Cairo: Egypt's National Council for Human Rights (NCHR), in partnership with the European Union (EU), launched a cultural salon series exploring how rising global inequality is reshaping the meaning and practice of human rights, said a statement by the NCHR on Tuesday, September 16th, 2025.

According to State Information Service Egypt, the session, titled Citizen-Human Rights in the Age of Global Inequality, centered on a policy paper by Egyptian writer and political thinker Samir Morcos. It brought together NCHR president Ambassador Mahmoud Karem; Executive Director of the EU project, Dr. Magdy Abdel-Hamid; Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies advisor, Dr. Amr El-Shobaki; NCHR council member and cultural committee secretary, Ezzat Ibrahim. Several intellectuals, civil society representatives, and media experts were also in attendance.

Karem stated that the NCHR views the salon series as a transition from its traditional role of monitoring and documentation towards creating civic spaces for dialogue between academics, policymakers, and the public. He emphasized that human rights should be considered a societal concern that cuts across political, economic, and cultural spheres.

Morcos argued that environmental and climate crises are now inseparable from struggles for social and economic justice, warning that global powers' monopolistic economic practices have entrenched new forms of inequality. He noted that the 20th century witnessed a restructuring of global systems that institutionalized the 'one percent society,' concentrating wealth and power in the hands of a few.

Morcos advocated for distinguishing between citizenship rights, rooted in the nation-state, and universal human rights, which he said remain unrealized for many. Bridging these tracks, he argued, is essential to building a more equitable social contract.