Egyptian Identification Card Controversy - Effect of Computerized Identification Cards

Effect of Computerized Identification Cards

Major hardship began in the 1990s when the government modernized the electronic processing of national identification cards. Prior to this, Bahá'ís were sometimes able to obtain identification documents from a sympathetic clerk willing to issue a card that left the religious-affiliation slot blank, listed religion as "other" or a dash, or listed "Bahá'í." Bahá'ís have long refused as a matter of religious principle to falsely list themselves as Muslim, Christian, or Jew.

Electronic processing locked out the possibility of an unlisted religion, or any religious affiliation other than Muslim, Christian, or Jewish. Consequently, adherents of any other faith (or no faith) became unable to obtain any government identification documents (such as national identification cards, birth certificates, death certificates, marriage or divorce certificates, or passports) necessary to exercise their rights in their country unless they lied about their religion.

Without documents, Bahá'ís could not be employed, educated, treated in hospitals, withdraw their own money from a bank, purchase food from state stores, or vote, among other hardships. Bahá'ís became virtual non-citizens, without access to employment, education, and all government services, including hospital care. A number of Bahá'í young people are without valid ID cards, a situation that has forced them out of universities and the army, placing them on the margins of society.