Rising Social Hostilities Related to Religion Mark 2023
(Photo: Getty/iStock)
The Pew Research Center’s latest data highlights a significant uptick in religion-related social hostilities across the globe in 2023. According to the study, the number of countries experiencing such hostilities reached 55, up from 45 in the previous year. This increase continues a three-year trend, although it has not yet reached the 2012 peak of 65 countries.
Pew researchers cite several causes for this rise, including increased hostility toward minority faith groups and the global effects of Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7 and the subsequent Gaza conflict.
The comprehensive study reviews religious freedom in 198 countries and territories, using the Government Restrictions Index (GRI) and the Social Hostilities Index (SHI). The GRI examines laws and policies limiting religious freedom, while the SHI assesses harassment and violence related to religion by private entities.
Christians were harassed in the most countries, with incidents in 165 nations. Muslims and Jews also faced significant harassment, in 143 and 98 countries respectively, with Jewish harassment incidents rising from 90 the previous year.
Physical harassment of religious groups has become more prevalent worldwide, affecting 151 countries compared to 145 in 2022. Damage to religious properties was the most common form, reported in 120 countries, with Europe notably affected, as 78% of its countries experienced such incidents.
Physical assaults and religion-related killings were documented in 96 and 48 countries respectively. Despite the increase in social hostilities, government restrictions on religious freedom remained near record levels, affecting 58 countries, just shy of 2022’s 59 countries.
Government harassment was widespread, occurring in 185 countries, while interference in religious worship reached a new high, impacting 175 countries and territories. These restrictions included permit denials for worship places, limitations on burial practices, and restrictions on military service objections based on religious or moral grounds.
The report estimates that approximately 78% of the global population lives under high or very high levels of government restrictions, social hostilities, or both. Countries with the highest government restrictions include China, Iran, Afghanistan, Indonesia, Syria, and Uzbekistan.
The Middle East and North Africa region continues to report the highest median level of government restrictions, with social hostilities also on the rise. In Europe, both government restrictions and social hostilities increased, whereas sub-Saharan Africa saw a decline in both, despite Nigeria maintaining the highest global social hostilities score.
Among the 25 most populous countries, India, Egypt, Pakistan, Iran, and Indonesia recorded the highest combined levels of restrictions and social hostilities. In contrast, South Africa, the United States, Japan, the Philippines, and the United Kingdom reported the lowest combined levels.
Notable increases in social hostilities were seen in European countries such as Norway, Spain, and Sweden. Six countries reported very high levels of social hostilities in 2023: Nigeria, Israel, India, Pakistan, Syria, and Bangladesh, with Israel and Bangladesh being new additions.
Israel’s score rose from 7.1 to 8.4 due to the October 7 attacks and the ensuing conflict, while Bangladesh’s increase from 6.1 to 7.8 was partly due to violent attacks on the Ahmadi Muslim community, resulting in deaths and property damage.
The report also noted an increase in countries entering the high social hostility category, with 12 new entries in 2023, including Belgium, Norway, Russia, Spain, and Sweden in Europe, and Turkey, Thailand, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, and Guatemala elsewhere.
Spain’s SHI score rose from 2.8 to 3.7, driven by attacks on Jehovah’s Witnesses and other incidents post-October 7. Norway’s score increased from 3.2 to 4.2, following physical attacks on Jehovah’s Witnesses and a rise in hate speech against Jews and Muslims.
Sudan experienced a significant increase in its SHI score from 3.5 to 5.7 due to ongoing conflict involving the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), targeting Coptic Christians, seizing religious sites for military use, and coercing religious conversions.
This article was originally written by www.christiantoday.com
