• 09:25
  • Wednesday ,29 May 2013
العربية

Demiana

Monir Beshai

Article Of The Day

00:05

Wednesday ,29 May 2013

Demiana
She found herself suddenly a very famous Coptic girl. Deminana Abdul Nour is a young lady who works as a teacher in Luxor, and represent the persecuted Coptic Christians in Egypt.
 
This young lady is accused of insulting Islam while teaching fourth graders history of religions. Abdel-Nour, who is due to stand trial for blasphemy, went from classroom to jail after lawyers and parents of three students filed a lawsuit accusing the teacher of insulting Islam.
 
Later, many human rights organizations have demanded her liberation, assuring that whatever she said, she shouldn't be in jail or face possible threat to her life. 
 
This is the case in Egypt right now. Any Muslim can accuse a Coptic Christian man or woman of insulting Islam with almost no proof, which is likely to destroy his or her life all in all. On the other hand, many cases of insulting Christianity is ignored by the authorities in Egypt. 
 
Deminana was accused of a group of unreasonable charges that should have basically ignored by the prosecutor. Accusations claimed that Demiana said that the late Pope Shenouda is better than Prophet Mohammed, preached Christianity, and contributed to undermine the foundations of Egyptian society!
 
First of all, a missionary would have rather drawn a comparison between Christ and Prophet Mohammed. Secondly, she, being teacher in a number of other schools, has never been accused of such things, and most of her students in the class denied such accusations. Furthermore, I wonder how fragile are the foundations of Egyptian society to be undermined by a social studies teacher in a remote village's primary school! 
 
As most of her students did, the Muslim headmaster Mustafa Mekky has supported Demiana which cost his removal from the school. He assured that some fanatics have incited against the Christian teacher. Only 3 students out of 43 accused her, while the rest denied such accusations.
 
I can see that some fanatics have made a molehill out of nothing, and journalists have amplified the case, and made a mountain out of a molehill! Demiana's Muslim lawyer said in the court that this case is an example of fabricating a crime! So, what would happen to her?