforceable copy of the ruling issued by the Third Circuit for Syndicates at the Administrative Judiciary Court, in its session of December 28, which annulled the decision of the Syndicate’s board to deny her permits to perform in Egypt, together with all resulting legal effects, and obliged the syndicate to pay court costs and lawyers’ fees.

The issuance of the enforceable copy represents a decisive legal step that paves the way for the immediate implementation of the ruling, meaning that the artist may once again apply for and obtain permits to perform in Egypt in accordance with the applicable legal framework.

In its reasoning, the court stated that the challenged decision was issued following a complaint submitted by an active member of the syndicate against the claimant, and that, in reality, it took the form of a disciplinary sanction depriving her of practicing the profession due to disputes between the two parties, even though the claimant is not a member of the Musicians’ Syndicate, but rather performs in Egypt through temporary permits issued for each artistic work separately.

The court further affirmed that, as a non-member, the claimant is not subject to the disciplinary accountability stipulated in Law No. 35 of 1978, in line with the settled jurisprudence of the Supreme Administrative Court that “the syndicate has no authority to discipline non-members.”

In one of the most significant parts of the ruling, the court held that the purpose of granting the syndicate’s board the power to issue temporary work permits to non-members is to showcase talents, exchange expertise, and promote cultural exchange between Egypt and Arab countries, stressing that such authority is not absolute but rather restricted by the public interest. This purpose, however, does not apply to the present case, as the dispute is linked to personal disagreements between the claimant and the second defendant, with whom she had a professional relationship that later ended.

The court concluded that the syndicate may not involve itself in personal disputes between parties, nor take decisions affecting the legal status of non-members on such a basis, finding that the contested decision lacked a valid legal justification, violated the law, and therefore must be annulled.

The lawsuit was filed by Haifa Wehbe, and the lawyer Hany Sameh intervened in the case, arguing in his submissions that some of the syndicate’s expanding practices of bans and investigations rely on a vague moral standard that falls outside its legal jurisdiction, leading to a narrowing of the artistic sphere.