By Martin Roth, BosNewsLife Senior Columnist
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA (BosNewsLife Columns)– Aid and advocacy group Open Doors has just released its annual report – known as the World Watch List – of the 50 countries where it claims Christians face the most severe persecution for their faith, but it raises a depressing quiz question: Of the 22 countries that comprise the Arab League, only three are not on the 2016 List; name those three countries….
Before providing the answer I might note that this is not a new phenomenon. Throughout the history of the World Watch List – it was first published in 2002 – most Arab League nations have been included. And the answer to my question? The three countries are Lebanon, Mauritania and Morocco.
For what it is worth, a year ago three Arab League countries also did not make it into the List. They were Bahrain, Lebanon and Morocco. It is a sad reality that the Arab world is particularly hostile towards Christians, more so than most other places (although once again North Korea tops the rankings).
And tragically, as the report makes clear, the plight of Christians has been deteriorating as Islamic State has tightened its grip in parts of the Arab world.
ISLAMIC EXTREMISM
But worse, the influence of Islamic extremism is expanding to other countries in Africa and Asia, putting Christians even further under threat.
Thus, among the trends driving persecution, the report notes:
— Islamic extremist self-styled caliphates have expanded their spheres of operation across international borders;
— governments became more fearful of Islamic extremism and responded by either (a) boosting nationalism as a counter force or (b) tightening regulations and increasing surveillance over all religious expression;
— Muslims the world over are becoming more Islamic out of fear that extremists may take over their areas and that Islamic State group sleeper cells may wake. In other cases it might be out of opportunism or religious conviction.
Even countries in sub-Saharan Africa, where Christianity is strong, are being affected. So both Kenya and Tanzania, where Christians are in the majority, find themselves on the List, as Islamic terrorism spreads.
AFRICAN COUNTRIES
But another phenomenon is also worth noting. The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation has 57 member states. Of these, 27 are in Africa, and 11 of them are on the latest World Watch List. Yet when we exclude the North African Arab countries we find that only three African members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation are on the List – Mali, Niger and Nigeria.
That’s not to say that the persecution of Christians does not occur in other member states of the Organisation. It does happen, and sadly it appears to be worsening, as the influence of Islamic State spreads.
But for the time being at least, let us note that fully 16 Islamic African countries are not on the World Watch List.
A year ago Open Doors said that Christians had faced the worst persecution in modern history during 2014. Then came 2015, and the torment was significantly worse.
Unfortunately, as 2016 begins, there is little to suggest that this will not be worse again.
(Martin Roth (www.authormartinroth.com), BosNewsLife’s Senior Columnist and Special Correspondent is a respected Australian journalist and former Tokyo-based foreign correspondent. He is the author of “Journey Out Of Nothing: My Buddhist Path to Christianity” and of the Brother Half Angel series of thrillers, which focus on the persecuted church. BosNewsLife Columns distributes opinionated columns and commentaries providing a fresh perspective on issues in the news. They do not necessarily reflect the opinion of BosNewsLife News Agency or its parent company.)
