According to information from the international Catholic organization Aid to the Church in Need, religious freedom has been violated in 61 countries around the world in the last two years. Almost 4.9 billion people, and therefore more than 62 percent of the world’s population, live in countries with serious or very serious violations of religious freedom, the aid organization said on Thursday in Berlin, at the presentation of the report “Freedom Religious World 2023”, according to Kathpress.
Most affected religious minorities
This does not mean that all members of a religious group are persecuted in these countries. In many of these countries, however, religious minorities are the most affected. Authoritarian governments are primarily responsible for restrictions on religious freedom, but Islamic extremism and ethno-religious nationalism are also responsible.
The report, published every two years since 1996, contains regional analyses, background information and case studies and includes observations from 196 countries. In the “Red Category”, the aid organization reports persecution from 28 countries because of the faith. These include Afghanistan, Iran and North Korea, but also African countries such as Burkina Faso, Mali, Sudan and Libya. For the first time, Nicaragua also appears in the “red category”. There, the Catholic Church in particular suffers from the repression of the government of Daniel Ortega.
Burkina Faso particularly dangerous
In 33 other countries, the humanitarian organization observed discrimination based on religious affiliation in the “orange category”. The situation in the area of discrimination, hate crimes and sectarian violence has slightly improved since 2021 in just nine countries, including Egypt, Ethiopia and Jordan.
In 40 countries around the world, people have been persecuted or even killed for their beliefs since 2021. In Burkina Faso alone, Aid to the Church in Need reports 3,600 deaths in 2022 – nearly ten a day. According to the report, places of worship and religious facilities have been attacked or damaged in 34 countries since 2021. Muslims are also being increasingly persecuted, for example in India or Myanmar; but Jewish communities in the West were also more frequently targeted during the period under review. Restriction of religious freedom affects all religions.
“A Church That Suffers” was founded in 1947 as a solidarity campaign. According to its own statements, the aid organization is dedicated to serving Christians all over the world, wherever they are persecuted or oppressed, through information, prayer and help. The international headquarters “Aid to the Church in Need, ACN” is located in Königstein im Taunus, Germany.