Discontent in Egypt Tuesday, 11 October 2011 04:06

Interfaith harmony is turning into hatred in Egypt. The religious unity that was present in the February uprising to topple Hosni Mubarak is evaporating.  Violent clashes in Cairo that killed 23 people have fuelled Coptic Christian fears that the Egyptian state that used to shield religious minorities can now no longer do so. Although Egypt’s Copts have complained of attacks from Salafist and other groups since Mubarak’s ouster, Christians say the deeper problem is the collapse of the state.

Egypt’s beleaguered Coptic minority make up between 10 and 15 percent of a population of 82 million and is by far the largest Christian community in the region. Coptic Christians have been fearful that Egypt’s ongoing political turmoil could allow ultra-conservatives to flex their muscles and inspire a crackdown on social minorities.  The army’s violent suppression of the protest in Cairo reflects the growing threat to the Egypt’s Coptic minority after the fall of Saddam, when over half the Christian population — some 400,000 people — were forced to leave Iraq due to fear of Islamists. Now, many frightened Christians in Syria support embattled President Bashar Al Assad out of fear that toppling his secularist regime would lead to similar pressure there from the Islamists. Copts have long complained of discrimination, such as barriers to building churches or judges favouring Muslims when conflicts came to courts, but felt Mubarak mostly protected them because he opposed the Islamists. They lost that faith in Mubarak when a church in Alexandria was bombed on New Year’s Day. Many Copts openly joined Muslims in the Tahrir Square protests that toppled the president. Egypt’s Christians have played as big a part in the recent demographic explosion as their fellow Muslims, but have to navigate a bewilderingly web of bureaucracy to secure permission for constructing a church. There are an estimated 2,000 churches in Egypt to date, alongside 93,000 mosques.

The violence is the clearest signal yet that Egyptians are turning on the military commanders who were widely hailed as saviours eight months ago. Many Egyptians say that swelling anger over the slow pace of reforms and the country’s economic woes could give rise to a new revolt. The economy is shrinking and the political atmosphere volatile. Many Egyptians reacted with dismay to the electoral timeline announced recently, which would put off presidential elections until 2013. It is not the day-to-day running of the country that the army is interested in. Rather, it wants to have a tight grip on key issues: strategic decisions, budgetary distribution, and above all keeping the military itself free from public scrutiny. It is the responsibility of all Egyptians, both Muslim and Christian, to work towards changing current policies. Egyptian Copts need to see themselves not as a religious group but as Egyptian citizens calling for equality and freedom for all.