Copts have long complained of discrimination
under successive Egyptian leaders and Sisi's
actions suggested he would deliver on
promises of being an inclusive president who
could unite the country after years of political
turmoil. However, striking out at extremists
abroad might prove easier than reining in
radicals at home. Orthodox Copts, the Middle
East's biggest Christian community, are a test
of Sisi's commitment to tolerance, a theme he
often stresses in calling for an ideological
assault on Islamist militants threatening
Egypt's security.
A Coptic journalist has detailed her
frustration living as a woman in an
Egyptian society where men regularly treat
Christian woman as whores, and shared
ways in which the Coptic Church has also
mistreated females.
Engy Magdy, a Cairo-based journalist,
authored an op-ed published by Brooklyn-
based Catholic news website The Tablet on
Wednesday that detailed the plight that
women, especially Christian woman, face in
Egypt.
"To be a woman in a country where most of
her people see women as a disgrace, and at
best look at her from a sexual point of view,
it is a heavy burden, but even worse when
you are a Christian woman," she wrote. "It
is hell!"
As many women across the world today are
speaking out about the sexual abuses they
have faced at the hands of men, Magdy said
that sexual harassment in Egypt should be
described as a country-wide "epidemic." She
cited a 2013 United Nations study that
found that 99 percent of Egyptian women
have been subjected to harassment.
In the Muslim-majority African country,
Christian women and other religious
minorities who don't cover their heads in
public are targets.
"Most Muslim women in Egypt wear hijab
and therefore, the others who do not wear
it are most likely Coptic," Magdy said. "This
means that the Egyptian man thinks he has
the right to harass her, simply because he
sees her as a whore and a disbeliever."
"You may think that I am talking about a
certain class of men, but in fact, most
Muslim men (not all, but the majority) view
the Coptic woman as easy prey," she
continued. "He thinks that he will have a
religious reward if he can manipulate her
emotionally and persuade her to marry
him, or to convert to Islam, a phenomenon
prevalent in Upper Egypt."
Magdy explained that she is careful to
watch out for those types of men, some of
whom she has worked with in the past.
"[S]ociety looks at the woman who is liberal
and open minded, especially if she is Coptic,
in a very bad way," she added.
What's worse, Hagdy said, is that in many
cases, the community will always defend
the harasser against allegations of a woman
who was harassed.
She added that in some cases where women
report harassment, they are told not to "get
caught up in a scandal" because "shame
will be on you."
"And if the victim is Christian or does not
wear a hijab you hear: 'You have to be
decent and cover up your body,'" Magdy
stated.
Victim shaming
A 2017 United Nations study found that 64
percent of men in Egypt admit to having
harassed women on the street.
The study also found that victim shaming is
common in Egypt, even among women.
Eighty-four percent of women surveyed
agreed that "women who dress
provocatively deserve to be harassed."
"Unfortunately, women play a big role in
oppressing each other. Religious fanaticism
and the claim of virtue make women blame
the victim," Magdy explained. "Although
Article 306 of the Egyptian penal code states
that sexual harassment is punishable by up
to 50,000 Egyptian pounds or a prison
sentence ranging from six months to five
years, women in Egypt do not rely on the
law to protect them because when a girl
tries to seek justice, she is blamed or
threatened. Usually, perpetrators get off
scot-free."
Magdy stated that Christian women are
afraid to file reports because they fear
police will discriminate against them if they
do
"Perhaps the most blatant example is Souad
Thabet, a 72-year-old Coptic woman who
was stripped naked by a Muslim mob and
paraded around her village in Upper Egypt
in May 2016," Magdy recalls. "None of the
perpetrators were sentenced in her attack ."
Magdy claims that Egyptian society is in a
state of "duality," where it announces the
importance of "liberation and
enlightenment" but does not live out those
ideals.
*#ChurchToo*
She also criticized the Coptic Orthodox
Church for not differing from the culture in
the way it treats women.
"Although the Egyptian Constitution
provides gender equality, there is a great
legal vacuum and social injustice. For
example, when it comes to inheritance,
double injustice is inflicted upon women in
this regard. Sharia law, which grants
women half the share of men, applies to all
Egyptians in this matter," she explained.
"What makes things worse is that most
Coptic families deliberately usurp the
inheritance of women. While the Egyptian
government asked the Church to draft
family law for Christians, the Church
overlooked the inheritance issue."
Another way women are slighted is the fact
that the guardianship of their own children
is usually transferred to a male relative
when the husband passes away. In many
cases, she said, mothers are deprived access
to their children by their fathers-in-law.
"The Church in Egypt is governed only by
the male culture prevailing in society. In
addition to the issue of inheritance, there is
more injustice when it comes to divorce,"
she stated.
Coptic women are not allowed to ask for
divorce in the church even if they are
physically or psychologically abused by
their husbands because it is considered
"shameful," according to Magdy.
"In cases where women ask for help from
the Church, the usual response from the
priest is: 'You have to sacrifice for your
family ... just pray for your husband and
everything will be okay.'"
No hope for the future?
Magdy said she spends about half of her
monthly salary just to send her daughter to
school so that she can receive a decent
education. Yet, Magdy knows that when her
daughter grows up, it will be "impossible"
for her to "attain a leadership position."
"When she is harassed or assaulted, she will
not get her right to justice, and perhaps she
will keep silent," Magdy wrote . "As a girl
with no brother, her cousins will share in
the inheritance of her father. If her
marriage fails one day, she won't have a
second chance. These thoughts all gather in
my chest, suffocating me when I think
about my daughter's future."
In addition to the abuse and mistreatment
outlined by Magdy, Coptic Christian women
and girls are at greater risk of being
abducted. Last year, an ex-
kidnapper detailed the inner
workings of network of abductors who get
paid by Islamic extremists to kidnap Coptic
Christian girls.
At least eight Christian women were
reportedly kidnapped this year in Egypt.
Egypt is not the only country where women
face extreme amounts of abuse and
harassment.
Earlier this week, Bishop Joseph D'Souza,
the president of the All India Christian
Council, told The Christian Post that India is
in dire need of its own #MeToo and
#ChurchToo movements. His comments
come as India was recently ranked as the
most dangerous country in the world to be
a women and as a number of clergy abuse
cases have rocked churches in Kerala in
recent months.
"The Indian church is part of a larger
Indian society," D'Souza said. "The Indian
society has a very chauvinistic attitude. It is
rampant inside and outside the church. It is
important that our children and families
are taught about the value of the girl child
and the woman and frontly deal with the
issue of dowry, which so many of our girls
end up being abused or harassed or some
end up marrying non-Christians."
under successive Egyptian leaders and Sisi's
actions suggested he would deliver on
promises of being an inclusive president who
could unite the country after years of political
turmoil. However, striking out at extremists
abroad might prove easier than reining in
radicals at home. Orthodox Copts, the Middle
East's biggest Christian community, are a test
of Sisi's commitment to tolerance, a theme he
often stresses in calling for an ideological
assault on Islamist militants threatening
Egypt's security.
A Coptic journalist has detailed her
frustration living as a woman in an
Egyptian society where men regularly treat
Christian woman as whores, and shared
ways in which the Coptic Church has also
mistreated females.
Engy Magdy, a Cairo-based journalist,
authored an op-ed published by Brooklyn-
based Catholic news website The Tablet on
Wednesday that detailed the plight that
women, especially Christian woman, face in
Egypt.
"To be a woman in a country where most of
her people see women as a disgrace, and at
best look at her from a sexual point of view,
it is a heavy burden, but even worse when
you are a Christian woman," she wrote. "It
is hell!"
As many women across the world today are
speaking out about the sexual abuses they
have faced at the hands of men, Magdy said
that sexual harassment in Egypt should be
described as a country-wide "epidemic." She
cited a 2013 United Nations study that
found that 99 percent of Egyptian women
have been subjected to harassment.
In the Muslim-majority African country,
Christian women and other religious
minorities who don't cover their heads in
public are targets.
"Most Muslim women in Egypt wear hijab
and therefore, the others who do not wear
it are most likely Coptic," Magdy said. "This
means that the Egyptian man thinks he has
the right to harass her, simply because he
sees her as a whore and a disbeliever."
"You may think that I am talking about a
certain class of men, but in fact, most
Muslim men (not all, but the majority) view
the Coptic woman as easy prey," she
continued. "He thinks that he will have a
religious reward if he can manipulate her
emotionally and persuade her to marry
him, or to convert to Islam, a phenomenon
prevalent in Upper Egypt."
Magdy explained that she is careful to
watch out for those types of men, some of
whom she has worked with in the past.
"[S]ociety looks at the woman who is liberal
and open minded, especially if she is Coptic,
in a very bad way," she added.
What's worse, Hagdy said, is that in many
cases, the community will always defend
the harasser against allegations of a woman
who was harassed.
She added that in some cases where women
report harassment, they are told not to "get
caught up in a scandal" because "shame
will be on you."
"And if the victim is Christian or does not
wear a hijab you hear: 'You have to be
decent and cover up your body,'" Magdy
stated.
Victim shaming
A 2017 United Nations study found that 64
percent of men in Egypt admit to having
harassed women on the street.
The study also found that victim shaming is
common in Egypt, even among women.
Eighty-four percent of women surveyed
agreed that "women who dress
provocatively deserve to be harassed."
"Unfortunately, women play a big role in
oppressing each other. Religious fanaticism
and the claim of virtue make women blame
the victim," Magdy explained. "Although
Article 306 of the Egyptian penal code states
that sexual harassment is punishable by up
to 50,000 Egyptian pounds or a prison
sentence ranging from six months to five
years, women in Egypt do not rely on the
law to protect them because when a girl
tries to seek justice, she is blamed or
threatened. Usually, perpetrators get off
scot-free."
Magdy stated that Christian women are
afraid to file reports because they fear
police will discriminate against them if they
do
"Perhaps the most blatant example is Souad
Thabet, a 72-year-old Coptic woman who
was stripped naked by a Muslim mob and
paraded around her village in Upper Egypt
in May 2016," Magdy recalls. "None of the
perpetrators were sentenced in her attack ."
Magdy claims that Egyptian society is in a
state of "duality," where it announces the
importance of "liberation and
enlightenment" but does not live out those
ideals.
*#ChurchToo*
She also criticized the Coptic Orthodox
Church for not differing from the culture in
the way it treats women.
"Although the Egyptian Constitution
provides gender equality, there is a great
legal vacuum and social injustice. For
example, when it comes to inheritance,
double injustice is inflicted upon women in
this regard. Sharia law, which grants
women half the share of men, applies to all
Egyptians in this matter," she explained.
"What makes things worse is that most
Coptic families deliberately usurp the
inheritance of women. While the Egyptian
government asked the Church to draft
family law for Christians, the Church
overlooked the inheritance issue."
Another way women are slighted is the fact
that the guardianship of their own children
is usually transferred to a male relative
when the husband passes away. In many
cases, she said, mothers are deprived access
to their children by their fathers-in-law.
"The Church in Egypt is governed only by
the male culture prevailing in society. In
addition to the issue of inheritance, there is
more injustice when it comes to divorce,"
she stated.
Coptic women are not allowed to ask for
divorce in the church even if they are
physically or psychologically abused by
their husbands because it is considered
"shameful," according to Magdy.
"In cases where women ask for help from
the Church, the usual response from the
priest is: 'You have to sacrifice for your
family ... just pray for your husband and
everything will be okay.'"
No hope for the future?
Magdy said she spends about half of her
monthly salary just to send her daughter to
school so that she can receive a decent
education. Yet, Magdy knows that when her
daughter grows up, it will be "impossible"
for her to "attain a leadership position."
"When she is harassed or assaulted, she will
not get her right to justice, and perhaps she
will keep silent," Magdy wrote . "As a girl
with no brother, her cousins will share in
the inheritance of her father. If her
marriage fails one day, she won't have a
second chance. These thoughts all gather in
my chest, suffocating me when I think
about my daughter's future."
In addition to the abuse and mistreatment
outlined by Magdy, Coptic Christian women
and girls are at greater risk of being
abducted. Last year, an ex-
kidnapper detailed the inner
workings of network of abductors who get
paid by Islamic extremists to kidnap Coptic
Christian girls.
At least eight Christian women were
reportedly kidnapped this year in Egypt.
Egypt is not the only country where women
face extreme amounts of abuse and
harassment.
Earlier this week, Bishop Joseph D'Souza,
the president of the All India Christian
Council, told The Christian Post that India is
in dire need of its own #MeToo and
#ChurchToo movements. His comments
come as India was recently ranked as the
most dangerous country in the world to be
a women and as a number of clergy abuse
cases have rocked churches in Kerala in
recent months.
"The Indian church is part of a larger
Indian society," D'Souza said. "The Indian
society has a very chauvinistic attitude. It is
rampant inside and outside the church. It is
important that our children and families
are taught about the value of the girl child
and the woman and frontly deal with the
issue of dowry, which so many of our girls
end up being abused or harassed or some
end up marrying non-Christians."
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