Discrimination in Egypt
Youssef Sidhom is the director of the weekly “Watani” (“My Homeland”). Founded in 1958 by his father, it has always published news and commentary on the Church and Christianity, themes completely overlooked by all the other Egyptian newspapers.
What are the main problems of the Christians in Egypt? Youssef states: “The most striking problem is the extreme difficulty in receiving permission to build a church. Current legislation offers all of the incentives for the construction of mosques, but it poses almost insurmountable obstacles to the construction of churches. A church must not be built on farm land; it must not be close to a mosque or monument; if it is to be constructed in a zone in which Muslims also live, one must first obtain their permission; there must be a sufficient number of Christians in the area; there must not be other churches nearby; the signature of the president of the republic must be obtained. All these conditions cause insurmountable difficulties. In fact, more than ten years can go by while waiting for police permission, and in the meantime mosques are hurriedly erected in the vicinity of the area where the church was meant to be, and the project stumbles against another prohibition.”
The state considers Christians as second-class citizens. For the state, a Christian is a kafir, an infidel, he doesn’t know the true religion or have the true faith, so it’s not worthwhile listening to him.
The discrimination is found in other aspects of social life in Egypt. “There’s discrimination in state offices. According to the Constitution, the President must be a Muslim. The Islamic religion is the foundation of Egyptian legislation. Today, no Christian can be Prime Minister. Of the thirty-two ministers, only two are Christians: the finance minister and the minister of the environment. No city or village mayor can be a Christian. The high posts in the military, the police, and the presidential guard are filled only with Muslims. There are hundreds of persons in the diplomatic corps, but only two or three Christians. No Christian can attain high office in the tribunals. A judge may refuse a Christian’s court testimony because it comes from an infidel. The Chancellors of the universities must be Muslim. In any office, the career of a Muslim who has just arrived will advance beyond that of a Christian who has been in his post for years. A Christian may not teach Arabic, because this material is linked to the teaching of the Islamic religion. Discrimination is at work even on our identity card, where the religion of one’s father is shown.”
Is changing religions permitted? “Anyone who becomes Muslim is welcomed with big parties. They change his identity card very quickly; he is helped in his job, with his house, etc. But if a Muslim wants to become Christian, they not only seek to dissuade him by any means, but his very life is in danger. A Muslim by birth may never change religions, on pain of exclusion from his inheritance and from the society to which he belongs – with danger to his own safety.”
This discrimination is at the heart of one of the world’s most moderate Islamic communities.
REV THE HON DR GORDON MOYES AC MLC