What precipitated the murder of Coptic Christians over Christmas in Egypt, and why does it matter?
The government has said that the mob attack may have been retaliation by the Muslim community for the rape of a Muslim girl by a Christian man who currently awaits trial. This has been the worst known incident of sectarian violence in a decade. It resulted in seven deaths, six Christians and one Muslim. It speaks of tensions that have been building for quite some time between the two communities. But what is important to note here is that there was an arrest and trial for the man accused of the rape, and the government acted specifically on that. It is incumbent on the government to act justly in this instance of the seven murders as well. In Malaysia the burning of Christian churches was precipitated by a court ruling allowing a Catholic magazine to use the term ’Allah’ in reference to God. Why has this been such a contentious issue? Religious freedom has been causing major tensions in Malaysia for years now. There has been a lot of controversy surrounding conversion and child custody
