[Editor: See
AWR 2006, 15, art. 5 for
Shaykh al-Zifzāf’s comment on this document]
The Religious
Affairs Committee of the
People’s Assembly categorically rejected yesterday the Document of Religious
Rights, signed by former head of the
Azhar’s Interfaith Dialogue Committee, Shaykh
Fawzī al-Zifzāf with visiting
U.S. Christian clerics. Muslim Brotherhood representatives in the
parliament backed the decision of the committee,
currently headed by two leaders of the ruling National
Democratic Party (NDP).
The document recognizes
"the individual’s right to believe in the religion of
their choice,” and stipulates that "each
religion lived out by individuals or an organization has the
right to peacefully present its view of theology,
people, and the hereafter.”
During a special
session of the parliament, co-chaired by Dr. Ahmad
‘Umar Hāshim [Reviewer: No function
mentioned] and Member of Parliament Dr. Zaynab Radwān,
members of the Religious Affairs Committee
unanimously rejected the document, describing it as "a dubious
document, which promotes apostasy and grants
freedom of proselytizing for other religions.”
"This
dubious document is not binding on us,
given the fact that it has not been submitted to the People’s Assembly or
to the Islamic Research
Academy,” Dr. Hāshim said.
Deputy head of the committee,
‘Alā’
Hasānīn argued that the document is null and void because it has not been
presented to the
parliament, Majdī ‘Abd al-‘Āl writes in al-Sharq al-
Awsat of April 18,
2006.
"Men and women everywhere have the God given right to convert or not to
convert to any religion
without harm from any other religion or national politic. The individual has the right to
debate the facts
about his or her religion without fear of reprisal,” the document read.
"For two
years, the
dubious document has been placed on the Internet site of ’Ambassadors for Peace’
[http://www.ambassadorsforpeace.info/] in three langauages: English, Arabic and Spanish. The document only came to
the attention of religious institutions after the Egyptian press had uncovered it,” Anwar al-
Ja‘farī and Walīd ‘Urābī write in al-Maydān of
April 13.
According to al-Ja‘farī and ‘Urābī, the head of the
third Zurich-based Coptic conference, ‘Adlī Abādīr, "uncovered the Azhar’
s involvement in signing this document,” which they say "grants freedom of proselytizing for
Christianity and Judaism in Egypt.” Under the signed document, Abādīr has called on the
Egyptian government to commit itself to implementing all items of the document. During the conference,
Abādīr distributed copies of the signed document to the participants.
