The Coptic Orthodox Church in Dayrut, Upper Egypt, is still striving to resolve the problem relating to the land of the monastery of al-Amir Tadros al-Mishriqy in the village of Sanabu.
The Muslim villagers, joined by others from neighbouring villages, recently seized an eight-acres plot of the land owned by the monastery, claiming that it belonged to the State, and that they wished for a school to be built over it. The villagers cut the Assiut highway for some six hours to pressure the governorate authorities into building the school. In the meantime, the Church presented all the documents that prove its ownership of the land, which had been for years among the possession of the monastery.
In an attempt to make peace in the village, the Church leaders negotiated with the villagers and proposed purchasing, at its own expense, another plot of land where a school may be built. As to the ownership of the land under dispute, the Church suggested that the court should resolve that conflict.
For his part, Father Abra’am Tharwat of Dayrut Bishopric explained that the land under dispute was adjacent to the main gate of the monastery, and purchased in 2002 by the Archbishop of Dayrut, Anba Barsoum. He said the land was officially registered in 2003, and is currently being cultivated by the monks. “We were surprised when, during the recent parliamentary elections, the villagers seized the land,” said Fr Abra’am. “We complained to the local administration and security authorities, but this only served to boil the villagers’ wrath further.”
Fr Abraam explained that there is not a single document to claim the State owns the land. “We proposed to purchase an alternative piece of land to build the school the village needs,” he said, “and also to launch a project for the cultural development of the villagers. But building a school adjacent to the monastery gate is not conducive to social peace and can only serve to create problems in the future.”