"Employers, both public and private, by law cannot hire someone without an ID, and academic institutions require IDs for admission," said the report. "Obtaining a marriage license or a passport requires a birth certificate; inheritance, pensions, and death benefits are contingent on death certificates. The Ministry of Health has even refused to provide immunizations to some Baha'i children because the Interior Ministry would not issue them birth certificates accurately listing their Baha'i religion."

The issuance of birth certificates is at the heart of the first case, which concerns 14-year-old twins Imad and Nancy Rauf Hindi. Their father, Rauf Hindi, obtained birth certificates that recognized their Baha'i affiliation when they were born.

But new policies require computer generated certificates, and the computer system locks out any religious affiliation but the three officially recognized religions. And without birth certificates, the children are unable to enroll in school in Egypt.

The second lawsuit was filed by the EIPR last February on behalf of 18-year-old Hussein Hosni Bakhit Abdel-Massih, who was suspended from the Suez Canal University's Higher Institute of Social Work in January 2006 due to his inability to obtain an identity card because of his refusal to falsely identify himself as either a Muslim, a Christian, or a Jew.

In both cases, lawyers representing the Baha'is have made it clear that they are willing to settle for cards or documents on which the religious affiliation field is left blank or filled in, perhaps, as "other."

This solution is what makes these two cases different from the lawsuit that was rejected by the Supreme Administrative Court last year, said Hossam Baghat, director of the EIPR.

"The negative ruling by the Supreme Administrative Court has forced us to file these new cases," said Mr. Baghat, whose organization has been at the forefront of defending Egyptian Baha'is in this controversy. "The facts are extremely similar to the case that we lost last year, but we are calling this time for documents without any religious affiliation.

"For us, this is really the test for the government and the judiciary on this issue. Because if the main problem is the fact that the Baha'i Faith is not recognized in Egypt, then there should be no grounds for them to deny these Egyptian citizens documents that are necessary for their daily life without any reference to religion."

Mr. Baghat said the cases also have implications for religious freedom in general in Egypt.

"So far, the problem only affects Egyptian Baha'is, but the same problem could arise in theory with Egyptians who are adherents of Buddhism or Hinduism," said Mr. Baghat. "But it is also important for people who do not wish to be identified with any religion, which is a right guaranteed by both Egyptian and international law."

For Egyptian Baha'is, the facts of life on the ground continue to deteriorate in the absence of a solution, said Labib Hanna, a spokesperson for the Egyptian Baha'i community.

"We are not able to do anything without valid identification papers," said Dr. Hanna, who is a professor of mathematics at Cairo University. "We cannot renew a driver's license, we cannot obtain permanent employment, and we cannot send our children to school."

He said many Baha'is are able to meet the needs of daily life by taking temporary positions, dealing with banks, schools, or other institutions where they have an established relationship, or by continuing to use old, paper-based identification cards that allowed for other options in the religious affiliation field.

"We are trying to survive," said Dr. Hanna. "But it is difficult. We are struggling."