After having his religious identity denied for over a decade, an Egyptian Christian has now been able to have his religious affiliation corrected on his identity documents, marking a significant victory for religious freedom in Egypt.
The Cairo resident, known only as Elias for security reasons, was the victim of a clerical error by the Egyptian authorities which resulted in him being incorrectly listed as a Muslim on all official identification documents.
This error had a significant impact on the daily lives of Elias and his family. Their participation in Christian activities was restricted and his children could not attend Christian schools, according to legal advisory group ADF International, which assisted Elias.
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Despite repeated attempts to correct this on his identity card, Elias’ requests were continually ignored, leading to widespread discrimination and restrictions on his family’s religious education and practice.
ADF International said a resolution was found through its network of allied lawyers, resulting in a government order to amend Elias’ documents to accurately reflect his Christian beliefs.
According to Kelsey Zorzi, director of global religious freedom at ADF International, Elias’ case is just one of numerous cases in which religious minorities are harassed or discriminated against when they request a change of religious affiliation on their identity documents.
“Despite years of legal battles and attempts to amend the law to meet religious freedom standards, the situation has not fundamentally changed,” she added. “We are pleased that Elias’ request was finally granted and we will continue to support other individuals who have problems with their ID card.”
The Egyptian Ministry of Interior requires that all citizens’ ID cards indicate their religious affiliation. Errors or false information in such documents can lead to serious violations of religious freedom and discrimination.
Cases of Christian persecution in Egypt range from the harassment of women on the streets to the expulsion of Christian communities from their homes by extremist mobs. Christians are generally treated as second-class citizens.
The Egyptian government speaks positively about the Christian community in Egypt. Yet, Christians are subjected to all kinds of attacks due to a lack of law enforcement and the unwillingness of local authorities to protect them.
Churches and Christian non-governmental organizations face restrictions on building new churches and providing social services.
In Egypt, ADF International is also involved in legal proceedings involving Nour Girgis and Abdulbaqi Saeed Abdo, two Christian men who have been in pre-trial detention since 2021. Their arrest was due to their association with a Facebook page supporting people who have converted from Islam to Christianity, an allegation that Egyptian authorities have controversially linked to terrorism.
The advocacy group is demanding her immediate release and is trying to achieve this through international legal channels. Abdo recently announced that he would go on hunger strike in protest against the injustice he suffered.
