Iman and Olfat Malak Ayet were raised by their mother as Christians. Their father had converted to Islam when they were infants and subsequently left their mother and re-married. He never took custody of the children nor interfered with their upbringing as Christians up to his death in November 2002. When Olfat requested a copy of her birth certificate in 2003, she discovered that her father had changed their official identities to Muslim. He had also falsified his own birth certificate, using a Muslim name as his birth name. In order for the girls to write their final exams and apply for university, they have to have an identity card. Once identified as Muslim on their identity cards, the Egyptian authorities have historically refused citizens to change that designation.
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The Coptic Church in Egypt makes up a significant percentage of the population, but has faced repeated discrimination and persecution from the Egyptian authorities. |
Religious designation is important for several reasons, including forbidding those designated as Muslims from marrying Christians and restricting them from entering churches.
Speaking to the July 6 hearing, Coptic Christian lawyer Naguib Gabriel asked the court, "How can these children be forced to become Muslims, when they have never practiced Islam in their entire lives?"
Pray that these girls, along with several other Egyptian Christians, will be allowed to express their true religious identity.
For more information on the persecution of Christians in Egypt , click here.
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