Freedom of religion in Egypt no better under military rule
The military's conservatism and alliance with religious authorities, even if not the Muslim Brotherhood, is a constant in Egyptian politics.
CAIRO — After June 30, 2013, many people thought that the end of Muslim Brotherhood rule would bring about military-enforced secularism, or more religious and personal freedom. Instead, they are slowly finding out that the new state is very similar to the old state and employing the same — if not worse — tactics against said freedoms. The Islamists may no longer be in power, but religious despotism seems to be alive and well in the land of the Nile.
Exhibit A: Shiite college student Amr Abdallah was just sentenced to five years in jail for “contempt for religion.” Amr was arrested Nov. 14, 2013, when he entered Al-Hussein Mosque during an Ashoura celebration, an act the authorities deemed worthy of arrest and interrogation. The court, in its opinion, stated that its function is to dispense justice based on the rules that God has laid out. The court also stated that the views presented by Amr after his questioning were an abominable attack on religion that cannot be defended by the constitutionally protected freedoms of belief or expression, given that the basis of all legislation is Sharia principles, which Amr’s views are completely against.
Exhibit B: On March 11, 2014, the Beba misdemeanor court in Beni Suef upheld the June 2013 verdict against Egyptian author and human rights activist Karam Saber, which sentenced him to three years in jail for contempt of religion and the publishing of his book, Ayn Allah? (Where is God?). The charges were filed by a number of citizens in Beni Suef in 2011, accusing Saber of calling for atheism, insulting God and inciting sedition and bloodshed. The public prosecution has asked the opinion of the Beni Suef diocese and Al-Azhar regarding the validity of publishing that book. Al-Azhar stated that the book destroys the intellectual values of Egyptian society, while the diocese said that the author derides the sanctity of religion with stories that are far from sophisticated literature. Both agreed the book should be banned. Writers, intellectuals and activists have called the ruling a violation of the Egyptian Constitution's Article 67, which states, “No freedom-restricting sanction may be inflicted for crimes committed because of the publicity of artistic, literary or intellectual product.” Unfortunately, no one in the judiciary seems to care.
Exhibit C: Al-Azhar is currently calling for banning Darren Aronofsky’s film “Noah” from Egyptian theaters, since the religious institution has decreed it forbidden for holy prophets to be portrayed by actors. There has been a huge backlash against that call, with the Ministry of Culture challenging Al-Azhar’s opinion. So far, it is unclear whether the movie will be shown in Egypt. It is worth noting that “The Passion of the Christ” was screened in Egyptian theaters, and many Egyptian reviewers raved about the accurate (read: unflattering, anti-Semitic) portrayal of Jews in the movie.
