What the Violators of Religious Freedom Report Reveals about the Worst Offenders

Aimee Herd : Oct 21, 2015
Anugrah Kumar - Christian Post

"All nations should care about abuses beyond their borders not only for humanitarian reasons but because what goes on in other nations rarely remains there. In the long run, there is only one permanent guarantor of the safety, security and survival of the persecuted and vulnerable. It is the full recognition of religious freedom."

Recently, the annual report of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) was released, listing the top nations with the "worst record of religious freedom," according to the Christian Post.

The USCIRF report found that 12 of 17 nations that were the worst violators of religious freedom were countries having an Islamic majority.

The CP noted that the USCIRF has recommended eight more nations to the list, and seven of those are also "Muslim-majority" countries.

USCIRF Chair, Katrina Lantos Swett said in a statement, "Not a day goes by without at least one country from these lists appearing on the front page of a major newspaper. Humanitarian crises fueled by waves of terror, intimidation and violence have engulfed an alarming number of countries over the past year."

"With serious religious freedom violations occurring all around the world, these horrors speak volumes about how and why religious freedom and the protection of the rights of vulnerable religious communities matter," continued Swett in the statement. "All nations should care about abuses beyond their borders not only for humanitarian reasons but because what goes on in other nations rarely remains there. In the long run, there is only one permanent guarantor of the safety, security and survival of the persecuted and vulnerable. It is the full recognition of religious freedom."

Read which nations are listed as violators of religious freedom, or "Countries of Particular Concern," by clicking here.