E/CN.4/1993/62 page 92 persecution. It has also been reported that the authorities in El Obeid have dissuaded Christians from gathering for prayer. Church centres were reportedly destroyed in El Obeid and Khartoum. On 16 September 1990, a Muslim fundamentalist group is said to have set fire to a bus carrying 35 Christian children from the church of St. George in Omdourman. Fourteen children died in the incident. It has also been alleged that a Muslim policeman who came to the children’s rescue was subsequently arrested and sentenced to a 15-day prison term for rescuing Christians. Christian women are reportedly forced to wear the veil (hejab) in public and are not allowed to leave Sudan unless they are accompanied by a male relative (mouhram). In addition, it has been alleged that Christians are not allowed to appear as witnesses in court. It has also been reported that Christians have been subjected to economic sanctions because of their faith. Christians are said to have been dismissed from banks where they allegedly used to constitute the majority of personnel. They are also said to have repeatedly been denied trading, import and export, manufacturing and construction licences which have forced many to emigrate. The Coptic Christian community to which a large number of traders belongs is said to have suffered particularly from such measures. Members of this community have also been dismissed from governmental posts and it has been reported that a number of Coptic Christians have recently also been dismissed from the judiciary. As concerns the freedom of education, the Special Rapporteur was informed that in Juba, Equatoria, Islam is taught as a compulsory subject starting at the level of nursery school, which is reported to be a prerequisite for entry into primary school. Non-Muslim children in the towns of Juba, Malakal, Raja, Renk and Wau are allegedly also required to learn Arabic and study Islam. Non-Muslim students have reportedly been harassed in public schools and often graded unfairly. It has also been alleged that security forces from the north have at times brought non-Muslim children to Islamic religious schools (khalwas) against the wishes of their parents. There have also been occasional reports that pregnant women were offered money and food if they registered their newborn children as Muslims. Parents are said to have been offered money to send their children to khalwas. Khalwas also reportedly provide food and other forms of aid they receive from Muslim non-governmental organizations to students while restrictions imposed on Christian organizations prevent Christian schools from providing similar assistance to their own students. Muslim non-governmental organizations such as the ’adDa’wa al-Islamiyya’ and ’IARA’ which also run Islamic schools allegedly only distribute food to the students of their schools, to persons who have converted to Islam or are registered as Muslims. According to the information received, Christian teachers are not allowed to teach Muslim students. Christian students are required to study the Koran and Islam while the study of Christianity is said to have been removed from the educational curriculum. Non-Muslim students are not eligible to follow secondary and university education without possessing a knowledge of Islam. A governmental decree issued on 20 October 1990 reportedly stipulates that no one may accede to higher education without having undertaken mandatory studies of the Islamic religion.