It used to be the case that Christians suffered greatest in communist
countries, but today Islamic fundamentalism has replaced communism as
the number one cause of persecution against Christians, says
International Christian Concern.
The persecution watchdog released its ‘Hall of Shame’ list of the
world’s worst countries for persecution in 2010 this week.
New entries
include Iraq and Egypt, both of which have seen a substantial increase
in anti-Christian violence.
In Iraq, Christians have been murdered almost weekly since October,
when Islamic militants killed more than 50 worshippers in a Baghdad
church in October and Al-Qaeda announced the following day that
Christians were legitimate targets for the Mujahedin.
According to the UN Refugee Agency, the attack on the Baghdad church
and the random killing of Christians in the following weeks has
triggered a “slow but steady exodus” of thousands of Christians out of
the city.
ICC warned that Egypt, more than any country outside of Iraq, had suffered the most from the Al-Qaeda threat.
2010 got off to a bad start when Muslim gunmen shot and killed six
Christians in a drive-by shooting in January.
Then in November, two
people were killed when Egyptian security forces opened fire on
Christian protestors in Giza.
The highest death toll came this week,
however, when a suicide bomber murdered 21 Christians outside a church
in Alexandria on New Year’s Day.
Writing in the forward to the report, ICC president Jeff King said
that while forms of persecution such as harassment, imprisonment,
torture and murder had “steadily declined” in communist and former
communist countries - with the exception of North Korea and China –
there continued to be a “significant increase” in incidents of
persecution in Islamic countries.
In North Korea, ICC said the information it had received indicated
that Christians were suffering harsher penalties than most criminals and
that an estimated 100,000 Christians are believed to be in labour camps
where they are “pushed to the point of being worked to death”.
Asia News reported that North Korean officials raided a house church
in Pyungsung County last May and arrested 23 Christians.
It reported
that three pastors were executed, while the other 20 believers were sent
to a labour camp.
The Chinese government came under criticism from ICC for listing
Christianity as a cult – a move which could be used to justify
government-backed persecution.
The report said that house churches have
become a target of the Chinese government, which continues to conduct
raids, arrest believers, and send them to labour camps for
‘re-education’, often without a court hearing.
The report does not attempt to rank the 11 countries in the Hall of
Shame in any particular order on the grounds that it is impossible to
fully determine the severity of Christian suffering throughout the
world.
Mr King said: "In compiling the report, it was striking to see the
rate at which Christian persecution has accelerated around the globe,
especially in the Islamic world.
“Anti-Christian hatred arising from Islam has flowed into 2011, as
seen in the horrific attacks in Egypt, Pakistan and Iraq already this
year.
“Constant vigilance is needed in the struggle to defend the fundamental human right of religious freedom.
“Those of us fortunate to live in countries that grant religious
freedom must not forget nor neglect the plight of Christians who are
condemned by extremist ideology or government tyranny to suffer – or die
– for their faith."
SIC: CT/INT'L