The Egyptian Copts (Ashley Thomson, Frank Plunkett, Leonie Waschbuesch, Megan Lacelle, Tanja Sirén) History: The Copts of Egypt are one of the oldest Christian communities in the world. However, today they make up only 10 per cent of the 90 million individuals in Egypt, the majority of whom are Muslim. Copt, literally translated from Greek means Egyptian, which stands in stark contrast to the minority place they hold in Egyptian society today. For many Copts, Egypt is where the holy family sought refuge from King Harod’s slaughter of newborns following the birth of Jesus. The beginnings of the Coptic Orthodox Church can be traced back to Alexandria around 55 and 68 AD and was recognized as one of the oldest of the five Christian branches. As Christianity spread throughout Egypt during the Second Century so did scriptures in the Coptic language. This devotion to Christianity continued through the 3rd century. It was not until the Seventh Century Muslim conquest of Egypt that the Copts deterioration was noted to have begun. After the invasion, the country gradually began to shift to Islam. By the 12th Century most of Egypt was identified as Muslim. Beyond that, a tax known as the Jizya tax was forced upon non‐Muslims for protection by the Muslim armies. This tax was finally removed in the 19th century when non‐Muslims were allowed to serve in the army. The Egyptian Revolution of 1952 further damaged relations between Muslims and Copts in Egypt. After the revolution many Copts lost their roles in influential positions such as politics, administration and ministry. A 2016 New York Times article said there are no Copt mayors, public university presidents/deans and only a small number of ministers or members of Parliament. The divide between these two religions continued into the 70s and 80s where Anwar El‐Sadat declared himself president of the Muslim population. His rule would further alienate the Copts as Christians were mocked often in the press and attacks on Coptic Christians houses increased. Although no interreligious dialogue is fostered today, Coptic Christianity is thriving in Cairo, Sydney, Melbourne, London, New Jersey and Los Angeles. The Christianity practiced by the Egyptian Copts is practiced by all classes with a majority following the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria as opposed to the Coptic Catholic and Protestant Churches. However, the violence against Egyptian Copts continues. These were further intensified after the President Hosni Mubarak was overthrown in 2011. The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights reports 77 attacks on Copts between 2011 and 2016 in just the province of Minya, whose population is one‐
third Copt. In Egypt 2,869 churches stand in comparison to the 108,395 mosques. News reports from a few months ago estimate 38 churches have been burned and 23 have been partially damaged, along with numerous homes and businesses owned by Copts which have been looted. In February of this year, dozens of Copt families fled the city of Sinai (Sigh‐nie) after numerous killings by Islamist militants. It is estimated about 250 Copts are seeking shelter from the violence. Some news reports saying they are “scared of their own shadows.” As well as being subject to much violence, the Copts have little political power under the Muslim Regime which results in a supressed allowance for religious practice and daily life. Even though there have been attempts by the Muslim population to convert the Copts to the Islamic faith the Christian group have stood firmly in their religious position. They are denied economic, social and educational opportunities as they are under‐represented within government positions as well as being deprived of basic civil rights. Freedom of religion is constitutionally protected in Egypt yet most new law is based on Islamic Sharia Law. Indeed, president Fattah el‐Sisi (el‐see‐see) has tried to improve Copts rights (since 2014). Yet, they still face much discrimination. Many forced conversions occur, especially orchestrated by The Muslim Brotherhood. Many Copt women are abducted and forced to convert and marry Muslim men. National Laws The fundamental law of Egypt is the Constitution of the Arab Republic from 2014. It provides an absolute freedom of religion and thus states the equality of religions as well. Nevertheless, the Islam is the state religion and Egypt considers itself to be an Islamic state. As well as the constitution makes clear, that the main source of law is the Islamic law, the Sharia since 1972. The Sharia is not only the main source of law, but also of jurisprudence. Thus despite any other existing laws the Egyptian judge would always take its decision in the discretion of the Sharia and even decide over Christians. So significant limits are set to the Christian minority, despite absolute religious freedom. Another point to consider is, that the Egyptian constitution officially only allows three religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. One’s religion has to be noted in every official document and even on the disposable paper. Discrimination could also be seen when in 2008 the Egypt administrative court made clear, that Muslims do not have the right to convert to any other religion. Sharia law even demands death penalty for a Muslim who converts, yet this is not exercised. The judiciary according to Sharia case law has a wide margin of discretion in its decision‐making. Legal base for these prohibitions are laws against the defamation of religion and disorder of the public order. Although the defamation of religion is discussed by article 98 of the Constitution, almost everything can fall under the scope of defaming the Islam. According to the U.S. commission on International Religious Freedom the people most likely to be sentenced to prison for blasphemy in Egypt are Copts. For disputes between Copts and Muslims a traditional trial exists, which is the conciliation committee. As it aims to find a solution within the opposing parties, often there is no prosecution for offenders against Copts. According to established Sharia case‐law Muslim men can marry Christian women, but not the other way around. Increasing attention was payed to the Copts in Egypt due to terroristic attacks and media, which led to the recognition of Christmas as a holiday in 2002, and the adjustments of Copts in public offices. Although since 2009 a quota for Copts has even been discussed in the Egyptian parliament, the extension of the authorities’ power through Abdel Fattah al‐Sisi from 2014 on, led to increasing arbitrariness in jurisprudence and enforcement of laws against Copts. Plus Egypt is lacking protecting laws for Copts in order to guarantee their equality. There a lot of unwritten Sharia laws as well, such as the fact that Christians cannot have authority or jurisdiction over Muslims which decimate Copts on the labour market or in their everyday life. The question in how far national Egypt law affects the Copts is mostly a question of national security. Although the president has no interest extending the rights for the Copt minority he does not want to risk an escalation of irrelevant disputes between Muslims and Copts and is does tolerating their discrimination. Even though the situation in Egypt is relatively harmless compared to its neighbouring countries, it is disadvantaging the Copts with their arbitrary jurisprudence and enforcement of laws as well as the lack of comprehensive protecting laws. Laws on building and restoring churches Egyptian national laws have and still are making it difficult for Copts to build or restore their churches. These laws are stricter compared to ones regarding Mosques. Besides, Christian churches have several times been burned down or otherwise attacked by Muslims, not least during the last few years. The requirements on building Christian churches in Egypt have varied during the history. For centuries building a church, which was not permitted under Sharia law, was a rare occurrence. In 1856 the Ottoman Caliphate set a law, which at the time represented progress, whereby a permission to build a Christian church had to be applied from the country’s ruler. The law stood nearly 80 years before new regulations were introduced, this time to make them even harder. The law, for example, regulated very carefully the areas where it was not permitted to build a church. In practice the law was making it almost impossible for Copts to build new churches or repair attacked ones. Only a few churches have ended up being built. The law was in force until 2016, when the situation slightly improved. According to valid law, the provincial governors, instead of the president, are able to approve church building or restoration and a decision must be given within four months of an application. However, the law still limits the building and restoration, for example, by limiting church size to the number of Christian in the area and describing the looks of the churches. The law places harder restrictions on building Christian churches that on building Mosques, so it still seems to be discriminatory. International Legal Perspective The international community has taken aim at the human rights violations experienced by Coptic Christians. Human Rights Watch, Freedom House and Amnesty International have kept track of such violations that contravene international legal norms. These non‐governmental organisations have reported a number of breaches of the freedom of religion and belief. This is especially in light of sectarian violence and discriminatory legislation. Egypt’s participated in this international legal order that recognises the legal status of Coptic Christians. Egypt holds membership to both the United Nations (UN) and the African Union (AU). Egypt is a ratifier of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), specifically both the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESR). Egypt is also a member to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel Inhumane and degrading punishment. A Coptic Christian must rely on the Egyptian Government to enforce these rights. The only means of international redress a Coptic may make is through complaint procedure 1503 that allows for reporting of factual complaints to the United Nations Human Rights Council. Aside from these articles, Egypt has positive international legal obligations to protect the Coptic minorities. Article 18 of the ICCPR enshrines the freedom of religion and belief. This international position is also reflected in Section 40 and 46 of the 2014 Egyptian Constitution. Here common ground is found between the international position and the local position for the protection of freedom of religion. Despite this, the constitutional prominence of Shar’ia law remains a barrier for not only this freedom, but for Coptic Christians who seek to rely on such international and constitutional protections. This level of protection for religious freedom is provided for in further detail by the Declaration on the Rights of Persons belonging to National or Ethnic Religious and Linguistic Minorities. The exercise of religious practice and culture without discrimination is specifically recognized in Article 2 and 3. These articles are important in fully understanding the practical steps the Egyptian government could take in protecting Coptic Christians. Of course, given that states remain the main enforcers of minority rights, it begs the question how effective such a regime can be when the onus falls on states, the same states that have failed to uphold these rights in the first place. Aside from these minority rights, whether Coptic Christians were legally classed as a minority was with small controversy. During the 1994 regional conference on United Nations Declaration on Rights of Minorities and Peoples in the Arab world, there was some opposition on behalf of the Coptic community in whether the term ‘minority’ was a an appropriate classification. Despite this ambiguity, the classification holds given that religion is an accepted category of minority under the Declaration on Minorities and the ICCPR (Article 27). It must be recognized that the reception of international law in Egypt is with major qualification. The Egyptian constitution does recognise that any international convention or treaty ratified by Egypt becomes part of Egyptian law. This position is conditional on the requirement that these provisions will only apply as long as they are not incompatible with Shari’a law. The Cairo Administrative Court in Muhammad Ahmad Abduh Higazy vs. The Minister of Interior et al. (January 28, 2009), though recognising Egypt’s ratification of the Article 18 ICCPR and the absolute freedom of religion, affirmed this Shar’ia qualification. According to the UN office of the High Commissioner for HR (UNOHCHR) this interpretation basically renders international law ineffective within Egypt. Improvements It is important to ensure that the laws are followed. There are regulations, but it seems that they are not always followed. It should be made sure that the protection of Copts is secured. This could be made, for example, by giving human rights education in Egypt and by ensuring that Copts are represented in the decision‐making positions. Sources: http://www.christianitytoday.com/gleanings/2016/august/egyptian-christians-waiting-forpromised-law-to-ease-church.html#
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