EGYPT COURT TO RULE NEXT WEEK ON NEW RELIGIOUS FREEDOM CASES

CAIRO, 20 December 2007 (BWNS)
A court is expected to rule early next week on two cases related to the government's policy on religious affiliation and national identity papers, an issue that has been hotly debated here in recent months and a focus of international human rights concerns.

The first case involves a lawsuit by the father of twin children, who is seeking to obtain proper birth certificates for them. The second concerns a college student, who needs a national identity card to re-enroll in university. Both are set for "final judgment" by the Court of Administrative Justice in Cairo on 25 December 2007. In both cases, the individuals involved are unable to obtain government identification papers because they are Baha'is.

"The world has increasingly come to understand the basic injustice imposed by the Egyptian government's policies on religious affiliation and official documents -- and the court has before it in these two cases the chance once again to right that wrong," said Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha'i International Community.

The government requires all identification papers to list religious affiliation but then restricts the choice to the three officially recognized religions -- Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. Baha'is are thus unable to obtain identification papers because they refuse to lie about their religious affiliation.