Displaying items by tag: Persecution

The State Department recently released its International Religious Freedom Report for 2017. A wide range of U.S. government agencies and offices use the reports for such efforts as shaping policy and conducting diplomacy. The Secretary of State also uses the reports to help determine which countries have engaged in or tolerated “particularly severe violations” of religious freedom in order to designate “countries of particular concern.”

A major concern addressed in this year’s report is that “international religious freedom is worsening in both the depth and breadth of violations.” Here are five facts from the report about the persecution of Christians:

1. North Korea, where religious freedom is nonexistent, continues to rank as the one of the world’s most repressive regimes. The United Nations estimates that less than two percent of North Koreans are Christian, or somewhere between 200,000 and 400,000 people. As the report notes, the North Korean government relentlessly persecutes and punishes religious believers through arrest, torture, imprisonment, and sometimes execution. Once Christians are imprisoned, they are typically sent to political prison camps where they are “treated with extraordinary cruelty.”
2. The government of China, a country that has about 70 million Christians, has circulated revised regulations governing religion, including new penalties for “illegal” religious activities and an increase on the crackdown on Christian house churches. The report also notes that the Chinese government is continuing its campaign, launched in 2014, to remove crosses and demolish churches. Over the past three years Chinese authorities have removed crosses or demolished churches at more than 1,500 locations in Zhejiang Province alone.
3. In Eritrea, Pentecostals and Evangelicals comprise the majority of religious prisoners. Persons detained for religious activities, in both short-term and long-term detentions, are not formally charged, permitted access to legal counsel, accorded due process, or allowed family visits. Prisoners are not permitted to pray aloud, sing, or preach, and religious books are banned. Evangelicals and Pentecostals released from prison report being pressured to recant their faith, forced to sign statements that they would no longer gather to worship, and warned not to reengage in religious activities.
4. Iran continues to arbitrarily arrest and detain Christians. Since 2010, more than 600 Christians throughout the country have been held as religious prisoners. In 2016 there were numerous incidents of Iranian authorities raiding church services, threatening church members, and arresting and imprisoning worshipers and church leaders, particularly Evangelicals. As of December 2016, approximately 90 Christians were in prison, detained, or awaiting trial because of their religious beliefs and activities.

5. As the report notes, the Russian government views independent religious activity as a major threat to social and political stability, an approach inherited from the Soviet period. It maintains and frequently updates laws that restrict religious freedom, including a 1997 religion law and a much-amended 2002 law on combating extremism. The Russian religion law sets strict registration requirements on religious groups and empowers state officials to impede their activity. It also effects religious liberty in parts of the Ukraine controlled by Russian-occupied separatist para-states. In December 2016, Ministry of State Security of one such groups denounced the Baptist community as a “non-traditional religious organization” engaged in “destructive activity.”

From: The Weekly <This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.>
Date: Fri, May 12, 2017

Pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ in these five countries which are among the worst abusers of Christians. Pray they will be strong and faithful to the Lord who called them and that these regimes will change their attitudes and pass laws protecting religious believers that live under their rule

Recently, members of the Sudan Church of Christ gathered for worship in the Khartoum suburb of Soba al Aradi. Before the service began, a bulldozer rumbled toward the church and demolished it, the last church still standing in the area. In 2011, the Sudanese government demolished twelve churches in the same suburb, as part of its announced plan to destroy 27 churches. Sudan’s president, Umar al-Bashir, has been indicted by the International Criminal Court on charges of war crimes. Nevertheless, he continues his campaign to rid Sudan of Christians, demolishing church buildings around Khartoum and routinely bombing Christian villages in the Nuba Mountains to the south. Pray for pastors who are experiencing persecution and have had property confiscated, for Christians in various prisons throughout Sudan, and for Christian communities experiencing bombing campaigns in their schools and hospitals.

Egyptian Christians, as security worsens, are fleeing the increasingly lawless Sinai Peninsula, some with just the clothes on their backs, after several killings and explicit calls by IS to target them. The displacement has reached a scale rarely seen outside natural disasters. Pray for God’s comfort and strength for all experiencing continued death threats, and for those who have fled from their homes and communities. Ex-president Hosni Mubarak was freed last week after six years in custody. His release comes amid an economic crisis after years of political tumult and worsening security. Egyptians complain of empty pockets and rumbling bellies as inflation exceeds 30% and the government tightens its belt in return for loans from the International Monetary Fund. A politician said that the economic crisis and high prices, plus the fear of terrorism, take priority over everything, including politics. See

In a referendum on 16 April, Turks will vote yes or no to constitutional amendments to shift Turkey from a system where executive powers lie with the prime minister and are checked by parliament to one giving unprecedented powers to the president. Many fear this will lead to one-person rule, with power to suspend parliament and appoint all ministers and high-ranking officials. Turkish Christians are concerned about rising nationalism, and also the random arrests since last summer’s coup attempt. American pastor Andrew Brunson, who has been in detention since October, still has no clear outline of the charges against him, although the prime minister has promised to speed up his court case. He and his family have been in Turkey for over twenty years, leading a church in Izmir. See:

Sri Lanka’s constitution affords Buddhism, which is practised by 70% of the population, ‘the foremost place’. This elevated status is exploited by a powerful ethnic Sinhalese and Buddhist nationalist lobby, which demands rights and privileges for itself at the expense of other religions. The lobby, which is particularly opposed to Christianity, campaigns for the introduction of anti-conversion legislation that would hinder Christian activities. Christians face difficulties in building churches and might be ordered to stop activities; they experience discrimination in education, and many live in desperate poverty. The government plans to introduce legislation prohibiting ‘cults’; this could threaten evangelical churches, which are not recognised by the state. Christianity has a long history on the island, pre-dating the arrival of Westerners by many centuries. Tradition claims that Sri Lanka was first evangelised by the apostle Thomas.

50-year-old Christian schoolteacher Gamal Tawfiq was shot in the head on his way to El-Samran School in el-Arish, Northern Sinai. His killers rode motorbikes. Also this week militants killed local Christian vet Bahgat Zakher. Last month a Christian merchant was gunned down by militants in his shop, and five Coptic Christians had their throats slashed in a killing spree. In December IS bombed a Cairo church killing 27 people and wounding 40+. IS called it a 'martyrdom operation' targeting 'infidels' and 'apostates'. Ishaq Ibrahim of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights said, ‘We are witnessing an increase of Christian killings that I think will turn into a repetitive pattern in el-Arish’. On 20 February IS released a video calling for the slaughter of Egyptian Christians. See:

Christians in a predominantly Muslim region of Central Asia risk almost daily harassment for sharing the Gospel. In Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, the growth of Islamic extremism helped make 2016 the worst year ever for Christian persecution. Artur (not his real name) said, ‘If you are a Christian living in any of the five former Soviet Republics of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan or Turkmenistan, you are intimidated, harassed, or - worse - jail time, for telling others about their faith. When the authorities discover someone has converted to Christianity, they will gather relatives, friends and family of the accused and bring him or her before an Islamic council of elders. The convert then stands before the group and has to decide between faith or family.’ Twenty-five years after the Soviet Union disappeared and these republics gained their independence, the five 'Stan States' have become repressive and hostile towards people of faith.

Pakistan’s religious affairs minister has announced that there will be no change to the country’s ‘blasphemy’ laws. Previous attempts to amend the harsh legislation have been blocked, and those proposing changes have faced threats and intimidation. Although the majority charged under the laws are Muslims, Christians and other minorities are disproportionately targeted, and blasphemy accusations are often made to settle personal grudges. Those convicted can face the death penalty for 'defiling the name' of Muhammad: however, to date no one has been executed, although several Christians are among those on death row. On 1 February Adnan Prince, a Christian from Lahore, was granted bail after three years behind bars; despite several charges being dropped, he remains accused of insulting Muhammad.

On 5 January a church in Karuwalagaswewa was attacked and burned by a mob. Threats had previously been made to the church’s pastor, who informed the police. When the police inspector met with the pastor and a local Buddhist monk, he promised to maintain law and order. However, that very night the church was destroyed by a Buddhist mob of over 200. Sri Lanka’s constitution declares that Buddhism, the religion of the island’s ethnic Sinhalese majority, shall have ‘the foremost place’. Christians, who comprise 8% of the population, are commonly harassed and have been victims of violence, with Buddhists claiming that churches need to be registered, even though it is not actually a legal requirement. The church’s congregation have continued to meet, in the open air, despite further threats.

Global persecution of Christians has risen for the fourth year in a row and is on a "rapid rise" in Asia fueled by "extreme religious nationalism," a new report warns.

The report from Open Doors UK, released Wednesday, offers a stark picture of Christian persecution around the world.

"Religious nationalism is sweeping the globe according to figures released today as part of the Open Doors 2017 World Watch List," said Lisa Pearce, CEO of Open Doors UK & Ireland, Catholic News Agency reported.

"Persecution levels have been rising rapidly across Asia and the Indian subcontinent, driven by extreme religious nationalism which is often tacitly condoned, and sometimes actively encouraged, by local and national governments."

According to the report, all top 10 countries with the worst persecution of Christians are in Asia and Africa.

North Korea is still the most difficult place in the world to be a Christian, with Somalia ranking second, followed by Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Sudan, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, and Eritrea, the report found.

Other "key findings" were:

• Islamic extremism is the main engine of persecution in 14 out of the most hostile 20 countries in the World Watch List, and 35 of the top 50.
• In the Middle East, Christians face pressure under both radical and autocratic regimes.
• Over 200 million Christians in the 50 countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian experience high levels of persecution because of their faith.

http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/christian-persecution-middle-east-africa/2017/01/12/id/768326/

Let’s pray for the rejection and overthrow of religious nationalism and for our brothers and sisters in Christ, especially in the countries listed, who continue to suffer great abuse and even death for their faith.