After the uproar … the honorary doctorate was withdrawn from Muhammad Ramadan, and these are the reasons

After causing an uproar since its announcement, the awarding body decided yesterday, Friday, to withdraw an honorary doctorate from Egyptian artist Mohamed Ramadan.

The German International Cultural Center in Lebanon justified its decision by the case of the late pilot Ashraf Abu Al-Yusr with Muhammad Ramadan, which received media attention, as well as the fact that a singer and actor Zionist took a photo memorial with the Egyptian actor, which led to accusations of normalization with Israel, according to what has been reported.

The center declared that it had never been aware of these two incidents, which it condemns and denounces, and that is why I decided to withdraw the certificates of honor from Muhammad Ramadan.

The German International Cultural Center in Lebanon also apologized “to the Egyptian people, the government and the military, for honoring the so-called Muhammad Ramadan and awarding him an honorary doctorate.”

It should be noted that the German Embassy in Cairo issued a statement on Thursday stressing that “there is no relationship between the German government and the so-called German Cultural Center in Lebanon”.

The artist, Mohamed Ramadan, had posted, via his official account on the “Instagram” site, a photo of an honorary doctor, and private photos of him with some Lebanese artists, commenting: “Thank you, His Excellency the Lebanese Minister of Culture, the Musicians ‘Union, and the Lebanese Actors’ Union for granting me an honorary doctorate in acting and interpretation. Words, and thank you to the German Cultural Center in Lebanon, for granting me the title of Arab Youth Ambassador.

Lebanese Culture Minister Abbas Mortada confirmed that “the ministry did not intervene in the selection of the laureates by the prize committee awarded by the German International Center, and we do not know on what criteria they chose the winners. laureates. “

He explained that “the role of the ministry in this honor did not go beyond the role of care that the center formally requested of us, and we sent the director general of the ministry, Dr Ali Samad, to represent the ministry. in his presence. only, ”noting that the Lebanese Ministry of Culture does not have the power to award an honorary doctorate or otherwise. These official titles or decorations are awarded by the Presidency of the Republic and the official Lebanese University of the country.

Then the public discovered that the center was not affiliated with the German Embassy, ​​and that it was selling honorary doctorates for $ 100, or the equivalent of 1,600 Egyptian pounds, which opened fire on the Egyptian artist by officials, artists and followers.

The German Embassy in Cairo has denied any relationship between Germany and the institution which recently awarded artist Mohamed Ramadan an honorary doctorate in Lebanon.

“We are always relieved to see how many people like the word Germany, but keep in mind that not all institutions or businesses that offer or use the word Germany are endorsed and affiliated with the German government,” the embassy said. on Facebook.