Release International reports

Release International

As inter-religious unrest in Egypt continues, Release International is welcoming moves to end some discriminatory measures against Egypt's Christian minority, but believes urgent steps must be taken to do more.

The interim government is considering relaxing regulations preventing church building or repairs without presidential permission, and Egypt's Supreme Administrative Court has ruled to allow some Christian converts to be identified as Christians on their ID cards and birth certificates.

'These may be small steps to address the unjustified legal discrimination against Egypt's Christian minority, but they are steps in the right direction,' says Andy Dipper, the CEO of Release International.

'But set against this glimmer of hope has been renewed violence against the Christian community, with church burnings and rioting over claims of forced conversions. Egypt is still highly volatile and there is little sign that inter-religious strife is abating.'

Elections are slated for September and some pro-democracy campaigners are calling for the constitution to be rewritten ahead of those elections.

A provisional constitution, drawn up after the downfall of President Hosni Mubarak, bars discrimination and guarantees freedom of religion. But it declares Islam to be the principal religion of the Egyptian state and Sharia law to be the main source of legislation.

'And there's the rub,' says Andy Dipper, 'as Christians are all too often regarded as second-class citizens by those who refuse to tolerate any faith but their own. There must be action to end all legal discrimination against the minority Christian community and the authorities must act now to safeguard their right to peacefully co-exist in Egyptian society.'

Egypt was predominantly Christian until the Islamic invasion of AD639. Today Copts and other Christians make up just ten percent of the population. They are denied political representation and are discriminated against in education and employment.

On June 30, a mob looted and torched Christian homes and businesses in the village of western Kolosna, in Minya province.

Five days before that, a mob destroyed seven Christian homes near Sohag, 240 miles south of Cairo, after rumours that a Christian was building a church.

And on June 23 an armed mob surrounded St George's Church in Beni-Ahmed al-Gharbiya village, about 130 miles south of Cairo. They threatened to kill its pastor, Gorgy Thabet, unless he left the village.

Pastor Thabet's opponents are reported to be hard-line Salafi Muslims, a group who model themselves on early generations of Islam's followers. There have been several attacks on Christians by Salafi Muslims in the post-Mubarak era.

And in May, 12 people were killed in the Imbaba district of Cairo when riots broke out following rumours that a church was holding a woman against her will who, it was claimed, had converted to Islam. More than 230 people were injured and St Mary's Church was gutted by fire in the ensuing violence.

'Christians are facing growing insecurity in Egypt and the authorities must step in to prevent the violence,' says Andy Dipper.

Release is working with the International Leadership institute to deliver its first Arabic programme of training for strategic Christian leaders. And Release partners are providing safe houses to protect Egyptians who have embraced Christianity, whose lives could be at risk.