CAIRO: The Court of Administrative Justice (CAJ) ruled last week that the Ministry of Interior is under no obligation to amend the official documents of Christian converts to Islam who wish to revert back to their original faith, reported the press. Under the presidency of Judge Mohamed Al-Husseini, the court decided that the cases contesting the Ministry of Interior's refusal to change the religious affiliation on their national identity cards, would be in violation of the prohibition against apostasy under Sharia and will constitute a "manipulation of Islam and Muslims, according to a report published on the web site of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR). The complainants had presented proof of having reverted back to Christianity as required by the civil status law. The EIPR condemned the move as a setback for the legal protection of the right of freedom of religion. Hossam Bahgat, director of the EIPR wrote on the web site: "Describing citizens' change of their faith as a 'manipulation of Islam and Muslims' reflects moral prejudice rather than legal reasoning. Executive director of the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information, Gamal Eid, agrees. He told The Daily Star Egypt that the court ruling is a step in the wrong direction. "Such rulings support the views of extremists vis-à-vis the issue of choosing one's religion. He pointed out that it is also in violation of the Egyptian constitution, the civil status law and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights' Article 18, to which Egypt is a signatory. "There is a double standard, he said, "when it comes to how converts to Islam are treated and how Muslims who wish to adopt other religions are dealt with. The press reported that there were 300 such cases but that the latest ruling pertained to 45 of them. However, Eid pointed out that hundreds of cases never reach the courts. "Legal precedent in these cases has intimidated many who would rather lead a sort of double life than go to court, he said. On Sunday's episode of Dream TV's "Al Aashera Massa'an, Naguib Gibrael, lawyer of the complainants, said that this dangerous legal precedent would make Copts lose faith in the government's promises of respecting citizenship rights. "The Sharia itself protects the freedom of faith, he said. "Think about these people's children. They will go through life with documents saying they are Muslim, when, in fact they are Copts. However, another guest on the show, ex-member of parliament and lawyer Mohktar Nooh, said that the Sharia had nothing to do with it. "We need to distinguish between whether the CAJ's decision violated the basic issue of freedom of faith, or whether it was simply an administrative issue to do with the civil registry. He believes that many of these cases simply manipulate religion and that it is important to weigh the benefits and harm of such conduct on social stability. He refused to drag Article 2, which stipulates that the Sharia is the principle source of legislation, into the discussion. In his Tuesday Al-Masry Al-Youm column, journalist Magdy Mehana stated that the case was not about freedom of religion. "This is about the criminal action of some Christian individuals whose last resort to solve their marital and social problems with the church is by converting to Islam, not because they are convinced. He added that the heart of the problem rested in the fact that Pope Shenouda's hard-line attitude had "shut the doors of mercy in the faces of hundreds of Copts who were left with no choice but to convert. Secular Copts like Kamal Zakher, a businessman who writes extensively on Coptic issues, have been vocal in criticizing the emphasis in church teachings on the spiritual rewards of the afterlife rather than the amelioration of social problems.
