A Christian’s Ground-Zero View
of Revolution in Egypt
by PETER JESSERER SMITH
CAIRO — A popular uprising, backed by Egypt’s Army, has deposed the ruling Muslim Brotherhood and its Islamist president, Mohammed Morsi. As interim President Adly Mansour guides the formation of a new constitution, Egypt’s Christians hope that they will have full inclusion in Egyptian society after enduring some of the worst religious persecution in decades.
Christians make up 10% of Egypt’s 85 million population, and most belong to the Coptic Orthodox Church, led by Pope Tawadros II. They have endured decades of religious discrimination from Egypt’s military rulers until the fall of Hosni Mubarak in 2011, but they have suffered even more under the Islamist government of Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood until the June 30 revolution.
Father Rafic Greiche, spokesman for Egypt’s Catholic Conference, spoke with the Register July 6 by telephone from Cairo about the revolution in Egypt, the situation of the Christians and the great hope for the future if Egypt’s technocrats can devise a new constitution that gives full civil rights to Christians and all minorities and relieve the nation’s economic suffering.
Father Rafic, thank you so much for this interview. Can you tell us what is it like on the ground right now in Egypt?
Between two to three days ago, and now, we have a very small group, the Islamists of the Muslim Brotherhood, trying to instill fear in the opposing groups, who are the most creative people of Egypt. They’re using violence or threats. They threw a boy from a building, and this morning a priest was killed.
So there is violence on the ground and bloodletting here and there. But this is not a coup d’etat, as portrayed by the Western media.
What is going on then? A revolution or a coup d’etat?
It is a revolution. Thirty million people went out into the streets refusing this regime, and the army protected these people. A coup d’etat is just the opposite: The officers reverse a government and then rule by themselves. And then maybe the people would support them. This happened before in Egypt in 1952.
But this is not the case today. The people demanded to get rid of this regime, and the army heard the demands of the people.
.............
Read more: www.ncregister.com
Christians make up 10% of Egypt’s 85 million population, and most belong to the Coptic Orthodox Church, led by Pope Tawadros II. They have endured decades of religious discrimination from Egypt’s military rulers until the fall of Hosni Mubarak in 2011, but they have suffered even more under the Islamist government of Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood until the June 30 revolution.
Father Rafic Greiche, spokesman for Egypt’s Catholic Conference, spoke with the Register July 6 by telephone from Cairo about the revolution in Egypt, the situation of the Christians and the great hope for the future if Egypt’s technocrats can devise a new constitution that gives full civil rights to Christians and all minorities and relieve the nation’s economic suffering.
Father Rafic, thank you so much for this interview. Can you tell us what is it like on the ground right now in Egypt?
Between two to three days ago, and now, we have a very small group, the Islamists of the Muslim Brotherhood, trying to instill fear in the opposing groups, who are the most creative people of Egypt. They’re using violence or threats. They threw a boy from a building, and this morning a priest was killed.
So there is violence on the ground and bloodletting here and there. But this is not a coup d’etat, as portrayed by the Western media.
What is going on then? A revolution or a coup d’etat?
It is a revolution. Thirty million people went out into the streets refusing this regime, and the army protected these people. A coup d’etat is just the opposite: The officers reverse a government and then rule by themselves. And then maybe the people would support them. This happened before in Egypt in 1952.
But this is not the case today. The people demanded to get rid of this regime, and the army heard the demands of the people.
.............
Read more: www.ncregister.com
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