What Does 2021 Hold for Persecuted Christians?

By David Turner

(From the January - March 2021 issue of VOX)

The Covid-19 pandemic increased the suffering for many persecuted Christians in 2020. In Pakistan, some Christians were denied government aid being distributed through mosques and were told that it was for Muslims only, while in India and Nigeria poor Christians were simply overlooked and left out of aid distributions. Church in Chains, working through local partners, was able to help some of these Christians in their need. As 2021 begins, the worst effects of Covid-19 seem to be over in most of the 60 countries where Christians face persecution. However, the outlook in many of these countries is either rising persecution or continuing severe persecution, though there have been a few hopeful signs of positive change. Writing for VOX magazine, Church in Chains Director David Turner points to some of the trends to keep an eye on in 2021.

On The Rise

An estimated 1,200 Christians were killed in attacks by Muslim Fulani militants in Nigeria’s Middle Belt region last year and over 50,000 became Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) seeking refuge in IDP camps or moving in with family members in other areas because their villages became unsafe or were taken over entirely. The Nigerian government has failed to take any decisive action to halt the violence but instead has concentrated on denying the religious motivation behind the attacks. Many believe that President Buhari (who is a Muslim Fulani) is reluctant to act against members of his own ethnic group. Fears that the situation could get even worse are summed up in the title of a report issued by a UK parliamentary group in 2020: “Nigeria – Unfolding Genocide?”

The spread of radical Muslim terrorist groups across sub-Saharan Africa is posing a great threat to governments in several countries as well as to Christians living in the region. During 2020, violent attacks were committed against Christians in parts of Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Somalia and Uganda.

Meanwhile, in Pakistan there has been an upsurge in reports of young teenage Christian girls kidnapped by Muslim men, forcibly converted to Islam and forced into marriage. Typically, local police fail to help and during 2020, lower-level courts often sided with the kidnappers – one judge instructed police not to “harass the newlywed couple”. Some girls have managed to escape, others have been rescued and placed in women’s refuges while others remain with their abductors. Kidnappings have increased because kidnappers are emboldened by the lack of police action against them. One sliver of hope for change came in December, when the Pakistani government announced an investigation into the issue.

Ongoing Severe Persecution

Christians living in China have grown used to the ever-tightening restrictions on their activities in recent years – especially since new religious regulations were introduced in 2018 as part of President Xi Jinping’s “Sinicisation” policies, which aim to ensure that every religion conforms to Chinese Communist Party philosophy. For Christians, these policies have led to the removal of crosses from thousands of church buildings, the banning of under-18’s from church premises and the closure of hundreds of churches. 2021 seems likely to continue this trend, which has also seen the imprisonment of well-known house church leaders and the harassment of members of their churches which form the bulk of China’s estimated 100 million Christians. Church in Chains partner Bob Fu, founder of China Aid, said: “The Chinese Communist Party, led by Xi Jinping, is trying to build a country modelled after North Korea. This will only get worse.”

In India, the recent trend of violent attacks on Christians in rural areas by Hindu extremists continued during 2020. The lack of any government action to halt these actions means that Hindu militants feel emboldened to continue their hate campaign in pursuit of their “Hindus only” vision for India. At a meeting with Church in Chains in July 2020, the Indian ambassador to Ireland dismissed the attacks as “isolated incidents”. In late 2020, Church in Chains partner Shibu Thomas, founder of Persecution Relief, was accused of “anti-national activities” and “tarnishing the nation’s image” because of Persecution Relief’s documenting of hundreds of incidents of persecution.

In Iran, the church is continuing to grow and also suffer with no sign of either coming to an end. Church in Chains partners speak of a continuing hunger for the New Testament and a growth in discipleship programmes while also reporting house churches being raided and leaders arrested and threatened, with some ending up in prison or in exile.

Signs Of Hope

Eritrea’s Christians, especially those who belong to unapproved churches, have faced severe persecution since their churches were forcibly closed in 2002. Thousands of Christians have been imprisoned without charge or sentence since then. However, the unexplained release of 69 Christian prisoners in autumn 2020 followed by the release of 28 Jehovah’s Witnesses prisoners in December has led to hopes that a more general release of the estimated 300 Christians currently in prison may happen in 2021. They include some church leaders who have been prisoners for over 16 years.

Persecution of Christians in Sudan has been severe for over 30 years but the deposing of the authoritarian president Omar al-Bashir has led to some big changes introduced by a transitional government. Instead of closing churches, the government has granted permission for church buildings and authorised state television to broadcast Christmas services. The government reformed the county’s apostasy laws in 2020, removing the death penalty for conversion from Islam.

Find out more at www.churchinchains.ie.