Tag: Religious freedom

Nigerian Christian schoolgirl ‘escaped’, only to be sent back to Boko Haram

April 4, 2018 Nigeria Boko Haram, Dapchi, ECWA, Fulani herdsmen, Islamic extremism, Kidnapping, Leah Sharibu, Nigeria, Religious freedom, Yobe

Leah Sharibu, 14, was abducted by Boko Haram on 19 February 2018. (Photo from family)

The only Christian among the 110 Nigerian schoolgirls abducted last month by Boko Haram ran away from her kidnappers but was caught and brought back three days later, according to fellow captives, reports the UK’s Guardian newspaper. Leah Sharibu, 14, and two other girls walked for three days and, hungry and exhausted, . . . Read More

‘Finally my father is home’ – Slimane Bouhafs released after 18 months in jail

April 3, 2018 Algeria Algeria, Bejaia, Blasphemy, Constantine, Jijel, Kabylie, MAK, Religious freedom, Setif, Slimane Bouhafs, Tizi Ouzou

Slimane Bouhafs has been released after 18 months in prison for alleged blasphemy on Facebook. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)

The daughter of Slimane Bouhafs, an Algerian Christian who has spent the last 18 months in prison for insulting Islam and its prophet, has announced her father’s release. “Finally my father … has been allowed back to us,” his daughter, Tilelli, wrote on her Facebook page on Easter Saturday. “Thank . . . Read More

Brownback: Now is a ‘critical moment’ for religious minorities

March 29, 2018 Global News -- No Particular Country Mike Pompeo, Religious freedom, Rex Tillerson, Sam Brownback, USA

Sam Brownback was confirmed as Ambassador-at-large for International Religious Freedom in January.

The US Ambassador-at-large for International Religious Freedom has called for politicians to work more closely together towards greater religious freedom around the world, reports the Catholic News Agency. “We are at a critical moment for the future of religious minorities globally. It is more dangerous now than any time in . . . Read More

Good Friday holiday reinstated in Christian-majority Indian state after protests

March 29, 2018 India BJP, Christmas, Digital India Day, Good Governance Day, Gujarat, Hindu nationalism, India, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Narendra Modi, Religious freedom

Widespread protests have forced the government in Christian-majority Meghalaya State in north-east India to restore the Good Friday holiday. The coalition government, to which the Hindu nationalist BJP is a partner, had declared in a circular that Good Friday would be a normal “working day”, but the move was withdrawn . . . Read More

Eritrea: Newlyweds among 32 Christians arrested in fresh crackdown

March 28, 2018 Eritrea Asmara, Eritrea, Human rights, Religious freedom

Eritrean police have arrested 32 Christians in the capital, Asmara, this month, including a newlywed couple and ten of their guests. Twenty were arrested on Sunday, 25 March, all of whom remain in detention. The newly married man and two of his guests are being held in a prison north of . . . Read More

Saudi school textbooks still ‘promote hatred toward religious minorities’ – USCIRF

March 27, 2018 Saudi Arabia Apostasy, Education, Islamic extremism, Minorities, Mohammad bin Salman, Prophet Muhammad, Religious freedom, Saudi Arabia

A school complex in Medina, Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Ikhlasul Amal via Flickr; CC 2.0)

School textbooks in Saudi Arabia still include content “promoting violence and hatred toward religious minorities and others”, according to the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). Even though the Saudi government has been “engaged in textbook reform for the last 15 years”, a new study by USCIRF found . . . Read More

China’s Communist Party increases control over religious affairs

March 27, 2018 China China, Communism, Crosses, Henan, Minorities, Religious freedom, Xi Jinping, Xinjiang, Zhejiang

The opening ceremony of the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in Beijing, held in October 2017. The Congress is the most important political event in China where decisions taken by the Central Committee are endorsed. (Photo by Prachatai via Flickr; CC 2.0)

China’s Communist Party has disbanded its Religious Affairs Bureau to bring religion under the control of the party’s Central Committee, in what some observers see as a further tightening of the belt. The State Administration of Religious Affairs (SARA) is to be absorbed by the United Front Work Department, an . . . Read More

Uzbek Christians report continued state pressure, despite recent UN criticism

March 26, 2018 Uzbekistan Ahmed Shaheed, Religious freedom, Tashkent, Uzbekistan

State harassment against Baptists in Uzbekistan has continued despite the UN’s recent criticism of the country’s religious rights records. UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom or Religion or Belief, Ahmed Shaheed, said: “Law changes and a strong political will are needed if Uzbeks are to freely practise their faith” when he . . . Read More

Saudi Arabia to ban ‘extremist ideologies’ from schools and universities

March 23, 2018 Saudi Arabia Education, Islamic extremism, King Salman, Mohammad bin Salman, Muslim Brotherhood, Religious freedom, Saudi Arabia, Sunni, UK, USA

Sign portraying Saudi King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who wants to be known as a reformist, in the capital Riyad. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)

Saudi Arabia has pledged to ban the “extremist ideologies” espoused by the Muslim Brotherhood from school curricula and books, and to dismiss staff who support the group’s views. In a statement released on Tuesday (20 March), the Minister of Education, Ahmed bin Mohammed al-Isa, said the ministry is working to . . . Read More

Bangladesh set to further ‘thwart’ freedom of expression

March 23, 2018 Bangladesh Bangladesh, Blasphemy, Human rights, Islamic extremism, Minorities, Pope Francis, Religious freedom, Terrorism

Traffic in the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)

Bangladesh is considering the introduction of a new law that would further limit freedom of expression and belief in the country, a senior Bangladeshi journalist warns. The Digital Security Act, a draft of which has been approved by the government, will include a section that “criminalizes online content regarded as defamatory . . . Read More

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