after they abandoned the Muslim religion and accepted Jesus Christ in their lives, The Barnabas Fund said Friday November 28.
The human rights organization, which supports Christians in Muslim nations, cautioned however that Mariam Girgis Makar is the only remaining in custody and that security forces "seem determined to make an example of her."
It said a scholar from the Al-Azhar Islamic University in Cairo has been called in by the police to aid them in their case against Mariam, a convert from Islam. The Egyptian government has in the past defended its record on human rights, saying it is cracking down on extremists.
However The Barnabas Fund said it is concerned that the police "are seeking advice about bringing charges concerning crimes against Islam which they could prosecute her for. Although the other converts and their supporters have been released, charges are still outstanding against them."
TORTURE AND INTIMIDATION
Earlier human rights reports suggested the Christians had been subjected to torture and intimidation. The police have recalled Mariam’s husband, Yusuf Samuel Makari Suliman, also a convert, for a writing sample to compare it with that on an official document.
"All the converts and those who had helped them were originally indicted under charges related to falsifying their names on documents. A Christian who converts to Islam in Egypt can receive new ID papers with a new Muslim name within 24 hours. However there is no reciprocal arrangement for a Muslim who converts to Christianity," the Fund said.
The pressure on Christians in Egypt comes at a time when Muslim violence is spreading throughout the middle east, human rights groups say. The Barnabas Fund said it is especially worried about terrorist organizations.
ISLAM BIRTHPLACE
"In Egypt, the birthplace of modern Islamism, the groups that assassinated President Sadat in 1981 waged a terror campaign against the Egyptian government in the 1980s and 1990s. (They) have always regarded the indigenous Christian community, the Copts, as enemies of Islam because of their demands for equal treatment.."
The call for equal treatment is "seen as a rejection of what Islamists consider to be their God-ordained subordinate status in the Islamic order. This subordinate dhimmi status is characterized by humiliation and subjugation, and includes limitations on public expression of Christianity," said The Barnabas Fund.
It also includes a total ban on Christian mission amongst Muslims. Indigenous Christians are also accused of anti-Muslim alliances with what Islamic militants call "the imperialist West", including the United States.
