When violence breaks out between Egypt’s Muslim majority and Coptic Christian minority, the Egyptian government is normally quick to deny that the motive could be sectarian. Spokesmen point to “foreign fingers” that are supposedly stirring up sedition, in hopes that the file on the incident can be closed as quickly as possible and the state can resume displaying an image of Egypt as typified by “national unity.” This rhetorical device has been useful in the past for deflecting demands from Copts, who compose roughly 10 percent of the population, that their underlying grievances be redressed. But the government’s act has worn thin.
For background on government policies, see Issandr El Amrani, "The Emergence of a 'Coptic Question' in Egypt"Middle East Report Online, April 28, 2006.
For more on the National Council on Human Rights, see Joshua Stacher, "Rhetorical Acrobatics and Reputations: Egypt's National Council on Human Rights", Middle East Report 235 (Summer 2005).