I was ready with my piece on the Coptic Christmas, the Christian holiday that comes unexpectedly, when the Catholic brothers have already put away the crib. On January 7, holidays recognized by the Egyptian state (in which the Copts represent about 10% of the population, or about 8-10 million people), Orthodox Christians of the southern Mediterranean celebrate the Nativity, exchange gifts, they echo the bell in the large predominantly Muslim country. But my article was turned into a chronicle of blood.
This year, the night between 6 and 7 January, a commando three armed men followed, shooting, the fellow who came out of midnight mass. The churchyard and the adjoining streets, in Naga Hamady, a small village in Qena Governorate, about 700 km from Cairo, remained on the ground nine victims, including a Muslim soldier on the spot occurred. Dozens were injured. The three leaders, Muslims, known criminals to the police, were later surrendered to police. The clashes between the two religious groups have set fire to the area for days. The official version, the three wanted revenge for a Muslim girl, raped by a young Christian in November. Argued by the Coptic authorities, usually more cautious, but this time clearly exasperated, is that this was an attack on religious background.
First reflection: the Egyptian friends tell me of a not so distant past in which Muslims and Christians (before the 50s, also Jewish, yes yes yes) they exchanged greetings and gifts on the occasion of their religious holidays. Ramadan, Eid, Christmas and Easter shared. The Egyptians were less, more united, more wealthy, more educated. There was no room for intolerance, bigotry, prejudice.
Now, with empty stomachs of Said, southern Egypt, dull hunger and ignorance, it is an easy prey to fundamentalism and violence.
Two: The State seems to be losing control of his base. Until two years ago Egypt was a socialist country, but as to maintain the connotation while more than half the population has problems with living, are illiterate, live below the poverty level (elite and rich goes back and forth to Paris and London for shopping and education) play a bit 'absurd, the Constitution has been amended. Things, however, does not seem to improve and the country is sinking. Perhaps, in the post-Mubarak, the Muslim Brotherhood will have more luck in rejecting the radical infiltration, if you really want ...
Three: the twelve year old raped two months ago and its suffering I have doubts that interests somebody something, assuming that the story is true (it is taken as an excuse for anti-Christian raids for months). Bitterly, recalling conversations with young women of the Luxor (the one away from the tourist routes), I think that nobody would marry that girl. What if he is lucky if his family will keep at home, but well hidden among the four walls. Otherwise, its future 'professional' is already marked ...
The usual excuses to avoid tribal tell it like it is: in the central and southern Egypt, the Coptic Christian community has no peace. And Cairo underestimates the question, blindness or intentionally.
0 comments:
Post a Comment