Message to Egyptian Christians in other countries

Some Christian Egyptians who live in other countries call for staging protests outside Egyptian embassies and consulates in these countries against what they describe as the persecution of their coreligionists back home. 

Nonetheless, I need to ask them this question: What type of persecution are you talking about, dear brothers and sisters?

Some people persecute all Egyptians, including the Christians, with the aim of undermining the Egyptian state. They want to take revenge on the Christians for standing, together with other Egyptians, against the Muslim Brotherhood regime in June 2013. 

But this is totally different from a situation systematic persecution is practiced by state institutions against a segment of society or the population. 

Dear brothers and sisters, we have a president who calls for applying citizenship rights, almost for the first time in history. He works to spread justice and publicly orders the construction of churches. He even oversees the construction of these churches personally. 

The president visits the Christian Orthodox Church to congratulate Christian citizens, in total disregard for edicts by extremists. He launches a fearless war against terrorism and the Muslim Brotherhood movement. He even encourages army troops and policemen to sacrifice themselves for the people of Egypt, both Muslims and Christians. 

Every day, the Brotherhood and like-minded organizations try to put more pressure on the president by targeting the churches, the mosques and police and army posts. Nevertheless, the president issues orders for avenging this, even if outside national borders. Libya is a good example in this regard. 

The House of Deputies (parliament) has the highest Christian representation in history (39 MPs). Two Christian governors were appointed, also for the first time, in Dagahlia and Damietta provinces. 

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi allows Christians to join military and police academies in large numbers. This is unprecedented in Egypt's history. He asks contractors and government executives not to forget to construct a church in every new city. He always asks, "Where will the Christians pray to God, if the state does not construct churches for them?"

None of Sisi's predecessors did this since the days of Mohamed Ali Pasha. 

I ask those who call for staging protests outside Egyptian embassies and consulates abroad to fear God. The Christians living inside Egypt cannot approve of these protests as a way of self-defense. 

I have always been a staunch defender of the rights of the Christians. Nobody can deny this. I did this at times when almost all those who call for staging the protests today were silent. I had not seen any of these people on Egypt's streets when my fellow Christian nationals and I were alone on these streets fighting against the Brotherhood and defending our country against them. 

We did this because we know for sure that this country is ours. We also know that it will be inherited by our children and grandchildren. We will always be together, defending each other and keeping danger away from our country, along with our elected president and our justice system. 

The same justice system referred the latest attack against a bus carrying Christian citizens near the central province of Minya to the Criminal Court. It designated the crime as "premeditated murder". 

The Christians inside Egypt have nothing to do with the protest calls. They do not need these calls. They also oppose the actions of the people who made these calls. 

The same Christians view these calls as a stab in the back for their country, especially at this sensitive time when Egypt works tooth and nail to stand against those who want to bring it down to its knees. 

I called repeatedly for removing hindrances on the road to allowing the Christians to construct their own churches. I first wrote about this one quarter a century ago. 

In doing this, I opened the door for the Brotherhood, the Salafists and the terrorists to attack me. I met numerous Christians and we fought the fight together to liberate our country from the Brotherhood. The streets were our refuge and a stage for important events that paved the road for the June 2013 revolution. 

We won our freedom and the freedom of our country. Nonetheless, we paid dearly in blood, Muslim and Christian blood. We fought this fight here in Egypt. This is why I ask those who call for the protests not to be the lackeys of other powers. I ask them to put Egypt in their hearts and be aware of the conspiracies that are being concocted against their country.