By Mada Masr –
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Eight defendants accused of rioting and violence in connection to a sectarian incident in which an elderly Coptic Christian woman was stripped and assaulted in Minya in May were released Wednesday night.
The Minya Misdemeanor Court ordered the defendants to pay LE10,000 each and ordered their release.
Following Wednesday’s verdict, all 16 defendants arrested in the case have now been released, as the prosecution released eight others in late June.
The incident reportedly began when a rumor circulated in the village about a romantic relationship between a divorced Muslim woman and a Christian man, who had to flee the village for fear of his safety. Around 300 men then stormed the Coptic man’s house, dragged his elderly mother outside and stripped her naked in the streets. They also raided a number of Coptic homes, destroying and looting them, Minya’s Archbishopric said in a statement.
Lawyer Ihab Ramzy, who represents the Coptic Christians in the case, told Mada Masr that the verdict is a “big mystery” as the legal grounds for detaining the defendants are strong, and their release is a “direct threat to the safety of the victims.” He asserted that the verdict follows “pressure by local village leaders and parliamentarians on the victims to pressure them to change their testimonies and force them into reconciliation,” adding that the release of the defendants is “terrorizing” for all involved.
The incident in late May sparked a wave of anger over ongoing sectarian violence against Coptic Christians, with many criticizing a lack of state response to such cases. Minya’s church officials demanded a swift application of the law and the arrest of all those involved. The church stated its reluctance to engage in customary arbitration sessions, which commonly end in forced reconciliation agreements that discriminate against Coptic minorities.
A 2015 study by the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) documenting 45 cases of sectarian violence shows that these sessions, commonly spearheaded by the state’s security apparatus, usually lead to violating the rights of citizens. Bishop Makaryous of the Minya Archbishopric heavily criticized Al-Azhar and state institutions for resorting to such methods.
Despite this, human rights activist Sherif Azer expects that the case will end through customary arbitration, following the same pattern of similar incidents.
“I don’t think the church will take a strong position following this verdict. I believe Makaryous’s insistence to reject reconciliation is a personal choice more than an official stance by the church. Church leaders are not ready for escalation,” he explained. “For Copts, this government ended their biggest nightmare, and they are willing to make any concessions so that this nightmare does not become a reality again,” referring to the ousting of Muslim Brotherhood President Mohamed Morsi in 2013 and current President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s government.
Makaryous declined to comment on this verdict, saying he does not comment on judicial orders.
In a previous interview with Mada Masr, Makaryous said this incident was the final straw in a series of attacks on Copts that have not been served justice. “We discovered that such sessions [customary arbitration] are not a real solution to sectarian violence, and give others the green light to commit more crimes against Copts,” he asserted. “The government has to protect the state, and such protection won’t happen unless the rule of law is enforced and those who committed these crimes are referred to court.”
State officials denied any violations against Coptic Christians in this incident, despite Al-Azhar-affiliated initiative The Family House holding a customary arbitration session that the church declined to attend. Directly after the incident, the initiative, which was based on an order by Al-Azhar Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayyeb, launched two offices in Minya’s cities of Malawy and Samalout. Minya Governorate has the highest numbers of Coptic citizens in Egypt.
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http://www.madamasr.com/news/all-defendants-implicated-assault-coptic-woman-sectarian-violence-minya-released
