Christians are suffering increased vio-lence, discrimination and other human rights abuses around the world, according to a report unveiled Tuesday, 22nd October. Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) launched ”Persecuted and Forgotten? A Report on Christians oppressed for their Faith 2022-24″ at an event in the UK Parlia-ment, revealing that Christian persecution has significantly worsened in most countries surveyed. “Persecuted and Forgotten?” provides global and regional analysis, exa-mining the situation for Christians in 18 countries of key concern – from Nicaragua in Latin America to Burma (Myanmar) in the Far East – between summer 2022 and summer 2024. Countries where Christian persecution and oppression has increased include world powers such as China and India, as well as Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country. For the first time in the report’s 18-year history, Nicaragua is featured in res-ponse to extreme oppressive measures targeting Chri-stians, notably the mass de-tention and expulsion of clergy. The report features first-hand testimonies from survivors of anti-Christian attacks, in addition to details of incidents based on information obtained from ACN’s local contacts. Recu-rring themes in the report include the displacement of Christian communities following attacks by extremist groups and the forced marriage and con-version of Christian women and girls, as well as the kidnapping and intimidation of priests and the publication of derogatory content about Christianity in school textbooks.
Anti-Christian persecu-tion has been perpetrated by both state and non-state actors, such as terrorist organisations, other groups of religious extremists and criminal gangs.
The report states that militant Islam was responsible for the increased persecution in all six African countries reviewed, indicating that “the epicentre of militant Islamist violence has shifted from the Middle East to Africa”. It goes on to explain: “Mass migration of Christian communities, triggered by militant Islamist attacks, has destabilised and disenfranchised them, raising questions about the long-term survival of the Church in key regions.”