Religious minorities in Egypt lose more rights in the wake of the revolution
Almost two years after its start, the Arab Spring has unfortunately become the Arab Winter for Egypt. The Egyptian Revolution in early 2011 was initially met with great fanfare by many in the country and around the world, due to its success in toppling the autocratic regime of Hosni Mubarak. Unfortunately, the hope and optimism for building a democratic, tolerant, and progressive Egypt have now dimmed and been replaced by pessimism and uncertainty.
The country’s first ever free and fair elections last year turned out to be a double-edged sword. While many Egyptians were able to truly exercise their right to vote for their lawmakers and president, Egypt also witnessed the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood’s political affiliate Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) as a potent political force as it gained a plurality in Egypt’s lower house, and its presidential candidate Mohamed Morsi was elected. Recent and ongoing events suggest that its influence continues to threaten the harmony and stability of Egyptian society.
As part of the process to complete its transition to democracy, a proposed constitution was drawn up, later passed in a popular referendum, and signed into law. Unfortunately, this process, was dominated by Islamists and was anything but democratic, as minority groups were marginalized and their views were not accommodated.
The ultimate outcome was a document reflecting the unfortunate exclusion of various integral elements of Egyptian society. While the document promises freedom of religion, it regrettably only applies to certain religious groups. Article 43 only guarantees freedom of worship for followers of “heavenly religions,” defined as Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. This therefore does not extend such a right to other religious minorities, such as followers of the persecuted Baha’i faith.
The newly enacted constitution also presents serious misfortunes for recognized religious groups, such as the country’s prominent Coptic Christian community. Article 212 authorizes the creation of a national regulatory body charged with oversight of public and private endowments. The provision places effective control of the Coptic Orthodox Church’s finances under the Morsi government and abolishes its autonomy.
Such blatant forms of state-sponsored discrimination and domination of religious minorities (along with Article 2, declaring Islam as the state religion and Sharia law as the main source of legislation) highlight the Muslim Brotherhood’s disturbing vision of Egypt as a country in which its Muslim majority must dominate at the expense of its religious minorities, with the autonomy and freedom of the latter being subject to the whims of the former. This newly adopted constitution sets the stage for the further division and polarization of sectarian tensions of the current social cleavages in Egyptian society.
The devastating consequences of the Islamists’ rise in Egypt are an affront to the Egyptian people’s right to live in an atmosphere characterized by respect, freedom, inclusiveness, and tolerance. More importantly, the lack of alternative powerful and well-organized political forces to counteract the rampant discrimination against religious minorities in Egypt raises question of whether the 2011 Egyptian revolution is bearing its intended fruits, or has simply given rise to a flawed democracy, characterized by the tyranny of the majority.
