Catching Our Eye

Sort By date
Filter by Tag
Select Country
Category

‘Thousands’ of Iranians claiming asylum in Europe as converts to Christianity

Iran , , , , , ,
‘Thousands’ of Iranians claiming asylum in Europe as converts to Christianity
Thousands of Iranian asylum-seekers across Europe are turning to Christianity, though observers are not convinced that all claims of conversion are genuine. A BBC documentary, Praying for Asylum, tells the story of a number of Iranian asylum-seekers in the Netherlands who say they have become Christians and would be exposed . . . Read More

Russia outlaws Jehovah’s Witnesses as ‘extremist group’

Russia , , , , , ,
The administrative centre of the Jehovah's Witnesses based in the town of Solnechnoye in the federal city of St Petersburg, Russia. The Supreme Court has ordered the disbanding of the group. It needs to hand over all its assets and property to the Russian government. (Photo: Getty Images)
Russia’s Supreme Court yesterday (17 July) rejected an appeal by the Jehovah’s Witnesses against a ruling in April which declared it to be “extremist” and has ordered the disbanding of the group on Russian territory. “The justice ministry had argued that the group distributed pamphlets which incited hatred against other . . . Read More

Are Chinese Christians persecuted?

China , ,
Senior lady looking at Dongguang Church in Shenyang, northeastern China. (Photo: Open Doors International)
According to Richard Mouw, Christians in China are not facing increased persecution as much as a growing pressure to conform to Beijing’s policies. In an article for the Religion News Service, he writes that, after years of travelling to and within China, he has observed that “friendliness toward religion has . . . Read More

Azerbaijan: Baptist pastor challenges state over constitutional right to worship

Azerbaijan , , , ,
Hamid Shabanov in 2007. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)
A Baptist pastor who has led a “house church” in Azerbaijan for 25 years is to challenge his latest “offence”, citing the country’s constitutional rights, reports Forum 18. Hamid Shabanov, and another church member, Mehman Agamammadov, were each given the minimum fine of 1,500 manats (900 US dollars) for leading . . . Read More

Kazakhstan: closure of Jehovah’s Witnesses operation is sign of creeping religious intolerance

Kazakhstan , , , ,
Kazakhstan: closure of Jehovah’s Witnesses operation is sign of creeping religious intolerance
Kazakhstan’s decision to suspend operations at the headquarters of the Jehovah’s Witnesses is a symptom of the country’s growing intolerance towards religious rights, and particularly Christianity, writes Casey Michel in The Diplomat. Jehovah’s Witnesses, who had operated in Kazakhstan for 25 years with 18,000 followers, reacted by expressing concern that . . . Read More

Protests as Indonesia cracks down on ‘groups that threaten state ideology’

Indonesia , , , , , ,
An woman in Indonesia's Banda Aceh gets caning in public from an executor known as 'algojo' for spending time with a man who is not her husband, which is against Sharia law on March 20, 2017. Aceh Province is the only place in the Muslim-majority country which implements the strict version of Sharia Law. In a move to stop the rise of radical Islamist groups, the Indonesian government has adopted a law that will make disbanding such groups easier. (Photo: Getty Images)
In a move that has been severely criticised by civil society organisations, Indonesia on 10 July introduced a new law that allows the government to disband certain groups that threaten the state’s secular ideology. The law comes at a time when Indonesia is facing the increasing influence of hardline Islamist . . . Read More