Cairo, Jun 13 (Aswat Masriya) - The ministry of justice has rejected calls for cancelling prison punishments for blasphemy or ‘contempt of religion’ charges, Khaled al-Nashar, a media official and assistant for the ministry of justice said on Monday.

Nashar said in statements to journalists today that it is “unreasonable” to omit an article that punishes those who use religion to propagate “extremist ideas” or contempt for religion and blasphemy to “harm the unity of the nation.”

The ministry of justice’s representative in parliament had rejected earlier parliamentarian proposals to cancel the prison punishment from article 98, the article that pertains to “contempt of religion.”   

 He said that this would contradict with other articles that consider discrimination based on religion, and inciting towards violence crimes that are punishable by law.

The article states that those who are charged with “contempt of religion,” are to be jailed for a period of no less than six months and no more than five years, in addition to a fine no less than 500 EGP and no more than 1000 EGP.

This applies to anyone who makes blasphemous comments, or writes anything blasphemous, or who commits an act of “contempt of religion” by any other means.

Nashar said it was possible to modify the article, adding that there was a proposal from the Ministry of Justice that includes adding the right for the defendant to request to refer the judicial lawsuit to public prosecution.   

The Commission on Constitutional and Legislative Affairs decided yesterday, following the rejection of the proposals submitted, to prepare a comprehensive legal memorandum on the matter, which includes the opinion of Al-Azhar, Dar al-Iftaa, and the Egyptian Church.

Article 98 was a reference for the prison sentences issued against journalists and writers, including Ahmed Naji and Fatima Naaot, who were sentenced to prison on charges of “contempt of religion.”

The Cairo-based Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) documented nine cases that involve contempt of religion charges in 2015. In those cases, 12 Muslims and Christians were convicted.

In a statement in January, Human Rights Watch (HRW) addressed several prison sentences served in cases with blasphemy charges, noting that the majority of those arrested were charged with insulting the Islamic religion.

Egypt is party to a group of international human rights treaties including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights. The treaties oblige governments to "respect and protect" freedom of religion, belief and expression and to steer clear of discrimination.