That enigma of a number
Al-Jazeera recently showed a programme on Egypt in which much information was given about Egyptian culture, the country and its famous tourist sites such as Giza Pyramids, al-Azhar, the River Nile, the High Dam and so on. So far so good, but when it came to information about the Egyptian population, the number of Christians in Egypt was cited as no more than six per cent. Where did the channel find this figure? The Egyptian government itself has evaded placing a specific figure on the number of Copts. When the results of the most recent census were announced last year, a journalist asked the head of CAPMAS (the Central Apparatus for Mobilisation and Statistics) about the number of Copts, to which he gave his by-now famous rejoinder: “Ask about anything but this number, which is bound to bring on a headache.” So where did the figure cited by al-Jazeera come from? And why the headache?
Ezzat Aziz, Assiut
The Egyptian identity
The exploitation of religious sensibilities is a serious declaration of war against the national Egyptian identity, which is by definition national in character and is not based on any particular religion or faith. The Egyptian identity manifests itself in several ways, not least of which is Egyptian colloquial Arabic which includes numerous sentence structures and vocabulary that derive from the ancient Egyptian language. Even though, throughout history, Egyptians were influenced by Persian, Greek, Roman and Arab invaders, they always retained their own specific blend of character, their ‘Egyptianness’. This character is today threatened by the rise of religious fundamentalism, and awareness should be raised that the Egyptian identity is based upon the concept of citizenship that does not differentiate between Muslims, Copts, or any other Egyptian who holds any other faith, but belongs to the land of Egypt.
Zarif Kamel, Cairo
Girl disappears
I read a news item on the Internet about an underage Coptic woman named Janet Farag from the Red Sea governorate who disappeared more than three months ago. It angered me to read that the efforts of the regional bishop. Anba Theophilus, to persuade police and local government officials to find the missing girl and return her to her family were met with procrastination and disrespect. He even received a threat that four more girls would be abducted if he did not stop his efforts. Finding all doors closed in his face, Anba Theophilus had no other choice but to post the problem on the Internet. I feel grieved and insulted by the matter, but I call upon the bishop to go on searching for the missing sons and daughters of his flock, and may God strengthen and help him.
Girgis Sami, Assiut
Blood on asphalt
Every drop of blood spilt on our roads because of accidents cries out to condemn those irresponsible officials whose gross negligence allows our roads to be among the most unsafe in the world. I believe it should be a basic human right to be assured that traffic rules are implemented and drivers and vehicles licensed only when fit to be on the road.
Rifaat Younan, Minya
Woman judges
Thirty-one women were last year appointed as judges, yet the issue is still being hotly contested. The most fervent protestors are religious fundamentalists. Some male judges have strongly protested against women sitting on the judge’s seat, basing their arguments on certain Islamic interpretations of sharia, or Islamic legal jurisdiction. This brings to mind the splendid research carried out by Wassim al-Sissi and published as Female Jurisdiction in Ancient Times, in which he describes the judicial system in ancient Egypt. Back then the High Court was called ‘The Great House of Justice”, and there were also ‘Family Courts’. There was a jury system with both male and female jurors, and we know of several women judges including Nefer Abji, who was a senior judge at the Abydos court. Which raises the question: are we going forwards or backwards?
Medhat Farid, Cairo
