CAIRO: Thinkers claim that the double standard in obtaining licenses to build churches and mosques, the deterioration of both Muslim and Christian preachers, and the lack of liberal religious teaching in schools are the reasons behind the sectarian clashes that took place last Friday in Al Ayyat. The press reported that more than 60 Muslim residents of Bamha village in Al Ayyat district of Giza attacked their fellow Christian residents when rumors spread about the plans to build an extension to a church on a piece of land donated by a Christian. The incident left 11 Christians injured and 35 Muslims arrested. Security forces are still seeking over 25 other suspects. The clashes are considered the worst in Egypt since the bloody events in the Upper Egyptian village of El Kosheh seven years ago when 20 Copts were murdered in a riot that erupted following an argument between a Muslim woman and a Coptic shopkeeper . According to Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper, Bamha is home to 400 Christians out of a population of 6,000. Hafez Abu Seada, director of the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights (EOHR), told The Daily Star Egypt that the double-handedness in issuing licenses to build mosques and churches, the role played by mosques Imams and the different Islamist movements that stoke negative and hostile sentiments towards Christians, all led to this crisis. The problem will not be solved by changing the constitution, or removing Article 2 that identifies Egypt as an Islamic country, Abu Seada said. It is the basic right of any citizen to have an equal license to build a meditation area, he added. Saad Zaghloul, a Coptic appeals lawyer, told The Daily Star Egypt that no regulations have been implemented in the constitution regarding equality in building churches and mosques since this particular article was issued in the 1800s during the Mohamed Ali era. Obtaining a license to build a church has always been very difficult and not as easy as it is with mosques, he said. The old law entailed that churches should acquire permission from the president himself. Recently, it s been modified and the license can be obtained directly from the governor; but this adjustment didn t make it any easier for Christians. According to Zaghloul, both governors and district council members obstruct, or at least make it difficult, for Copts to get approval and even when they do, the subsequent procedures take much longer than they do when compared to building mosques that don t need any actual authorization. Even a small issue like renovating an old church s bathroom requires permission from the head of the district council, he added. He believes that Christians face graver stumbling blocks in areas outside Cairo. Security forces don t care to interfere when Muslims attack Christians, he said. They only act when things truly deteriorate. On the other hand, Sheikh Saber Taalab, former member of the Islamic Research Center, denies these claims. There s always been equality between churches and mosques, Taalab told The Daily Star Egypt. Mosques must acquire a license just like churches. In fact, mosques face more restrictions than churches and it's well known the building schools have more priority than mosques. Taalab also added that it s not rational for security forces not to interfere in incidents of chaos as they re the ones who ll eventually be accountable for the repercussions of such events. Gamal El Banna, an Islamic thinker, described the incident as an act of religious ignorance and prejudice and disbelief in the freedom of religious practice. He blamed religious scholars of both religions in addition to the educational material on Islam and Christianity for creating this rift between followers of both faiths. The event illustrated nothing but the crisis caused by the political and social lack of freedom that our country is witnessing, El Bana said. But Sheikh Taalab vehemently rejects such views. Religious institutions and Al Azhar in particular, have always disseminated a message of compassion among Muslims who are no different than their Christian brothers and sisters. Fayek Fahim, political analyst, media consultant for the The Magazine and professor of mass communication at Misr International University (MIU) told The Daily Star Egypt that he blames Islamist groups for provoking people in religious debates. Fahim also believes there's a deeper perspective on the problem: the US plays a big role in escalating the conflict between both religions in Egypt. It is in the US's best interest to make the region boil with internal conflicts to distract it from the situation in Iraq, Fahim said. This is Israel s strategy that the US always employs it as a policy, Fahim added. He also indicated that these clashes will not be the last. I cannot see any solution but to focus on implementing the concept of citizenship to make it replace religion, Fahim said. On the other hand, Mounir Fakhry Abdel-Nour, secretly general of Al-Wafd political party and a Coptic MP, told The Daily Star Egypt that it is not clear yet whether the issue will be discussed at the People s Assembly. However, Abdel-Nour said that Al-Wafd party called for an urgent meeting with the party members to discuss means to help the victims rebuild their homes. Abdel-Nour also stressed the importance of reconsidering the religious content of school books to include the values of forgiveness and respect for other religions. The problem is in the law, said Abu Seada. He adds that the root of the issue is in Egyptian cultural heritage and the role of religious institutions that has to be revised .
