Translated for CAA from the original article by Dina Abdel Aleem

Dr. Zawhi Hawass, the Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, says that special attention should be given to the establishment of departments of Coptic culture and heritage at universities with Departments of Archeology and at Fine Arts schools. In addition, Dr. Hawass said there should be a special section for the study of Coptic monuments at the College of Archeology, similar to those devoted to Islamic and Ancient Egyptian art.

Also, in a statement made to the newspaper Youm7, Hawass said that it has become imperative to recognize the importance of Coptic culture in Egypt. This has become a necessity since there is a lack of specialists in this field, including those who work at the Coptic Museum in Egypt but do not have the required expertise. He affirmed that taking care of Jewish and Coptic monuments is part of the master plan of the Supreme Council and that their remains should be treated the same way as the Islamic and Pharaonic ones.

Dr. Gawdat Gabra, Professor of Coptic Studies at Claremont University in California who has urged the establishment of Coptic departments at Egyptian Universities side by side with Islamic, Roman, Byzantine and Greek asked, "Why is it that there are a diversity of academic institutions around the world as far apart as Germany and Australia that study Coptic history and culture, and yet there are no similar institutions in Egypt, which is the source and origin of that culture?" It is important that Copts be given their due by the study of their history, their heritage and their civilization.