The series of violent events which erupted in Egypt since the 25 January 2011 Revolution led in turn to a succession of official pledges by the political and military
The series of violent events which erupted in Egypt since the 25 January 2011 Revolution led in turn to a succession of official pledges by the political and military leaderships of the country. None of these pledges were met. I was under the impression that the first anniversary of the revolution might bring in a renewal of theses pledges, but this was not to be. The date brought on a great many demands by political and revolutionary movements, demands concerning the rights of the victims who fell during the revolution; the trials of members of the pre-revolution regime; the swift hand-over of power to a civilian authority; and a rapid completion of the investigations into the killing of revolutionary youth in Maspero, Mohamed Mahmoud St, and in front of the Cabinet building. But no reference whatsover was made to legislation promised by the first post-revolution government of Essam Sharaf and entirely ignored by the second government of Kamal al-Ganzouri.
I allude to legislation concerning Coptic rights which have been severely curtailed for decades on end. Copts have long been awaiting adequate legislation to establish equality between them and their Muslim fellow citizens under the all-encompassing umbrella of citizenship rights. The last four decades alone witnessed countless episodes where Copts, their churches, homes, lands, property, and businesses were attacked, ruined, or usurped, and no legal action was ever taken against the culprits. Countless reports were issued in this concern by rights organisations, chief among which was the National Council for Human Rights. They urgently demanded that that the legislative and security flaws which allowed the attacks against Copts to take place should be tackled since, left unchecked, they have served to promote the prevalent climate of fanaticism. The many proposals submitted to Parliament for legislation to stipulate religious freedom and criminalise discrimination were never discussed by the assembly; they were left to freeze.
When, in the wake of the revolution, several attacks were waged against Copts, the then Premier Essam Sharaf promised that adequate legislation would be passed in a matter of 30 days. Copts took this to indicate that there finally was the political will to tackle the sectarian problem, and eagerly awaited the materialisation of Dr Sharaf’s promises. But nothing materialised.
As the weeks passed, Copts were again the victims of violent attacks. And why should they not be, given that the reluctance of the authorities to take any action towards defending them relayed the clear message that crimes against Copts would pass unaccounted for. The same morbid climate which fostered fanaticism and bigotry remained unchanged; the official promises were but a tranquilliser administered to the Copts.
Finally, Coptic wrath boiled over in Maspero last October. The result was that some 24 Copts were brutally killed, crushed under the military’s armoured vehicle or shot to death; and some 300 were injured. The atrocity of the crime which horrified Egypt and the world led the ruling Military Council to demand of Dr Sharaf’s Cabinet to pass legislation for a unified law for places of worship within a week. The law was to include articles that would legalise the status of existing non-licensed churches—whether closed or open to worshippers. Again, Copts believed the promises, not because they detected any political will to tackle the sectarian problem, but because they thought the sheer horror of the Maspero attack would finally bring down the seemingly impenetrable barrier which stood in the way of their being granted full citizenship rights, their being seen as equal to their Muslim fellow citizens. But even this failed to move the official conscience or to urge the authorities to meet their promises. It was just another tranquilliser administered to the Copts.
Last December, Dr Sharaf’s Cabinet resigned and Kamal al-Ganzouri was sworn in as the new Premier. Dr Ganzouri declared he would be giving direly-needed attention to the economy and security issues, but made no mention of the Coptic file or of his predecessor’s unmet promises. To date, Dr Ganzouri has entirely ignored the issue, as though he were betting on a Coptic short memory, or sidelining the matter on grounds that ‘now is not the time for it’.
I cannot help wondering: Was Dr Ganzouri not in Egypt since the eruption of the revolution? Did not he witness the horrific violence against the Copts since the revolution or, for that matter, throughout no less than four decades before? Did he hear nothing of the burning of the churches in Sole, Imbaba, and Merinab, or of the Copt whose ear was cut by the Salafis in Qena? Did he also hear nothing of his predecessor’s repeated pledges to pass adequate legislation, open closed churches, and bring the criminals to justice? I find no satisfactory answer to all these questions, apart from the fact that Dr Ganzouri was in Egypt all that time and must have been well aware of all that went on.
Today Egypt has a Parliament and has a government, and is embarking on a parliamentary round during which both should shoulder their responsibility. Should we expect legislation to secure the citizenship rights of Copts, or should we expect another tragic attack against them, upon which they would be given another potent tranquilliser?