Key Quotes - Religious Persecution

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Last update: Wednesday 25th March




Speaking in Radio 4 on 11th December 2004 Archbishop Cormac Murphy O’Connor spoke of the denigration of Christian symbols leading to the persecution of Christians and the loss of Christian values in Europe as part of a deliberate policy to remove Christianity and its influence from Europe as a whole.
Religious Persecution	Prophecy Today – July / August 2005



At least 647 people have been charged with blasphemy in Pakistan since 1988, according to data collected by the National Commission of Justice and Peace (NCJP). Of these, about 50% were Muslims, 36% Ahmedis (a breakaway Islamic sect), 13% Christians and 1% Hindus. 20 people accused of blasphemy have been murdered in this period.
Religious Persecution	Evangelical Times – June 2005



Up to 6,000 Gideon Bibles were to be removed from the university's hall of residence claims they could offend non-Christians.
Religious Persecution	Christian Herald – 7th May 2005



After 100 children aged between two and eighteen were rounded up by a group of policemen whilst attending Christian classes, they started to sing in a loud voice; "I am not afraid of persecution, hardship and even death. Nobody can separate me from the Love of Jesus Christ. He died on the cross and he gave me new life." The policemen ordered the children to stop singing, saying; "You must shut-up, this is a police station", but despite the threats the children continued to sing.
Religious Persecution	Evangelicals Now - April 2005



According to Compass Direct news agency, another 31 Eritrean Christians have been jailed since early February, making a total of 187 arrests for illegal Christian activities since the beginning of the year. Some 400 people are currently in prison in Eritrea for their religious beliefs.
Religious Persecution	Evangelicals Now - April 2005



At least six Muslim girls, including two 12 year olds, were expelled from schools in France for wearing head scarves. These are the first exclusions under a law banning conspicuous religious symbols in public schools. Officials say a further 70 girls are defying the ban,
Religious Persecution	Evangelical Times – December 2004



Young Christian girls who are scarred for life; former blasphemy prisoner Aslam Masih, who can never walk freely in Pakistan again; and a former Muslim preacher, now a Christian, who faces death if he reveals his real identity. There were among the people CSW met on a recent visit to Pakistan, a country where religious minorities and women suffer horrifying dangers.In May this year, a seven year old girl was brutally raped and tortured by a Muslim man, because she is a Christian. This is not an unusual occurrence.
Religious Persecution	Response – December 2004



A group of Christian nurses has been banned from holding worship services at their hospital in central Nigeria after receiving death threats from Muslim militants. The nurses at the Federal Medical Centre in Keffi, Nasarawa state, received a letter from a group calling itself 'Islamic Fundamentalists.' The undated letter to the Fellowship of Christian Nurses said it was 'making it abundantly clear that our thirst for your heads/blood is mounting daily if you continue with your worship services in the hospital unabated.' The hospital authorities also received a copy of the letter, but took no action to protect the nurses. Instead they issued a letter on July 19 indefinitely suspending all Christian related activities at the hospital.
Religious Persecution	Response – December 2004



The worst place in central Asia to be a Christian today is probably Turkmenistan. The dictator there, President Niyazov, has erected a huge golden statue of himself which rotates to greet the sun in the capital Ashgabad.The more sinister side of his rule includes banning all Protestant groups from practising their faith. Believers have been threatened, detained, beaten, fined and sacked from their jobs, while homes used for worship have been confiscated and religious literature seized.
Religious Persecution	Response – December 2004



Christian and Muslim leaders in the Netherlands have called for calm amidst heightened tensions after the funeral of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh, killed by an alleged Islamic extremist. 'The violence, the aggression must stop', said Jan-Gerd Heetderks, president of the Protestant Church in the Netherlands. 'And that goes for people who get the idea that they should damage Muslim mosques or schools, too.' His plea was echoed by a prominent Islamic leader. 'This is a negative spiral that's threatening to turn into attack and counter attack,' said Mohammed Sini, the head of a national Muslim organisation, Citizens and Islam. 'There's a risk that we'll have an unbridgeable "us and them" opposition between parts of the population and that's something that can't happen.' The Netherlands population of 16m people includes some 900,000 Muslims.
Religious Persecution	Reform – December 2004



Muslims in Britain are suffering soaring levels of Islamophobia and discrimination based on their faith, rather than the colour of their skin, a report published today says..One in three Muslims felt that the Government was doing too little to protect the rights of different faith groups in the UK. The report also found that as well as suffering overt verbal and physical attacks, British Muslims are among the most economically and socially disadvantaged groups in the country. They have the lowest employment rate of any faith group, at 38%. There are 1.6million Muslims in the UK, 3% of the population. The Muslim community is also one of the youngest; one-third of those who follow the religion are under the age of 16, compared with one-fifth of the population as a whole. The average age of Muslims is 28, 13 years younger that the national average.
Religious Persecution	The Independent – 22nd November 2004



British Muslims are being subjected to an unprecedented level of prejudice, a report suggested today. A total of 80% of people surveyed for the report by the Islamic Human Rights Commission said they had experienced discrimination. This is nearly double the figure for 2000 of 45% and cuts across all ages and genders, the organisation said.
Religious Persecution	The Sentinel – 16th December 2004



A different and minor incident, which is nonetheless a straw in the same wind of change, was the proposal of Islington council in north London to change the name of St Mary Magdalene primary school, which opened in 1710. It wants to drop the word "saint" for fear of causing offence to other religions. Needless to say this proposal does not come from local people; parents and local religious leaders - some of them Muslim and Jewish - have expressed outrage at the plan. It is particularly striking that both Jewish and Muslim spokesmen and women have made it plain that this is simply not an issue and they have no objection at all to the word saint, but recognise the history and traditions of this country. The vicar of St Mary Magdalene says parents feel that Islington council has "been running an anti-Christian agenda, consistently, on ideological grounds, rejecting Christianity". If it has, it is not alone; there are countless examples across the country of secularist attempts to edit out Christian and post-Christian traditions, with bogus excuses about giving offence.
Religious Persecution	The Sunday Times – 7 November 2004



Human rights watchdog Bulgarian Helsinki Committee (BHC), condemned Bulgaria's government on July 22nd 2004 after police allegedly closed down 250 churches nationwide and detained several priests in the largest crackdown on clergy since the collapse of Communism.
Religious Persecution	Christian Herald - 31st July 2004



There has been chronic violence in southern Plateau state since July 2002, when Hausa Fulani Muslims attempted to drive the largest Christian tribe, the Tarok, from the Wase area. Some 5,000 were killed, approximately 100,000 people were displaced and at least 88 Christian villages were destroyed during an orgy of violence that the state seemed powerless to stop.
Religious Persecution	Response - August 2004

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