27 protestant churches closed in 6 months in Algeria

A total of 27 non-authorised protestant churches have been closed for the last six months. Most of them are located in Tizi Ouzou, Bejaia and Bouira provinces along with another church in Tiaret (west of Algiers), according to the president of protestant church in Algeria.

• The priest told Echorouk out of 50 churches, 27 got notice between November 2007 and March 2008 to immediately stop their activities.
• Perviously, Algerian Interior Minister Yazid Zerhouni said there were decisions to close a large number of worshiping places.
• The protestant churches reject those decisions as they constitute a “campaign to tighten the noise on Christians in Algeria.”
• On the other hand, Algerian authorities consider the closure decisions legal as the churches are out of law. They are houses and garages opened for worshipers without permit in addition to non-accredited Christian associations which anarchically supervise worshipping places.
• A western campaign is launched against a decree issued in March 2006 on religious rites practice for non-Muslims. The decree is asked to ban conditions on the necessity of prior registration and accreditation of religious activities.
• The implementation of the decree showed many illegal protestant churches decided to be closed.
• Judicial decisions were also issued for expulsion of Churches’ frequenters who exercise evangelisation in an illegal way.
• Protestant churches say the decisions tighten the noise on belief freedom and most of Christian associations are legally working by virtue of a law on associations set in 1990.
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