WORLD SITUATION FOR CHRISTIANS

SOURCES: INFORMATION FOR THE COUNTRY SUMMARIES CAME FROM OPERATION WORLD,VOM REPORTS,THE WORLD FACTBOOK, and OTHER SOURCES

Afghanistan

Afghanistan is plagued by criminality, insecurity and the recently elected government’s inability to control all parts of the country. One of its most serious challenges is the growing, illegal opium trade. In the last year, the Taliban have been burning schools, forcing 226 to close.

Religion: Muslim 97.89%, Christian 0.02%

Ideological Influence: Islam

Head of State: President Hamid Karzai

Persecution: Anyone who acknowledges faith in Christ experiences intense persecution, including death. Persecution normally comes from family members and neighbors, while police and government officials turn a blind eye. The world’s attention was drawn back to Afghanistan summer 2007, when 23 South Korean Christians on a humanitarian mission trip were kidnapped by the Taliban.

Algeria

Algeria has suffered from both internal and external war for nearly half a century. Ethnic minority Berbers have long been agitating for autonomy. Also, the activities of extremist militants continue, though they have abated somewhat.

Religion: Muslim 96.68.%, Christian 0.29%

Ideological Influence: Islam

Head of State: President Abdelaziz Bouteflika

Persecution: Since a revival in 1988, more than 70,000 Algerians have converted to Christianity. A second anti-conversion law restricting Christian evangelism was implemented in June 2007. The move is intended to put the first law, passed March 2006, into practice. Those found guilty of “shaking the faith” of a Muslim face punishment of two to five years in prison and a maximum fine of about $12,000 U.S. The same punishment is applied to anyone publishing or keeping literature and/or audio-video materials that threaten the Islamic faith. Through this law, an era of relative liberty to practice Christian faith ended.

Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan is a former republic of the USSR, which gained independence in 1991. After independence, the country faced internal coups and war with Armenia. The majority of the population lives in poverty.

Religion: Muslim 83.67%, Christian 4.63%

Ideological Influence:Islam/Communism

Head of State: President Ilham Aliyev

Persecution: Most of Azerbaijan’s towns and villages have never been evangelized. Zaur Balaev, a Baptist pastor in a remote area of Azerbaijan, was arrested and charged with “resisting government representatives.” He was sentenced to a two-year prison term in August 2007. The head of the Baptist Union said the region where Zaur was detained is “a place where officials insult our believers, won’t allow them to gain legal status and deny birth certificates to their children.” There has been a push by the government and state-controlled media for the Azeri people to return to their “ancestral faith,” Islam.

Bangladesh

Bangladesh is consistently plagued by frequent floods and cyclones that cause billions of dollars worth of damage and the tragic loss of many lives, making deep poverty and social unrest commonplace. Islamic extremism is on the rise in this nation of 150 million.

Religion: Muslim 85.63%, Christian 0.72%

Ideological Influence: Islam

Head of State: President Iajuddin Ahmed

Persecution: In July 2007, Muslim villagers attacked and severely beat 41 former Muslim converts. The next day, the Christians were given 24 hours to get out of the village or face further beatings and the destruction of their homes. Police who were to protect the Christians for three months left after only a week. The believers were also banned from using the village well, a common form of ostracism. Churches have been growing at twice the population rate during the past 40 years. However, poverty, illiteracy and lack of trained and godly leadership have led to shallowness of faith and nominalism.

Belarus

Belarus became an independent state in 1991, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The failure to change Soviet economic structures has stimulated inflation, hindered foreign investment and crippled economic development.

Religion: Christian 78.70%, non-Religious/other 21.30%

Ideological Influence: Communism (remaining influence)

Head of State: President Aleksandr Lukashenko

Persecution: Pastor Antoni Bokun became the third person to receive a prison sentence for religious activity in post-Soviet Belarus. In response to Bokun’s second arrest, the imminent deportation of a Polish Pentecostal and other harassment of religious communities, 7,000 Christians attended a religious freedom prayer service on June 3, 2007. Apparently due to heightened state sensitivity towards unauthorized gatherings during the March 2006 presidential election period, Reformed Baptist pastor Georgi Vyazovsky and religious freedom lawyer Sergei Shavtsov were given 10-day sentences for organizing unsanctioned religious events. A repressive religious law, in effect since 2002, bans all unregistered religious activity, communities with fewer than 20 members and any religious activity in private homes (apart from occasional, small-scale meetings). All religious literature is subject to censorship.

Bhutan

Bhutan was isolated from the outside world until the communist takeover of China in 1949. Its isolationist policies further reinforce the hold of Tantric Buddhism. King Jigme Singye Wangchuck abdicated his throne in December 2006, handing the reign of the Buddhist kingdom to his 26-year-old son, Crown Prince Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck. Democratic elections of a new National Assembly are scheduled for 2008.

Religion: Buddhist 72.04%, Hindu 23%, Christian 0.46%.

Ideological Influence: Buddhism/Hinduism

Head of State: King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck

Persecution: All public worship and evangelism by non-Buddhists is illegal in Bhutan. When Bhutanese are discovered to have converted to Christianity, they are denied government benefits—including education and employment. They face subtle forms of discrimination. In 2007, a Christian who contracted a serious disease while a government medical worker was denied medical treatment.

Brunei

Brunei is one of the richest states in Asia. Oil is the sole source of wealth, but its reserves are predicted to be used up by the year 2020. It has been ruled by the same family for more than six centuries.

Religion: Muslim 64.39%, Christian 11.25%

Ideological Influence: Islam

Head of State: Sultan and Prime Minister Sir Hassanal Bolkiah

Persecution: Constitutional guarantees allowing free practice of religion are steadily eroding. Christian leaders were expelled in 1991. The following year Christian literature was banned, and the celebration of Christmas outlawed. Conversion to Christianity is restricted, since it is illegal to evangelize Muslims. Muslims want a “pure” Islamic state by 2020. There are three registered churches, but many applications for registration are ignored; therefore, believers must meet secretly.

Chiapas

Chiapas (Mexico) is a Southern state of Mexico where Christians are persecuted, particularly in smaller communities.

Religion: Statistics unavailable for this region

Ideological Influence: Mixture of pagan, revolutionary and liberation theology

Head of State: President Felipe Calderon

Persecution: In San Juan Chamula, seven evangelical pastors were arrested during a church dedication in July 2007. They were charged with holding an unauthorized service. The traditionalist Catholics then destroyed the church. Earlier, a mob in the same town lynched a 20-year-old evangelical. The man was tortured. His hands were tied then he was hung.

China

China was declared the People’s Republic of China in 1949 by Chairman Mao Zedong, who quickly sought to purge society of anything that would point to religion. In recent years, living standards have improved in urban areas while little has changed in the coutryside, promoting discontent. Political controls remain tight. Rural areas have not seen any economic prosperity; a lot remains unchanged, promoting discontent. The human rights record in China is one of the worst in the world. Its system of “re-education through labor” detains hundreds of thousands each year in work camps without even a court hearing.

Religion: Non-Religious/Other 49.58%, Chinese 28.50%, Christian 7.25%

Ideological Influence: Communism

Head of State: Hu Jintao

Persecution: The year 2007 marks the 200th year of Protestant mission work in China. Again in 2007, church property and Bibles were confiscated. Christians were harassed, questioned, arrested and imprisoned. More Christians are in prison or under detention in China than in any other country. The house church movement (unregistered churches), which comprises approximately 90 percent of China’s Christians, endures unimaginable persecution, yet stands on its commitment to preach the gospel, no matter the cost. A major crackdown against unregistered church groups continued in 2007. Beijing house church activist Hua Huiqi was released after serving six months imprisonment, while many other house church leaders remain in detention. Christians in prison are routinely beaten and abused.

Colombia

Colombia, especially in the east, is plagued by Marxist guerrilla groups, which are known for assassinations and kidnappings. Colombia is considered one of the world’s most violent countries.

Religion: Christian 95.45%, Non-Religious 2.72%

Ideological Influence: Marxist terrorism

Head of State: President Alvaro Uribe Velez

Persecution: In the last five years, the Marxist guerrilla group FARC (Armed Revolutionary Forces of Colombia) has killed more than 300 evangelicals and displaced hundreds more. Guerrillas persecute Catholics and Protestants, seeing Christians as a threat to new recruitment. Their violent acts are funded by illegal drugs. In July 2007, FARC soldiers pulled two pastors from their homes and shot them in the region of Huila. Ongoing death threats against the pastors’ widows forced them into hiding. Despite the fear and intimidation, the church is growing. Aggressive evangelistic outreaches have resulted in an increase in churches.

Comoro Islands

Comoros has seen 19 attempted coups since 1975. A new constitution was adopted in 2001, and in May 2006, an Iranian-trained Sunni Muslim cleric, Ahmed Abdallah Sambi, was elected president.

Religion: Muslim 98.07%, Christian 0.84%

Ideological Influence: Islam

Head of State: President Ahmed Abdallah Sambi

Persecution: Persecution against Christians generally takes the form of social discrimination. In June 2006, four men were sentenced to prison for their faith. Police beat them and tried to get them to renounce Christianity. There are no official Comoran churches.

Cuba

Cuba stands as one of the last “champions” of communism. In 1959, Fidel Castro came to power threatening Cubans with socialism or death. In the last two years, President Castro’s health has appeared to decline. Observers hope a change in leadership might bring greater societal openness.

Religion: Christian 46.88%, Non-Religious/Other 35.47%

Ideological Influence: Communism

Head of State: President Fidel Castro; due to health problems, Castro handed provisional control of the government over to his brother, Raul Castro, on July 31, 2006.

Persecution: In the 1960s, Castro labeled Catholics and Protestants “social scum” and forced lay people and clergy into labor camps under inhumane conditions. Cuba’s constitution was amended in 1992 to guarantee freedom of religion. Yet, today Christians are still imprisoned and churches destroyed. Strict regulations against house churches went into effect in September 2005, prohibiting a church from being located within a mile and a quarter of another of the same denomination and restricting meetings to three per week. On December 22, 2006, a court in Havana found the Reverend Carlos Lamelas not guilty of “trafficking in human beings” as previously charged, but convicted him on unannounced charges of falsification of documents. A co-defendant in the case, evangelical pastor Joel Rojas of Holguín, was convicted of “human trafficking” (helping Cubans flee the country) and sentenced to seven years in prison.

Egypt

Egypt was predominantly Christian in the first centuries after Christ. In 969 A.D.,the country was conquered by Islam,but thankfully Egypt's Coptic Christian Church never disappeared.

Religion: Muslim 86.52%, Christian 12.98%

Ideological Influence: Islam

Head of State: President Mohammed Hosni Mubarak

Persecution: The country's constitution gives preference to Muslims. Christians are treated as second-class citizens,denied political representation and discriminated against in employment.

Eritrea

Eritrea is dominated by war and drought. The Eritrean Marxist government ordered all independent Protestant churches to close in May 2002, declaring only a few religions were legal.

Religion: Muslim 47.97%, Christian 47.43%

Ideological Influence: Military dictatorship/Communism

Head of State: President Isaias Afworki

Persecution: Magos Solomon Semere, 30, died in military prison in February 2007, four and a half years after he was imprisoned for worshipping at a banned Protestant church. He died from relentless physical torture and lack of treatment for pneumonia. He was the third Christian killed within a year. There are at least 2,000 Eritrean Christians now under arrest without trial or legal charges, solely for their religious beliefs. Under the totalitarian regime of President Isaias Afworki, religious repression has escalated further in the past two years.

Ethiopia

Ethiopia experienced a revolution in 1974 which imposed a Marxist-like government. The regime persecuted Christians and allowed the Islamic movement to grow strong. Since this iron-fisted reign ended in 1991, there has been great freedom to worship and evangelize. Recently, however, Muslims have started massive campaigns to Islamize Ethiopia by penetrating Christian areas with bribes and mosque-building programs.

Religion: Christian 65.02%, Muslim 31%

Ideological Influence: Islam

Head of State: President Girma Woldegiorgis

Persecution: Evangelist Taddese Tefera Akufo was beaten to death by militant Muslims in Jimma on March 26, 2007. Akufo and two female co-workers were evangelizing on Merkato Street when a mob of Muslims emerged from a mosque. The two women were able to flee, but the militants dragged Taddese inside the building and beat him to death. The killing was apparently a direct attack against a local evangelism campaign. In April 2007, Muslims bombed a tent where a group of Christians was gathered in Jijiga, a town in Eastern Ethiopia. Two Christians were killed and several were injured in the bombing. The Christians were meeting together to mourn two Christians killed by rebels on April 24.

Gaza and the West Bank

Gaza and the West Bank were occupied by Israel in 1967. The Islamic terrorist group Hamas won democratic elections in Gaza and the West Bank in late January 2006. Repeated efforts to form a unified government with the Fatah organization led by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have failed.

Religion: Muslim 98.7%, Christian 0.7%, Jewish 0.6%

Ideological Influence: Islam

Head of State: President of the Palestinian National Authority Mahmoud Abbas

Persecution: There are about 2,000 Arab evangelical Christians in 30 churches. Political turmoil has created an environment where it is easy for militant Islamic groups to persecute Christians. Many Christians left following the Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip. According to the Christian Broadcasting Network, in the city of Arad, Messianic Jews face persecution from some ultra-Orthodox Jews. The Messianic Jews ask for prayer for their persecutors, not that persecution will stop, but that it brings glory to God. Christian leader and bookstore owner Rami Ayyad, 30, was kidnapped and murdered in Gaza on October 6, 2007. Christians feel the murder was religiously motivated. Rami is survived by his pregnant wife and two children.

India

India has staggering racial, ethnic, religious and linguistic diversity. Pressing problems include border disputes, overpopulation, poverty and economic and religious strife. India elected its first female president in July 2007, Pratibha Patil.

Religion: Hindu 79.83%, Muslim 12.50%, Christian 2.40%

Ideological Influence: Hinduism

Head of State: President Pratibha Patil

Persecution: In the past, persecution was confined to specific regions of India. It has now spread to nearly every part, as radical Hindus seek to purify India of all religions except Hinduism. In 2007 there was an average of three attacks per day against Christians. Pastors have been killed; wives and daughters harassed and raped. Many Christians have been beaten or subjected to other acts of violence. At press time, four Indian states had anti-conversion laws. They impose prison terms and hefty fines against anyone who converts Indians by force, fraud or allurement. However, many Indian believers rejoice in their suffering; they see it as a way to testify to Christ’s victory in their lives.

Indonesia

Indonesia is a collection of 18,306 islands; 6,000 are inhabited. The government forces people to carry an identification card that includes their religious status. The government promotes a belief called “Pancasila,” which means all may freely choose to follow Christianity, Islam, Buddhism or Hinduism, but in reality, Muslims receive preferential treatment.

Religion: Muslim 80.30%, Christian 16.00%

Ideological Influence: Islam

Head of State: President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono

Persecution: Forty-one Indonesian believers were in prison at press time. They were charged under Indonesia’s religion abuse laws. Fundamentalist Muslims obtained a video of a prayer meeting where these believers held a copy of the Koran and prayed for Muslims. The Muslims perceived it as blasphemous. All 41 Christians received five-year prison sentences. During the last 40 years, evangelicals have grown from 1.3 million to 11.5 million. The increase of Christian persecution has brought about a greater unity among the Body of Christ, the growth of a national prayer movement and a commitment to outreach in Indonesia and beyond.

Iran

Iran’s state religion is Shi’a Islam, and the followers of all other faiths are treated severely. The government has specifically taken an increasing anti-Western and anti-Christian stand. Iran has been called the world’s number one producer of terrorism.

Religion: Muslim 99.02%, Christian 0.33%

Ideological Influence: Islam

Head of State: Supreme Leader Ali Hoseini-Khamenei

Persecution: In 2007, the government organized a highly-coordinated crackdown that included the arrest and interrogation of Christians, along with the confiscation of thousands of Bibles. Pastors are forbidden to preach in Farsi (the official language) and can only use the Armenian language. Mission organizations are not allowed to enter Iran. Open witnessing to Muslims is banned, and the government sends spies to monitor Christian groups. Believers are discriminated against in education, employment and property ownership. Muslims who leave Islam can receive the death penalty. After decades of existing under government oppression, Iranians are hungry for spiritual meaning, as well as freedom from their oppressive government. Christian programs broadcast by satellite have received very positive responses. Hundreds of callers ask for more information about Christianity or pray with a counselor to receive Christ. House church leaders are nearly overwhelmed caring for these new believers. Careful attention is being given to training Christians into mature believers and integrating them into a fellowship.

Iraq

Iraq has experienced a troubled history since Bible times. U.S. military operations have both helped and hindered Iraqi Christians. Fighting between Muslim factions has directed attention away from Christians for the time being. There are around 70 evangelical congregations in Iraq, but conversions are doing little more than replacing emigrating Christians.

Religion: Muslim 96.85%, Christian 1.55%

Ideological Influence: Islam

Head of State: President Jalal Talabani

Persecution: Iraq is a complex mix of severe persecution and a place of increased freedom for believers and evangelism. Since 2003 there has been a mass exodus of Christians from Iraq. Many of those who stay behind have been kidnapped. Amidst the chaos of a country being rebuilt with ongoing conflict, many churches have succumbed to threats and a spirit of fear by closing the doors in 2007. The few churches that remain recognized the potential for division and have begun meeting to encourage each other. One church reports of an outreach ministry to Muslims that began when one person came asking about Christianity. Muslim converts now tell others about the ministry.