The Right to Convert

Liberal forces in Egypt are celebrating a legal victory on the part of a group of people who had converted to Islam from Christianity, but decided to convert back again. Apostasy is considered a sin punishable by death by Islamic literalists, whereas more liberal Egyptians accept the right to religious freedom. As a result of the court case, the Christians can return to their original faith — though all this will be marked on their identity cards, which some human rights lawyers fear may expose them to discrimination or worse. It’s all a very emotive issue, and one that I shall be monitoring closely over the coming months.