Dr. Safwāt al-Bayādī, President of the Evangelical community, said that the churches will hold a long meeting in the presence of Pope Tawardos II and Shaykh of al-Azhar, Dr. Ahmad al-Tayyib soon, before meetings of the Assembly to Amend the Constitution of 2012 begin. The meeting has the objective to unify the views on the contentious articles of the Constitution.
Bayādī said that the Church will not dispute Article 219 or others, but insists on compromises on the Constitution to protect minorities, the poor, and the downtrodden. He pointed out that the Committee in its current formation did not guarantee a majority to anyone. He said that it was predicted that the Islamic movements want to insist on some articles that are rejected by society.
Rafīq Garīsh, official spokesman for the Catholic Church, said that the Church rejected the existence of Article 219. He said that the Church in its role as a national institution demands a national and democratic constitution that respects everyone and represents all Egyptians ('Imād Khalīl, al-Masrī al-Yawm, Sept. 1, 2013, p. 7). Read original text in Arabic.
(Anton Bondarew, Intern)
