“The Coptic Winter: What Does the Massacre at Maspero Mean for Egypt's Christians?” the Hudson Institute 1015 15Th Street, NW, Suite 600, Washington D.C
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www.pomed.org ♦ 1111 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 300♦ Washington, DC 20009 “The Coptic Winter: What Does the Massacre at Maspero Mean for Egypt's Christians?” The Hudson Institute 1015 15th Street, NW, Suite 600, Washington D.C. Wednesday, October 19, 2011, 12:00-1:30 pm On Wednesday, the Hudson Institute hosted a panel discussion entitled “The Coptic Winter: What Does the Massacre at Maspero Mean for Egypt’s Christians?” The panelists included Eric Trager, Ira Weiner Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Samuel Tadros and Kurt Werthmuller, Research Fellows at the Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom. The discussion was moderated by Nina Shea, Director of the Center for Religious Freedom. Shea provided a brief opening statement, putting the recent massacre in a broader context by posing the question of what does the Maspero massacre mean for Coptic Christians, especially in the political transition? Werthmuller discussed the primary issues facing the Christian community in Egypt. The first issue is government restrictions on churches and related property. The current restrictions and regulations on churches stem from old traditional laws from the late Ottoman period. Werthmuller said that for any renovation or repair, the church needed government approval. This he argues, played a role in keeping Copts “in their place” and out of sight since the government had the ultimate say in regards to Christian property. The second issue Werthmuller pointed out is violence against Christians and their property. The violence targeted against the Christian community continues with “impunity.” Mobs and riots against the Copts have risen in the last several years, especially in the months following the fall of Hosni Mubarak. Werthmuller noted that the violence is often incited by a Salafi preacher or an intolerant Muslim, and it is usually directed towards Christian property such as churches and businesses. However, he described the most important issue as the continuity of attacks against the Copts and the way the government handles the violence. The Mubarak era policy towards Christians has carried over to the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), and it can be argued that the SCAF has exacerbated the problem. Werthmuller described the response to violence as very slow, the blame as dispersed, and there is a refusal of accountability. In conclusion, he noted that the violence that erupted on October 9th is not an isolated event, and that the continuity of policy and violence is a major problem in transitional Egypt. Samuel Tadros began by noting there were high expectations and hopes within Washington and the Christian community that after the Arab Spring, democracy would bring liberal values such as freedom of speech and religion. However, these expectations soon collapsed and the situation in Egypt worsened rapidly as previous patterns repeated during the SCAF rule. One of those patterns was attacks on churches. Tadros noted that the increase in attacks on churches reinforces www.pomed.org ♦ 1111 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 300♦ Washington, DC 20009 the mentality within society that Christians should remain out of sight in the context of religion, subjugating them to second-class citizens. Another pattern is that of discrimination and persecution on a daily basis. This occurs with girls being forced to wear the veil when going to school as well as discrimination towards Christian businesses. These patterns were exhibited during the attacks on the church in Aswan, which prompted the Maspero demonstrations. Tadros went on to describe the events that led up to the massacre at Maspero. On October 9th, a few thousand Copts gathered in the Cairo neighborhood of Shubra with the intention of marching to Maspero, the location of the state-run media. On their way they were confronted and attacked by local Muslims. The notion of Christians as second-class citizens and the fact that their religion is supposed to remain out of sight added to the attacks. Once they reached Maspero, they were confronted by the military. Tadros notes that the army was not issued an order to kill the demonstrators, rather to disperse the crowd. At some point, Tadros states, the commanding officers lost control over their soldiers, which led to the violence that occurred. During this time, the Egyptian state media called on the people to come and defend the security forces as they reported the Copts attacking Maspero. Tadros concluded by discussing the Copts' problems in Egypt. The first is the deteriorating security situation in Egypt. Since there is a lack of police on the street, there is no protection for the Coptic community. Also, an expected rise of the Islamists in the new government worries many Christians as the prospect of further persecution is frightening for them. Because of these problems, many Christians are leaving the country. Tadros ended by questioning whether the new government and Egypt will be a place where the Christian community can live. Eric Trager focused his comments on the Islamists in Egypt and what their rise means to the Copts. Trager begins by stating the “violence needs to be pinned on military use of media” to attack Copts and influence divisions within Egypt. He notes the SCAF has poorly handled the political transition in Egypt, which is leading to tense U.S.-Egyptian relations. To make matters worse, the expected success of the Islamists in the upcoming elections has many worried about what the state of Egypt will look like. Trager commented that the Muslim Brotherhood’s reaction to Maspero was one of support of the military. The Brotherhood criticized the Copts for raising their demands at that time, and accused them of attacking the military. Even many moderates, such as Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh, blamed foreign “hands” for the conflict and even went as far as to say the protests had “Zionist intentions.” Trager discussed the Muslim Brotherhood in more detail as well as their political interests. He noted that the Brotherhood wants to hold elections as soon as possible in order to be more successful. They are drawing on close ties with the SCAF, even though there is a high level of mistrust between the two, in order to push for an early election date. The Brotherhood wants earlier elections because of their “waning power,” after an alliance with other Islamist parties has started to break down. Trager concluded by discussing the situation of the Brotherhood. He noted that the Muslim Brotherhood was the most organized after Mubarak fell, and was well positioned to be very successful in elections. However, after the National Democratic Alliance for Egypt was formed, many Salafist groups gained power and started to leave the Alliance and are challenging the Brotherhood’s power, putting the Muslim Brotherhood on the defensive. He www.pomed.org ♦ 1111 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 300 ♦ Washington, DC 20009 ended by stating that the U.S. and international community should be prepared for an intolerant direction in politics and few friends in Cairo. During the question and answer section, a question was raised about how the U.S. can have influence in helping the Coptic community. Tadros stated that the pending funding for Egypt predicated upon how well the democracy performs can have some influence on policy. Stressing religious freedom as a benchmark for funding may have an effect. Werthmuller notes that rule of law and discrimination are major problems. The U.S. needs to address the enforcement and implementation of the recent anti-discrimination law in Egypt. Trager stated the U.S. must reiterate to the SCAF that the goals of a stable, tolerant, and democratic Egypt are necessary. He also said that it will be difficult to maintain the relationship with the military if attacks on Christians continue. Another question was raised about whether the situation in Egypt can get worse for the Christians. Trager said that the top priority of the Muslim Brotherhood is not to hurt the Copts, but to hold elections in the short run and establish a state based on Sharia. If the Copts stand in their way, the situation can turn very dangerous. www.pomed.org ♦ 1111 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 300 ♦ Washington, DC 20009 .