Whereas in its 2011 Annual Report, the United States
Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) recommended for the
first time that Egypt be named by the United States Department of State as a
Country of Particular Concern, along with other long-time religious freedom
offenders Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan,
Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam;
Whereas according to the USCIRF Chair, Leonard Leo,
CPCs are nations whose conduct marks them as the world’s worst religious
freedom violators and human rights abusers. In the case of Egypt, instances of
severe religious freedom violations engaged in or tolerated by the government
have increased dramatically since the release of last year’s report, with
violence, including murder, escalating against Coptic Christians and other
religious minorities. Since President Mubarak’s resignation from office in
February, such violence continues unabated without the government’s bringing
the perpetrators to justice. Consequently, USCIRF recommends CPC designation
for Egypt.
;
Whereas many instances of discrimination against religious
minorities, especially the Christian minority, persist, including—
(1)a
lack of employment in higher positions of the public sector, universities,
army, and the security service;
(2)a
lack of protection and lack of prosecution of perpetrators in cases of
sectarian violence;
(3)government
harassment of converts to Christianity while, conversely, the government allows
and encourages conversion to Islam;
(4)the inability to
obtain government issued identification cards which reflect conversion to
Christianity; and
(5)prejudice against
Christian guardians in child custody cases which involve parents of both Muslim
and Christian faith;
Whereas under the current law, government permission is
required for the construction and renovation of Christian churches and the
process for obtaining such permission is often onerous and inflexible while no
such restrictions apply for the construction and renovation of mosques;
Whereas a unified law regulating construction of places of
worship was first proposed in 2005 in the Parliament, but has never been
passed;
Whereas the government’s response to sectarian violence
has been to conduct forced reconciliation sessions between Muslims and
Christians in lieu of prosecution;
Whereas, on October 9, 2011, at least 25 people were
killed and more than 300 were injured when military forces opened fire on a
gathering of unarmed Coptic Christians, and then drove armored vehicles into
the crowds;
Whereas this incident follows multiple incidents in the
spring of 2011 when Coptic churches and monasteries were burned and more than
39 individuals were killed and at least 263 wounded;
Whereas the New Year’s Eve 2010 suicide attack on St.
Mark’s Coptic Christian church in Alexandria was one of the worst incidents of
violence against Egypt’s Coptic minority in a decade;
Whereas the trial for those accused of shooting and
killing innocent victims outside a Coptic church in Naga Hammady on Coptic
Christmas Eve in January 2010 has been repeatedly delayed and promotes a
climate of impunity; and
Whereas these incidents are but a few examples of the
recent increase in sectarian violence against religious minorities as well as
other forms of discrimination which Egyptian authorities have failed to
properly address: Now, therefore, be it
That the House of
Representatives—
(1)strongly encourages any new government
convened in Egypt to fully allow for the freedom of religion;
(2)believes that
Egyptian law should provide for this freedom, specifically including freedom of
conversion and freedom to build houses of worship;
(3)recommends the
release of Coptic Christian prisoners from the spring 2011 protests, unless all
due legal processes are timely followed; and
(4)urges the issuance of permanent licenses to
monasteries, churches, synagogues, and other places of worship to build
boundary fences for their safety and protection.