{"id":2646,"date":"2022-08-17T14:29:50","date_gmt":"2022-08-17T13:29:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/opendoorsuk.org\/?page_id=2646"},"modified":"2024-12-06T16:11:40","modified_gmt":"2024-12-06T16:11:40","slug":"persecution-trends-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/connect.opendoorsuk.org\/ireland\/persecution\/persecution-trends-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Serving Persecuted Christians Worldwide – Persecution Trends – Open Doors UK & Ireland"},"content":{"rendered":"
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World Watch List 2023: Trends<\/h1>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n
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In brief<\/h2>\n <\/div>\n\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAfghanistan (1<\/span>) <\/h6>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

For the first time, Afghanistan is number one on the Open Doors World Watch List. It had previously been number two, and rose because of an increase in violence after the Taliban took over the country in August 2021.<\/p>\n <\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNorth Korea (2<\/span>) <\/h6>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

North Korea had been number one on the World Watch List since 2002. Though it has dropped a place, persecution actually increased in 2021: the fall is explained by Christians in Afghanistan facing increased violence.<\/p>\n <\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIndonesia (28<\/span>) <\/h6>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Persecution has increased considerably in Indonesia, which is one of the biggest risers \u2013 jumping 19 places on the World Watch List. The main cause is an increase in violence, including several bomb attacks.<\/p>\n <\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t5,898 Christians killed <\/h6>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Around the world, 5,898 Christians were killed for their faith last year. Of these, 4,650 were in Nigeria \u2013 yet again, more believers are murdered for following Jesus in Nigeria than the rest of the world combined.<\/p>\n <\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t5,100 churches attacked <\/h6>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

In the past year, more than 5,000 churches and church buildings were bombed, attacked, destroyed, looted, burned down or forcibly closed \u2013 to try to stop people meeting together to worship Jesus.<\/p>\n <\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTurkey (42<\/span>) <\/h6>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Turkey fell 17 places on the World Watch List, praise God. Violence fell significantly, with no Christians killed and fewer churches attacked. On the other hand, pressure increased slightly, with Islamic nationalism on the rise.<\/p>\n <\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Trends<\/h2>\n <\/div>\n\n
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At least 360 million Christians around the world experience high levels of persecution and discrimination. That\u2019s an astonishing 1 in 7 of the global Christian population.<\/p>\n

Persecution of Christians has reached the highest levels since the Open Doors World Watch List began nearly 30 years ago, affecting increasing numbers of believers around the world. This overview of persecution trends will help give you a better understanding of the situation, and equip you to pray for your brothers and sisters following Jesus no matter the cost.<\/p>\n

Extremism and violence continue to rise<\/strong>
\nThe Taliban takeover of Afghanistan has been in headlines around the world, but they are far from the only violent extremists targeting Christians and other religious minorities. Their victory has bolstered Islamic militants in neighbouring Pakistan, and may well embolden jihadist groups in other regions. It\u2019s the main reason that Niger has jumped 21 places, for example, re-entering the World Watch List Top 50 after a series of attacks by Islamic militants. The Taliban\u2019s success encourages extremists around the world.<\/p>\n

Violence in sub-Saharan Africa<\/strong>
\nAlongside Niger\u2019s believers, Christians across sub-Saharan Africa face extreme and increasing violence from Islamic militants. This is particularly severe in Nigeria, where more Christians are killed for their faith than in the rest of the world combined, but Christians also face extreme violence in Mozambique, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, Mali, Cameroon and Burkina Faso.<\/p>\n

Even countries that fall outside the Open Doors World Watch List Top 50 \u2013 like South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda \u2013 see terrible violence against Christians. Their overall persecution scores are lower because pressure in public and private life is much less severe, compared to the violence faced.<\/p>\n

The global church is increasingly a refugee church<\/strong>
\n\u2026and this makes it even more vulnerable. More than 84 million people around the world have been forcibly displaced and are living as refugees in another country or displaced within their own country, according to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Many of these are Christians fleeing persecution, with thousands more added to their number in 2021.<\/p>\n

Christians are among those fleeing for their lives in Afghanistan, while in countries such as Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Nigeria, churches and communities have been attacked. Even where there is no active conflict, Christian refugees from places like Iran leave because they have simply had enough of the daily struggle against discrimination.<\/p>\n

All they want is somewhere to be free and safe. Sadly, life on the move or in refugee camps is even more fragile, and exposes them to discrimination, extortion, human trafficking and sexual violence. A displaced church is a vulnerable church. Open Doors partners work with refugees in many countries, providing vital aid, shelter and fellowship.<\/p>\n

Control tightens in China \u2013 and elsewhere<\/strong>
\nThe Chinese Communist Party demands conformity \u2013 an ordered, controlled society where freedom of speech and belief is carefully restricted. In May 2021, new rules in China required religious leaders to \u2018love the motherland, support the leadership of the Communist Party and the socialist system\u2019 and forbade any acts believed to endanger national security or \u2018undermine national unity\u2019.<\/p>\n

In practice, these poorly defined rules can be used to target and persecute believers who just want to worship. And the authorities in China use increasingly sophisticated techniques to keep watch on citizens. In some regions, surveillance cameras are now in all state-approved religious venues and some Bible apps are banned from online stores.<\/p>\n

Other states have enthusiastically adopted this ‘made in China’ approach. In Cuba, church leaders who speak out for social justice have been detained, tortured and fined. In Nicaragua and Venezuela, authorities have closed churches and promoted smear campaigns against Christians. And it’s not just the remnants of the Communist world: countries as diverse as Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Malaysia have all increased restrictions. Where China leads, others follow.<\/p>\n

View the World Watch List 2022<\/a><\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Good news<\/h2>\n <\/div>\n\n
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Turkey, Nepal, more\u2026
\nThe stories from the World Watch List can feel overwhelming \u2013 and it may seem like the situation is getting harder for Christians everywhere. While persecution is increasing overall, there are places where the reverse is true. In 2021, persecution became less severe in Turkey (which fell 17 places on the World Watch List) and Nepal (which fell 14 places). There were smaller drops in persecution score for Somalia, Libya, Pakistan, Iran, India, Iraq, Vietnam, Egypt, Mauritania, Turkmenistan, Laos, Tunisia and Tajikistan. While these numbers aren\u2019t enormous, each change for the better represents answers to prayer \u2013 and Christians who were able to follow Jesus a little more freely than the previous year.<\/p>\n

Iran takes step towards religious freedom
\nRecently, Iran\u2019s Supreme Court has decreed that belonging to a house church does not make Christians \u2018enemies of the state\u2019. A ruling declared that nine Christian converts serving five-year prison sentences for going to house churches should not have been charged with \u2018acting against national security\u2019, a charge that is often made against believers in court cases.<\/p>\n

The Supreme Court\u2019s ruling states that: \u201cMerely preaching Christianity, and promoting the \u2018Evangelical Zionist sect\u2019, both of which apparently means propagating Christianity through family gatherings [house churches] is not a manifestation of gathering and collusion to disrupt the security of the country, whether internally or externally.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Iran\u2019s legal system does not allow for a court precedent to be set, the judgement could influence cases against Persian-speaking Christians. It is certainly an encouraging move.<\/p>\n

Iraq\u2019s parliament recognise Christmas Day
\nIn December 2020, Iraq’s parliament passed a bill making Christmas Day an annual national holiday in the majority-Muslim country. On Christmas Eve, Iraq’s President, Barham Salih, a Sunni Muslim, thanked parliament for passing the bill when he spoke while attending Mass at St. Joseph’s Cathedral in Baghdad. \u201c[The government] must make serious efforts to enable Iraqi Christians to return, and to live a secure and dignified life in their homeland,\u201d he said. \u201cTheir religious and cultural rights must be protected. As the country’s history shows, they are a major and important part of Iraq’s people.\u201d<\/p>\n

This is a really encouraging step towards Christians feeling safer and more valued in Iraq \u2013 which has fallen to 14 (from 11) on the World Watch List 2022.<\/p>\n

? Worldwide
\nAbove all, the World Watch List shows that the church is active and alive. Persecution is rising \u2013 but that only happens where the church is actively sharing the gospel and living it out.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":142,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2646","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nServing Persecuted Christians Worldwide - Persecution Trends - Open Doors UK & Ireland - Open Doors Ireland<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Serving Persecuted Christians Worldwide - Persecution Trends - Open Doors UK & Ireland\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/connect.opendoorsuk.org\/ireland\/persecution\/persecution-trends-2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Open Doors Ireland\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-12-06T16:11:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/connect.opendoorsuk.org\/ireland\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/08\/1365trends-afgh-1024x260.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/connect.opendoorsuk.org\\\/ireland\\\/persecution\\\/persecution-trends-2\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/connect.opendoorsuk.org\\\/ireland\\\/persecution\\\/persecution-trends-2\\\/\",\"name\":\"Serving Persecuted Christians Worldwide - 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