|
Coptic arrests inflame Egypt's sectarian tensions
The arrests and weeklong detention of two Coptic Christians at the Cairo International Book Fair on February 1 has reignited the seemingly endless tension that continues to grow between Christians and Muslims in Egypt. State security officials arrested Mina 'Adil Shawki and 'Issam Kadees Nassif after they were seen handing out Bibles at the book fair. An Egyptian human rights center said police filed a report against the two men for "defaming Islam." The men, from the Upper Egyptian governorate Assiut, were released from detention on February 5, but their case has many activists in an uproar over the perceived double standards police employ against Christians as compared to their Muslim counterparts. Nagib Gubreil, a Coptic lawyer and head of the Egyptian Union for Human Rights, told The Media Line that Shawki and Nassif were held on charges of preaching, but that this particular offense is not explicitly stated in the Egyptian Constitution. "So they filed a report against them, accusing them of defaming Islam," says Gubreil, who has been criticized by activists, both Coptic and Muslim, for allegedly exaggerating a number of religious-based controversies. Nuha, a Christian postgraduate student at Cairo University, calls the arrests outrageous, claiming a "double standard" that exists in the treatment of Christians as compared to Muslims. "Almost every day I see tons of Islamic stuff handed out on the streets and the government does nothing, police do nothing. So now, all of a sudden, some Copts pass out some Bibles and they get arrested. It doesn't seem fair to me," she says. The general prosecutor said that a decision to charge the men had "yet to be determined," corroborating Gubreil's details of what occurred. He said that police "had to accuse them of something" in order to hold them. According to reports on a number of Coptic news sites, police claimed the two men had been also distributing CDs from excommunicated priest Zachariah Boutros - known for his outspoken criticisms of Islam - who was removed from the priesthood after constantly attacking Islam from the pulpit of his television program. The show upset many Muslims and Christians. Posted by: Fred 2009-02-10 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=262133 |