Cairo – Egypt's parliament undersecretary announced that he supports the bill proposed by Al-Azhar, the world's oldest Sunni institute of Islamic learning, on criminalizing hatred. Mahmoud El-Sharif said in a statement issued on Tuesday that the bill is a good step to renew religious discourse. "The bill stipulates that the members of the Egyptian society constitute one family without having any disputes. The bill states that all people are on an equal footing under the constitution and rule of law that give equal opportunities to all," he reiterated. He hailed the bill and praised great efforts exerted by the world's oldest Islamic institution and Al-Azhar's Grand Imam Ahmed El-Tayeb to draw this draft to criminalize "incitement to hatred" and counter violence through Al-Azhar's tolerant and moderate approach.
