Article originally published at https://www.acistampa.com/story/32061/aiuto-alla-chiesa-che-soffre-lancia-una-petizione-internazionale-per-la-liberta-religiosa
Three in-depth studies, seven case histories, countless testimonies, one troubling fact: two-thirds of humanity sees their religious freedom at risk. Aid to the Church in Need presents its Report on Religious Freedom, a massive tome that examines the situation in 196 countries worldwide and is now in its quarter century. And, on this occasion, for the first time in its history, ACN has launched a global petition calling on governments and international organizations to ensure the effective implementation of Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which recognizes everyone’s right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion.
“Why this petition? Because the right to believe—or to live according to one’s beliefs—is in decline in 62 countries, affecting billions of people. Over the past 25 years, ACS has documented how persecution destroys communities, fuels conflict, and forces millions to flee. Now more than ever, religious freedom must be defended and protected worldwide,” said Regina Lynch, international president of ACS, urging everyone to support the petition.
The initiative’s slogan is: ” Religious freedom is a human right, not a privilege .”
When the report began to be drafted, at the initiative of the late Attilio Tamburrini, it was a different world, still untouched by the shock of September 11th. Today, we must also consider what is called “polite persecution,” that is, the attack on questions of faith through discriminatory laws, even when proclaimed in the name of fundamental freedoms.
Before the numbers, it’s important to consider the Report’s themes. There are three in-depth analyses: one on the evolution of jihadism, another on the ideological alliance of the Latin American left (remember the church arson attacks in Chile? Or the attacks on the Church by the Nicaraguan government? Or the situation of the Church in Venezuela?), and the last on a less developed but present topic: migration due precisely to religious persecution.
Even the case histories concern situations that often fail to break the wall of media silence: from the forced exodus of the Christian community in Burkina Faso to the work of the Church in Cabo Delgado, Mozambique, incredibly affected by jihadist violence; from the regulations blocking the education of minors in China to anti-conversion laws in India; and even the weakening of the right to conscientious objection.
Two-thirds of humanity—over 5.2 billion people—live in contexts where freedom of religion or belief is compromised. Systematic violations of religious freedom have occurred in 60 countries, 24 of which fall into the extremely serious category of “persecution,” while 36 fall into the category of discrimination.
The report highlights an overall erosion of Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Only two of the countries where religious freedom is at risk have seen improvements: Kazakhstan and Sri Lanka . China, India, Nigeria, and North Korea fall into the persecution category, and in 18 of the 24 countries, the situation has worsened over the two-year period under review.
Religious discrimination affects 36 countries, representing 1.1 billion people potentially at risk. The list includes Egypt, Ethiopia, Mexico, Turkey, and Vietnam. There, religious minorities face systematic restrictions on worship, freedom of expression, and legal equality . Although not subject to violent repression, discrimination often leads to marginalization and legal inequality.
Then there are 26 countries under observation. There are 940 million people experiencing rising intolerance, an erosion of legal protections , religious extremism, and state interference in religious life.
The primary threat to religious freedom is authoritarianism, as seen, for example, in China, Eritrea, Iran, and Nicaragua , where the state represses religion through widespread surveillance, restrictive regulations, and the repression of religious dissent. Authoritarian rule is among the primary drivers of persecution in 19 countries and underpins patterns of discrimination in 31 others.
Jihadist violence is escalating, adapting, and destabilizing on an unprecedented scale. In 15 countries, religious extremism is a major driver of persecution, while in 10 others it contributes to discrimination. From the Sahel to Pakistan, decentralized jihadist networks target both Christians and Muslims who reject extremist ideology. Groups like JNIM ( Jama’at Nusrat ul -Islam wa al- Muslimin ) and ISSP ( Islamic State Sahel Province ) have consolidated their control in the Sahel, while Ansar al-Sunna (ISCAP) in Mozambique and the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo aim to establish a “caliphate” in Central Africa to legitimize their authority and ideology.
Religious nationalism is growing and fueling the exclusion of minorities. National identity is increasingly defined by forms of ethnic-religious nationalism that erode minority rights. In India and Myanmar, this phenomenon translates into systematic persecution; in Palestine, Israel, Sri Lanka, and Nepal, it generates structural discrimination. India is the most emblematic example of “hybrid persecution,” where legal instruments and mass violence converge against minority communities. Majority narratives are used as political tools, while legal and administrative systems consolidate second-class citizenship.
And then there’s the issue of forced migration and large-scale displacement. In Nigeria, attacks by radicalized Fulani militants have devastated Christian villages and communities, causing mass displacement. In the Sahel— Burkina Faso, Niger, Mali —as well as due to the civil war in Sudan, entire religious communities have been uprooted, their places of worship destroyed, and their heritage obliterated.
The report also highlights how organized crime systematically targets religious communities and leaders, with extreme cases in Nigeria, Haiti , and Mexico, and churches looted in Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa.
But religious freedom is also a “collateral casualty” of conflict, as is the case in Ukraine, Sudan, Myanmar, Gaza, and Nagorno-Karabakh, where, the report notes, there have been “mass displacements, the closure of churches, and targeted attacks against religious communities, exacerbating the erosion of freedom of belief.”
In particular, following the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, and the conflict in Gaza, there has been a sharp increase in anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim acts across Europe, North America, and Latin America. In France, anti-Semitic acts increased by 1,000 percent, and anti-Muslim hate crimes by 29 percent. In Germany, conflict-related crimes reached 4,369, compared to just 61 in 2022. Synagogues and mosques have been targeted, individuals have been attacked or threatened, and hate speech has spread online. In many places, government responses have appeared inadequate, fueling fear and insecurity among religious communities.
But anti-Christian incidents are also on the rise in Western countries. A significant increase in attacks against Christian sites and believers has been recorded in Europe and North America. In 2023, approximately 1,000 anti-Christian incidents were recorded in France, while over 600 cases of vandalism against churches were recorded in Greece. In Canada, 24 churches were set on fire between 2021 and early 2024. Similar increases have also been reported in Spain, Italy, the United States, and Croatia, with desecration of places of worship, attacks on clergy, and disruptions of religious services, often motivated by ideological hostility, militant activism, or anti-religious extremism.