Report on the International Activities of the Coptic Associations for the Months April and May:

represented by: Mr. Milad Iskander, the President of

The American Coptic Association

 

During the Months April and May, 2005, the American Coptic Association?s president Mr. Milad Iskander attended 2 international meeting one in Geneva, and the second in Washington DC.? During those meeting Mr. Iskander explain the human rights violation of the Copts, the Christians of Egypt, by the Egyptian Government in many aspect of Daly life.? He spoke on the Egyptian Constitution law that puts the Copts as a second class citizens, and kidnapping, raping, and inducing of under age of Coptic Girls.? Mr. Iskander also expose the relationship the exist between the Egyptian Police, the interior minister, and the Muslims extremists.

 

The Geneva Conference titled ?VICTIMS OF JIHAD, Muslims, Dhimmis, Apostates, and Women? which was attended by many Coptic Organizations world wide including the French Coptic Association led by Mr. Nagi Awad, Representatives of Members and Observers States of the UN Commission on Human Rights, UN bodies, Specialized Agencies, Intergovernmental Organizations, and NGOs.

 

The Conference started with gest speakers, all are specialists in the field of Islamic Jihad and Human Rights, among the speakers are:

 

Mr. Johannes J. G. Jansen, Professor of Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of Utrecht

Mr. Hamouda F. Bella Sudanese human rights activist

Mr. David G. Littman, Historian, writer on human rights, NGO representative at UN

Mr. Walid Phares, Professor of Middle East Studies, Florida Atlantic University

Ms. Bat Ye?or, Writer on the dhimmis, ondhimmitude, and on ?Eurabia?

Mr. Ibn Warraq, Historian, writer on Islam, and Apostates

Mr. Azam Kamguian, Iranian writer and women?s rights activist

Mr. Simon Deng, Former Sudanese slave, human rights activist

Ms. Caroline Fourest, French writer, author of books on religious extremism

Ms. Taslima Nasrin, Bangladeshi exiled writer and humanist activist

Mr. Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Member of Parliament (NL), women?s rights activist

 

The conference started with very strong, clear, and presis statement by the sponsoring NGOs, the following is an excerpt:

We are aware of the importance of the concept of Jihad in Islam, widely interpreted as ?struggle?-both in the sense of personal struggle, and in the struggle to promote Islam in the wider world?.Since the events of 11^th September 2001, Jihad has unfortunately become synonymous with the activities of Islamist extremists.

 

?? Our speakers today are all either internationally renowned experts in their field, or have themselves been victims of jihad ideology-and in some cases, both.? Several of our speakers have recently received death threats from extremists.

 

Our purpose today is not to attack Islam, nor by turning the spotlight onto abuse and terror carried out in the name of Islam, to condone the abuse of human rights by the followers of other religions, by military forces, by governments, or by non-state actors.? Our primary concern is Human Rights.?? etc

 

Abuse of human rights is no less serious, nor can it be justified, because it is carried out in the name of a religion ? or in pursuit of some ?higher? purpose.? We believe that acts must be judged by their consequences?.And it is no defense of abuse to argue that others are equal or worse abusers.

 

Neither is it a defense to argue that those who carry out abuse in the name of Islam are not true Muslims; the fact is, many believe they are , having been taught that ?death for the sake of Allah is the loftiest of wishes??etc.

 

We are holding this conference in parallel with the current session of the UN Commission on Human Rights in order to draw wider attention to the problem of human rights abuse carried out in the name of Islam and to challenge those who maintain that human rights abuse in the name of Islam does not exist, or that what others call abuse is justifiable under Islamic law.

 

We intend to show today that human rights abuse in the cause of Jihad is primarily a problem for the Islamic world, and to call upon its leaders-especially the Organization of the Islamic Conference-to begin seriously to address this issue.