Have The Issues Concerning Religion Have Changed

Pew Inquiry Centre simply published its 10th almanac study analyzing restrictions on religion (by both governments and individuals or groups in society) effectually the globe. This year'southward written report differs from past reports considering it focuses on changes that have occurred over the form of a decade, roofing 2007 to 2017, rather than emphasizing twelvemonth-to-year variations. Another new approach this year involves splitting each of two broad types of religious restrictions – government restrictions and social hostilities – into four subcategories. This provides a clearer picture of the specific types of religious restrictions that people face – and how they are changing over fourth dimension.

Hither are key findings from the report:

1 Government restrictions on religion take increased globally between 2007 and 2017 in all four categories studied: favoritism of religious groups, general laws and policies restricting religious freedom, harassment of religious groups, and limits on religious activity. The almost common types of restrictions globally have consistently been the first two. Governments often enshrine favoritism toward a sure religious group or groups in their constitutions or bones laws. And general laws and policies restricting religious liberty can comprehend a broad range of restrictions, including a requirement that religious groups annals in order to operate. But ane of the more than striking increases involved the category of regime limits on religious activities, which can include limits or requirements on religious dress. The global mean score in this category rose by almost 44% between 2007 and 2017.

two Social hostilities involving religion take increased in a few categories, merely levels of interreligious tension and violence, also known as sectarian or communal violence, take declined globally. In 2007, 91 countries experienced some level of violence due to tensions between religious groups, such every bit conflict between Hindus and Muslims in India, merely past 2017 that number dropped to 57 countries. Yet, harassment by individuals and social groups, religious violence by organized groups, and hostilities related to religious norms (for instance, harassment of women for violating clothes codes) have all been on the rise. For details on these categories, see the full report.

3 The level of religious restrictions is highest in the Middle East-Due north Africa region in all eight categories measured by the study. The gap betwixt the Middle East and all other regions is particularly big when it comes to authorities favoritism of religious groups: 19 of the 20 countries in the Middle E favor a religion (Lebanon is the exception). In addition, the boilerplate score for government harassment in the Middle East-Northward Africa region has increased by 72% during the menstruum covered by the report. This includes instances such as such every bit criminal prosecutions of Ahmadis or members of other minority sects of Islam. The levels of religious violence past organized groups (such as terrorist groups) also have spiked in the region. In 2017, xi Middle Eastern countries were recorded as having more than 50 incidents of religion-related terrorism, including deaths, injuries, detentions and property damage. This is up from four countries in 2007.

four In certain categories, some of the biggest increases in religious restrictions over the past decade have occurred in Europe and sub-Saharan Africa. Europe's boilerplate score measuring government limits on religious activity has doubled, and its score in the government harassment of religious groups category has gone up by well-nigh 70%. Meanwhile, sub-Saharan Africa'southward score measuring government favoritism of religious groups has increased by more than 50%, and both regions have experienced marked rises in social hostilities related to religious norms. For example, in 2017, armed men entered classrooms in multiple schools in Burkina Faso and threatened to kill teachers if they did not teach the Quran to their students. And in Ukraine in 2015, separatists held four Jehovah's Witnesses at gunpoint, subjected them to beatings and mock executions and forced them to confess Orthodox Christianity as the only true religion.

5 Some countries accept similar scores when it comes to religious restrictions, just the reasons behind them can exist very different. One instance: France and Qatar accept like overall government restrictions scores (both are in the "high" category"), just France, which is officially a secular state, scores low in the category of government favoritism, while Qatar, where Islam is the state religion, scores much higher. Qatar also scores higher than France when information technology comes to limits on religious activities, which include laws that target non-Islamic faiths by restricting public worship, the display of religious symbols and proselytization. Meanwhile, France scores higher than Qatar when it comes to general government harassment of religious groups, which includes enforcing restrictions on religious dress. France continues to take a national ban on full-confront coverings in public, and local authorities as well impose various dress restrictions that more often than not bear upon Muslim women.