Coptic Persecution, Muslim Brotherhood and Mubarak’s NDP: Post Elections
Assad Elepty
Whilst it may look like a typical election in Egypt, lets dissect the political landscape post round one and 24 hours before round two of the parliamentary elections.
1. Firstly only a quarter of eligible voters turned out to cast a ballot.
2. President Hosni Mubarak has governed Egypt for 29 years.
3. The banned radical Muslim Brotherhood has been squashed like a cockroach.
4. Despite accounting for 10% of the population, the indigenous Egyptians the Copts struggle for recognition and are again left with no political representation in what is now an Islamic country.
The much feared Radical Islamic sect the Muslim Brotherhood and supporters of the Nazis under the rule of Hitler are now crying foul. In a delusional state the all boys club, known haters of the USA, Israel and everything Non Muslim, are complaining that America did NOT come to their aid amid the Mubarak crackdown on the lead up to the 28 November election. The brotherhood in an act of lunacy and double Dutch do not seem to realise they are an outlawed, banned radical sect UNWANTED by mainstream Egyptians. They have a following of approx 400,000, .05% of the population
They are a spent force, a hypocritical organization, propagator of hatred, extremism, Jihad, clutch at straws and change tact when it suits their needs.
In any case the Muslim Brotherhood after wasting millions of Egyptian pounds on the elections rather than help the poor, have been given a good kick to the head and have miserably failed. Egypt is no longer cursed by their presence in parliament. The unlicensed, banned, outlawed radical sect have failed in their desperate attempts to circumvent Egyptian laws by running as independents driven by a desire to retard Egypt to the dark ages and implement an Islamic society overseen by shariah laws at the expense of every citizen.
Today it is sadly emerging that Mubarak’s real enemy is no longer the Muslim Brotherhood, but a dire threat that comes from a radical Islamists element within the NDP. The imperative question is
“Will Mubarak be able to prevent the Islamists from taking over the powerful ruling NDP?”
In addition, Islamist sources said the Brotherhood, despite electoral restrictions, would continue to recruit throughout Egypt, Jordan and other Arab states. They said the withdrawal of the Brotherhood from parliament could make it more difficult for Arab regimes to monitor the Islamic opposition.
Will the Muslim Brotherhood make backdoor deals with members of the NDP, overthrow Mubarak and Hijack the NDP, transforming it into another radical Islamists sect?
May be the best people to answer that question are the unrepresented non Muslims, “The Coptic People”
Fact is while the Muslim Brotherhood have been stepped on and crushed in the elections, Islamization is gaining ground in Egypt. Mubarak has totally failed to recognise the Copts and certainly failed to treat them as equals in Egypt.
It is undisputed that the Copts are the victims in their homeland of Egypt. The discrimination is increasing, violence against them has become the norm, and recently the NDP security force subjected the Copts to abhorrent treatment in a military style assault over a dispute involving the use of a building as a Church rather than a community centre.
I can guarantee any one reading this, had the building in question been used as a mosque, no such attack or use of force would ever, ever take place.
Secondly a new Mosque can be approved within 1 month by the local authority, whilst a new church takes up to ten years and can only be approved by President Mubarak.
Does that sound like chronic discrimination to you?
Even a historical fact iterated by Bishop Bishoy, “Muslims are hosts in Egypt”, sent the Muslims into a wild animalistic frenzy. It seems the Islamists do not like hearing historical facts repeated, and opt for a fabricated delusion in their own minds. Let me remind the Arab invaders, you were desert dwelling nomads with out a home, you invaded Egypt and took it from the native Egyptians and named it MASR. Originally, the word “Copt” comes from the Greek word “Aiguptos” which means the Egyptians. When the Muslim Arabs arrived in Egypt, they used the word “Copt” to designate the inhabitants of Egypt, who were mostly Christian. The word MASR is the Arabic Islamic name given to Egypt by the Islamic Arab invaders in a bid to abolish the true history of Egypt. Egypt is the land of the Copts and proudly holds onto their heritage despite all the adversities and Islamic perversions.
The Copts have naturally grown increasingly paranoid and fearful of the increased discrimination and persecution. To avoid conflict, Christians isolate themselves, they send their children to schools run by the church to avoid rampant discrimination in the nation wide Islamic schools. Coptic children in government schools are denied learning their Christian faith and are compelled to learn Islam and the Koran against their wills.
One Copt stated, “The Copts feel that Muslims are always plotting behind their backs and that they all want to kill Christians, Yes, it is true that Christians are facing discrimination, Building a church is very difficult for example when authorization to build a mosque is obtained in an hour, the shooting of Naga Hammadi, a small town in Upper Egypt. On January 7, 2010, Orthodox Christmas Day, six Copts were killed out of office at midnight, this massacre was a trauma for the Christians of Egypt, the authorities do not protect us enough”
Religious freedom and Conversion is also a figment of the constitution. The Egyptian constitution is hypocrisy in its own right and not worth the paper it is written on. The constitution states “religious freedom” however reality is “a Christian is free to convert to Islam, but a Muslim will be declared an apostate arrested and subjected to the draconian rule of law if he converts to Christianity”.
“Were the Islamic authors of the constitution high on hashish and pissed to boot when they put pen to paper”?
To add to the misery, religious channels and media spread propaganda, stir up hatred, and incite ridicule that results in the Copts been openly attacked, and defamation of Christianity. At the same time the Christians Copts, in a desperate bid to retain their identity, get tattoos of a cross on their right wrist and go on weekend visits to the Egyptian monasteries built over 15 centuries ago. Most are located in Wadi Natron, a valley on the road between Cairo and Alexandria. There, the “Desert Fathers” welcome the faithful and give them a place where they can feel free and safe from discrimination.
Once outside these safe havens, Muslims, especially Salafis accuse the Christians for being ignorant “kafir”. The long term result has been a mass exodus of Copts. Whilst these Copts successfully integrate into their new found home lands, it is troubling because the Egyptian community as a whole is gradually emptied of its most educated.
President Hosni Mubarak this is a time when Egyptian society is witnessing heightened sectarian tensions between Muslim and Christian citizens, and the security, religious freedoms, civil liberties, and political rights of Christians are being challenged at every level.
President Mubarak, I need not remind you the Copts constitute almost 10 million Egyptians.
- Yet out of 800 candidates, the NDP (National Democratic Party), only had ten Copts,
- While the liberal Wafd Party (Nationalist liberal Party) nominated five Copts
- The leftist “Tagammu” (National Progressive Unionist Party) ran three Copts,
- In addition there are a handful of independent Coptic candidates.
Been very optimistic and on an assumption that all of the Coptic candidates win in the run-off election, Copts will still represent less than 4 percent of the People’s Assembly, meaning they are under represented relative to their numbers, most unofficial estimates place Copts at 10 15 percent of the population.
President Mubarak, In a fair non discriminatory society it would be reasonable to expect the Copts would hold approx 10% of the seats.
Why is it your regime and the bulk of the opposition remain either silent on the catastrophically low Coptic representation or argue it is justified by social circumstances?
Why does your government, and opposition leaders refuse to even discuss strategies like a “Coptic quota” or other affirmative action measures?
You claim that equal citizenship rights for both Muslims and Copts are provided for in the law and guaranteed by the authorities, yet the stark reality of elections 2010 have been highlighted the grave shortcomings that have all but dismissed the rights of the Copts.
In note at the same time the new People’s Assembly will see an unprecedented jump in women’s representation after a government initiative allocated 64 seats for a women’s quota, thus ending the era in which women had lacked representation. President Mubarak, there is no doubt that when your government wants to attain something it does.
As you have rid your self of the encumbrances of the radical, dangerous Muslim Brotherhood, one would anticipate you will suppress and deal with any radical Islamists within the NDP.
On a final Note, President Mubarak you hold the key to admonish all forms of discrimination. The Copts are not asking for special treatment, they are asking to be treated as equals. I appreciate you are busy and your role as a mediator in the peace negotiations between Israel and Palestine are demanding and time consuming. This role should not distract you from your overriding duty and obligation to every Egyptian.
The recent barbaric attacks by you security force can never be justified by any amount of rubbish that ebbs from the mouths of your ministers. You are the PRESIDENT, exercise your authority approve the church and put the matter to bed for once and for all. For gods sake four people have died because you fail to exercise your authority.
Egypt has over 9000 mosques and just over 500 churches. Do the sums and relate it to the percentage of Copts. I am sure you can see my point.
All the issues relating to the construction of churches can be eliminated with the stroke of a pen. You have been in power for nearly 30 years, legislation for the construction of churches has been before parliament since 2005 and is still waiting. For the sake of decency amend the laws, and grant equal rights for construction of places of worship. The draconian legislation that exists has been in that form since 1930 and openly discriminates against Christians, WHY?
It would be refreshing to see you commence your new term with true legislative changes that will eliminate the source of annex and division in the Egyptian society. Just think, you could have signed the approval and the deaths, injuries, bloodshed, and destruction could have totally been avoided. It is time you accepted responsibility for your inaction and took the bull by its horns and steer Egypt towards true democracy. I do not think the USA gives $2.3 billion US dollars so that you can create a security force that conducts a full military assault on armed Egyptian citizens because of a dispute relating to roof domes and the use of a building. In addition you are holding countless numbers of Copts under arrest and intend to subject them to the humility of trials and jail all because the defended their place of worship.
If you can not acknowledge there is a major problem with the response to this problem, then the Copts have no hope under your rule. I sincerely trust common sense will prevail, the detained freed, the stolen goods returned, and you personally will approve the church and bring an end to this sorry sad fiasco.
May God above guide you in the discharge of your authority as President of Egypt.
Assad Elepty