Members of Egypt’s Nubian community have demanded the 50-member committee tasked with amending the constitution grant displaced Nubians the right of return to their native lands.
Nubians were displaced under late President Gamal Abdel Nasser, during the building of the Aswan High Dam.
They also called for having a separate constituency in Nasr al-Nuba during elections so as to guarantee a fair representation for all Nubians in future parliaments.
Nubians warned in their meeting Thursay with the 50-member committee about the attempts of investors to control the lands on the Nile River in Nubia.
Hassan Mokhtar, Nubian representative, said the return of Nubians to their lands should be through political decision-making.
Saber Abdo, former dean of the Faculty of Arts at Aswan University, argued Nubians were forcibly displaced and demanded that Article 25 in the amended Constitution preserve the Nubian culture, language and civilization.
Another Nubian representative, Ahmed Amer, called on the state to acknowledge the fact Nubians have been marginalized in Egypt.
There has to be an article in the chapter on transitional provisions protecting the rights of the people of Nubia and Sinai, Amer stressed.
Sameh Ashour, charge d’affaires of the committee, praised Nubians and said the Constitution must represent the country's multiple identities and should not be sectarian or discriminatory.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
