Egypt: Freedom of Expression & Freedom of Religious Beliefs
The US Representative from Arizona, Congressman Trent Franks wrote a letter to the Washington Post regarding the issue of freedom of expression and religious freedom in Egypt, citing the case of imprisoned Egyptian blogger Abdelkareem Nabil Soliman as well as the Supreme Administrative Court Case regarding the Baha'is of Egypt. He also posted on the Congress Blog that people are "created equal and possess a sacred dignity intrinsic to being creatures made in the image of God Himself." And that "one of the most fundamental natural rights of every individual is the right to freely worship and think according to one’s conscience. It is the cornerstone of all human freedom." He argues that although Egypt states: speech defaming religion can be limited for "not just Islam but all religions." Yet Egyptian law protects only the three "heavenly religions," and Egypt's Supreme Administrative Court has refused to recognize the Bahais, who were declared incompatible with Egypt's nature as an Islamic state. No action has been taken to protect faiths other than Islam, including the Christian Copt minority, a move Mr. Soliman called for.
The entire letter is posted below as well as in the copy of the Washington Post article linked in this post.
Free This Egyptian BloggerSaturday, March 10, 2007; Page A18
The sentencing of Egyptian blogger Abdelkareem Nabil Soliman [editorial, Feb. 28] seriously threatens freedom of expression and religion throughout Egypt.
While Mr. Soliman was critical of extremism within Islam, the ability to discuss one's religious beliefs is an important aspect of freedom of religion and expression, both of which are essential in democratic societies and should not be prohibited in legislation. The U.N. Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief has stated that "defamation of religions may offend people and hurt their religious feelings, but it does not necessarily or at least directly result in a violation of their rights, including their right to freedom of religion."
In a March 5 letter, the Egyptian Embassy stated that speech defaming religion can be limited for "not just Islam but all religions."
Yet Egyptian law protects only the three "heavenly religions," and Egypt's Supreme Administrative Court has refused to recognize the Bahais, who were declared incompatible with Egypt's nature as an Islamic state. No action has been taken to protect faiths other than Islam, including the Christian Copt minority, a move Mr. Soliman called for.
Egypt is an ally of the United States in the struggle for freedom, receiving nearly $2 billion in foreign aid annually. However, Congress is concerned with Egypt's stifling of basic human rights. I call on Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to immediately pardon Mr. Soliman.
TRENT FRANKS
U.S. Representative (R-Ariz.)
Washington
Congressman Trent Franks' letter to the editor is timely, asking to free an Egyptian blogger. Mr. Franks also mentions religiously based discrimination, including the denial of human rights to Egyptian Baha'is.
ReplyDeleteThe Baha'is in Egypt are not supposed to even exist in that country and at the same time those who could leave are forbidden from doing so! This has got to be the worst Catch 22 designed by a country claiming to respect human rights. This goes beyond religious discrimination! It is a systemic approach by a government determined to eliminate the presence of any but three religions in Egypt, to discriminate against two of them, and to deny the presence of Baha'is in Egypt who span six or more generations. Since the government has the illegitimate power to do so with the support of the opposition, one has to ask:
a) What is the world (or the UN) going to do about this?
b) Can a government commit systemic denials of civil and human rights based solely on religious beliefs, deny its discriminatory practices, and not be held accountable?
c) Has not the situation become flagrant enough to require systematic responses from those countries who support human rights?
d) What will Islamic authorities do to undo the wrongful hijacking of Islam by those intolerant elements who replace the compassionate spirit of Islam with their own narrow version of sectarian political Islam?
e) What will other world religious authorities (including Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Zoroastrian, and Hindu, as well as Baha'i) do to ensure that all nations, including Egypt, tolerate all religions?
Adolf Hitler and the NAZI'S had a name for it...
ReplyDelete"the Final Solution"
Nabil,
ReplyDeleteI can tell you that these news and developments are currently under close watch and monitoring by the United Nations, world governments and international human rights organizations.
Over at mideastyouth.com Esra'a has worked incredibly long hours on email and on the phone and making personal contact for Kareem's sake. She is largely responsible for this international recognition of the Egyptian Blogger. I respect her for this effort. But I never could join the protest, because I read the comments and postings of Kareem's blog when she first mentioned his troubles with authorities.
ReplyDeleteThe comments were very acid and perhaps slanderous, even if the posts stopped short of personal insults. Kareem even added his approval of the basic direction of the comments.
In my humble opinion he was asking for trouble. And I mentioned this to Esra'a--didn't win me any friends, but I felt I had to say something.
So I wouldn't put the Bahais in the same box with Kareem.
Edoriver,
ReplyDeleteWho is Esra and who is Kareem? Could you explain your comment?
Thanks,
We shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that the Congressman is speaking of the principle more so than making a judgment as to the specifics of the cases mentioned. It is not up to us to judge either, particularly when all the facts are not known to us.
ReplyDeleteThis is very very true,Bilo, Something good can (and will) come out of anything.
ReplyDeleteAn interesting post on 13 March by Congressman Franks can be seen here....
ReplyDeleteIn it, he writes: "Only through the genius of “sophisticated, enlightened men and women” can a self-evident truth be denied. The self-evident truth to which I refer is that all men, women, and children regardless of race, monetary worth, or station in life are created equal and possess a sacred dignity intrinsic to being creatures made in the image of God Himself.
Because of this truth, one of the most fundamental natural rights of every individual is the right to freely worship and think according to one’s conscience. It is the cornerstone of all human freedom.
If Egypt is to be considered a vibrant and tolerant society, it must be a pluralistic one that protects freedom of speech and tolerance of religious diversity. Every year I am forced to make the difficult decision as to how I will vote on the foreign operations bill that authorizes the way American tax dollars are spent to aid our friends and allies. Some of the countries in that bill, including Israel and Jordan, meet those standards that protect basic human rights, and I wish I could vote separately for their aid; however, I have time after time voted against final passage of the bill because of instances in which countries receiving aid, stifle basic human rights and fail to seriously combat terrorism...."
The honorable Congressman Trent Frank exemplifies a progressive model of diplomacy where the scope of involvement is global, rather than confined to national or regional interests. It is a rare thing to see members of government from other nations actively concerned with the welfare of others who are beyond their borders and are detached from selfish, profitable or self-serving ambitions. One would wonder why this has not been the observed practice from leaders of the Middle East region.
ReplyDeleteNabil makes a direct and clear statement regarding the urgent requirements of universal duty and responsibility. What happens in one region of the world is not isolated from, or ineffectual to the organic body of the global community. Such as the human body receives harm or acquires disease in a particular area, if left untreated, its influence will spread and weaken other healthy organs. In this day, it is everyone’s responsibility to maintain the healthy progress of humanity.
What is still unclear is the organizational structure, the system of collaboration whereby remedial actions and their progress are initiated, tracked and seen through to final resolution. There are numerous reports, news releases, however, who can say what followed, what is the progress to date, what are the obstacles, and what is the current path to follow if a particular plan has not succeeded? It is one thing to monitor, and another to manage and implement an effective program of resolution. There is confidence in knowing that if the structure and dynamics of the system are clear and organized, that many more qualified and sincere people – such as Congressman Trent Frank - would participate in and eagerly pursue what is now emerging from the realm of an impossible vision to becoming a critical and absolutely necessary fulfillment: universal justice.
r.a.,
ReplyDeleteActually, action oriented efforts are underway, but this takes time & patience. Meanwhile, raising awareness and close monitoring must never cease until a resolution is reached.
from my experience, it takes time and patience because God is working His will not with the kings and rulers, not with the educated elite generally speaking, not with the captains of industry, but with the meek and lowly, and the ones who have other personal issues that delay the full flowering of their unrealized potential
ReplyDeletenice article about current Egypt.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/18/AR2007031801196.html