Open Doors warns of unprecedented levels of persecution of Christians in Pyongyang
Pyongyang returns to the top of the list of the most dangerous countries for Christians drawn up by the international NGO. India is the country with the highest number of recorded arrests: as many as 1750 in one year. The expansion of the 'China model' in the subordination of religious freedom to 'stability and security' is worrying. In the world 1 believer in Jesus out of every 7 lives in a country where discrimination is high; 5,621 were killed in twelve months.
Milan (AsiaNews) - There are over 360 million Christians in the world (1 in every 7) who experience at least a high level of persecution and discrimination in their own country because of their faith. Asia and the Middle East, together with Africa, are at the top of this sad ranking.
This is what emerges from the data of the 2003 annual report of the international NGO Open Doors, released today, which examines the violations of religious freedom recorded in the world between 1 October 2021 and 30 September 2022.
Bringing together reports and news items from a variety of sources - including those published by AsiaNews - each year the report ranks the countries where it is most dangerous to be a Christian.
In absolute terms, over the period of time examined, 5,621 Christians were killed for faith-related causes in the world (15 every day), 4,542 Christians were arrested, 5,259 were kidnapped, and 2,110 Christian churches and buildings were attacked. But the study also takes into account other indicators of persecution such as ideological oppression, Islamic fundamentalism or other forms of religious nationalism.
In the world as a whole, North Korea is the country where the situation is the most serious, with the highest level of persecution in the 30 years of the Open Doors report. The entry into force of the Law against Reactionary Thought, in fact, has led to an increase in the arrests of Christians and the discovery and consequent closure of a greater number of hidden churches.
Being arrested means facing execution or detention in political prisoner camps, where prisoners risk starvation and all kinds of torture and abuse, including sexual abuse. The law makes it a crime to publish any material of foreign origin in North Korea and is also used to justify the search and confiscation of Bibles or any other Christian material, whether printed or electronic.
The text quotes the testimony of Timothy Cho, a North Korean refugee who fled the country: "Christians have always been the focus of the regime's attacks. The goal is to wipe out every Christian from the country. Only one god is allowed in North Korea: the Kim family'.
Among the top ten countries in the world where, according to Open Doors, it is most dangerous to be Christian - looking at Asia and the Middle East - are Yemen in third place, Pakistan in seventh, Iran in eighth and Afghanistan in ninth.
Regarding the latter country - paradoxically - the parameters on the basis of which Open Doors draws up its ranking, also linked to the number of recorded cases of violence, show an improvement that is, however, only apparent: it is mainly due to the fact that the Taliban declare that the presence of Christians has been totally eradicated and the few remaining ones live in hiding.
India, in 11th place in the ranking, is nevertheless included among the countries where persecution is described as 'extreme'. In the period under review - in particular - New Delhi recorded the record number of detentions of Christians without trial for reasons related to their faith (1,750).
On China - ranked 16th among the countries where persecution against Christians is strongest - the report notes how worryingly it is also becoming a "model" for many other countries to redefine human rights standards downwards.
"Using the language of 'stability' and 'security'," it notes, "autocrats exert immense pressure on church leaders in response to their persistent calls for respect for human rights, free participation of civil society, rule of law and transparent elections. Those who refuse to support the ruling party can be branded as 'troublemakers', 'disturbers of the peace' or even 'terrorists'".
Finally, the report underlines the growth of the persecution dynamic in Myanmar, in terms of the number of people forced to leave their homes or hide or flee the country (over 100,000), the number of Christian homes, shops and property destroyed or attacked (over 1,000), and the number of Christian churches and buildings attacked, a sign that the authoritarian turn of the military junta has targeted certain minorities perceived as disturbing simply because they profess the Christian faith.
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