[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 16]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 22319]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




            THE REAL STORY ABOUT COPTIC CHRISTIANS IN EGYPT

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                      Tuesday, September 22, 2009

  Mr. WOLF. Madam Speaker, the Egyptian Embassy in Washington, DC, 
recently sent the following e-mail to their distribution list:
  ``Egypt has the largest and oldest Christian community in the Middle 
East, and is home to 2,069 churches.
  ``The Coptic Orthodox Church was founded in Alexandria by the apostle 
Mark in AD 57, making it one of the oldest churches in the world.
  ``A law requiring Presidential approval for church construction was 
changed in 2005, transferring that duty instead to the country's 
governors who are obligated to process churches' requests within 30 
days.
  ``In 2003, President Mubarak declared Coptic Christmas, celebrated on 
January 7, a national holiday.''
  In spite of these overtures by the Egyptian government, the situation 
for Coptic Christians in Egypt is far from ideal. According to the 
State Department's 2008 International Religious Freedom Report, ``The 
approval process for church construction continued to be hindered by 
lengthy delays, often measured in years. Although government officials 
maintain that President Mubarak approves all requests for permits 
presented to him, independent critics charge that delays by the MOI 
and/or local authorities cause many requests to reach the President 
slowly or not at all. Some churches have complained that local security 
officials have blocked church repairs or improvements even when a 
permit has been issued. Others suggest unequal enforcement of the 
regulations pertaining to church and mosque projects. Many churches 
face difficulty in obtaining permits from provincial officials.''
  On September 7, The Los Angeles Times reported that Egyptian 
authorities arrested 155 people in Aswan for publicly eating, drinking 
or smoking during daylight in the month of Ramadan, including non-
Muslims.
  There is clearly much that needs to be done by the Egyptian 
government to ensure the preservation of the Coptic community in Egypt.

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