WATANI International
29 August 2010
Right in its first article, the Egyptian Constitution emphasises citizenship rights. “The Arab Republic of Egypt is a democratic system based on principles of citizenship,” reads Article I. Again in articles 40 and 46 the same value is stressed. The former defends the equality of all Egyptians before the law notwithstanding differences in religion, race, language or sex, while the latter guarantees the freedom of belief and practice religious rites. However crucial the citizenship concept may be for the welfare and stability of our society, it appears to hardly draw the attention of political parties, whose priorities focus on politics in the narrow sense of the term. The ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) recently took an unprecedented initiative when Sherif Wali, the NDP secretary of Giza, decided to form a committee for citizenship and democracy. The committee is headed by Abdel-Qader Ismaïl and has two deputy chairmen: Wagih Abdel-Malak and Eid Zaki Barnaba.
Politically integrated
Watani was keen to investigate the reasons behind the formation of the committee as well as its mission and mandate. According to Dr Wali, the problem is that although citizenship is a basic constitutional principle, “many people have yet to grasp the meaning and implications of this value. By this word we mean that Egypt is the homeland of all Egyptians rather than a certain group or members of a specific religion. We want people to embrace the principle of equality. Unlike countries such as Lebanon, Iraq or Sudan where citizens are categorised according to their religion, Egypt has always been largely a homogeneous society where people of different religions lived together and integrated. But the introduction of extremist ideas, alien to our authentic culture and heritage, has sown seeds of division and discrimination. This situation was behind the formation of the committee, whose members reflect the diversity of Egyptian society.” Dr Wali explained that he had discussed that matter with Giza Bishop Anba Theodoseos who so welcomed the idea that he nominated four priests for its membership. Out of the committee’s 21 members, Copts constitute nine. Anba Theodoseos suggested that the committee’s major objective would be to enhance Coptic integration into political life. Thirty young Copts from Giza have responded to the committee’s call and joined the NDP. Apart from focusing on the resolution of problems related to curtailed citizenship rights, including church building and the delay in passing the unified law for building places of worship, Wali revealed about the Giza NDP secretariat’s intention of fielding Coptic and female candidates for the general election due in November.
Copts: inclusion or exclusion
Watani’s Soliman Shafiq has an indicative story to tell. In his column “Truth shall make you free” of 18 July, he wrote: “My son and his fiancé were looking for an apartment in the satellite town of New Cairo, East of Cairo. They found a nice apartment and reached an agreement with the owner. Since neither my son’s name nor that of his fiancé reveals their religion, the owner did not know at the outset that they are Copts. But when he realised that, he declined to let them rent his flat under the pretext that my son’s fiancé is not veiled. When I suggested contacting someone to intervene, my son refused on the grounds that this is our homeland and we should be patient and accommodating. For the first time in my life, I felt torn between national and religious loyalty. I was all the more upset since New Cairo is famous for being a residential area for the upper and upper-middle class. This absolutely belied the argument that extremism thrived among the poorer classes. Will we end up polarised along religious lines, with our country divided into religiously exclusive streets and alleys?” The harsh experience begs an answer to the question of whether Copts isolate themselves, as they are often accused, or are being pushed into isolation. It should also act as an eye-opener to those who think the sectarian problem in Egypt is an official not a public one. Spreading public awareness Mr Barnaba explained that the committee seeks to reach out to the public and spread principles of citizenship rights among them. “We are keen to investigate reasons behind the isolation imposed by the Church upon itself and ways of encouraging Coptic young men and women to take part in politics. The NDP secretariat at Giza proposed an initiative which is the first of its kind. A mosque and church will be chosen to renew religious discourse via promoting values of citizenship and sympathy. The committee’s work will include different parties who are discriminated against. These include Copts, women and other marginalised groups.” Dr Ismaïl told Watani that the committee’s agenda included tackling all forms of discrimination against women and marginalised groups, discussing the relationship between the Egyptian people and the police, activating the role of NGOs in terms of fighting discrimination and calling for a role for the educational system in enhancing values of citizenship.” The committee’s recommendations, Dr Ismaïl said, will be referred to the NDP congress. Playing politics with religion, according to Dr Ismaïl, is among the major challenges facing the committee since it creates a climate readily inductive to discrimination. “The argument of marginalisation should be thoroughly investigated to know whether we are before a deliberate exclusion of Copts or self-imposed isolation by the Copts themselves. The move by Barnaba to run in the last municipal elections—in which he emerged victorious—is a step forward on the way to reintegrate Copts into society, he concluded.
Step One
Father Mikhail Gerges, a committee member, hailed Dr Wali’s move as a positive step that should have been taken a long time ago. “For the first time,” Fr Mikhail said, “the Church is allowed to freely discuss obstacles in the face of attainment equal rights and duties to all Egyptians. These include texts in school curricula that imply discrimination between Muslims and Copts.” Nabil Helmy, Cairo University professor of international law and head of the NDP’s human rights committee, praised the citizenship committee on grounds that it would work to raise general awareness of the significance of citizenship principles. This, he insisted, is of utter significance if a climate of harmony and peace is to prevail. Dr Helmy called for the experience to be generalised in other governorates.
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