Open Doors USA: Algeria Persecutes Christians
الشروق أونلاين
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Situation of Christians in a number of the world countries in is not optimistic, a report that was released by the organization “Open Doors USA” for the defence of persecuted Christians said.
Open Doors USA, which is based in the United States, claimed that Algeria is among the countries that persecute Christians.
Annual report of the organization shows the reality of Christians in the five continents, and included the monitoring of only 50 countries.
Algeria ranked 37, and with 56 marks out of 100 possible, the report claimed, in its accusations that Algeria is the theatre of the fundamentalist movements, and the law prohibits the religious meetings for non-Muslims.
“People who converted to Christianity suffer from violence within their families and are subjected to bad treatment by their neighbours. The main source of persecution is Islamic extremism”.
Despite the hard judgements that were carried by the report, but Algeria is better than the other Arab countries, because it ranks in green list, which contains the phrase “average persecution”.
Eritrea was at the forefront of the oppressed Arab countries, according to the report of Christians, and it ranked in the third place, then Iraq ranked Fourth, Syria “Fifth”, Somalia “Seventh”, Sudan “Eighth, Libya “Tenth”, Yemen “Eleventh”, Saudi Arabia “Fourteenth, and the most oppressive country is North Korea.
The report, transferred observations that were received in the US State Department report on religious freedom in the world, and which attacked Algeria, and estimated that 1% of the population are not Muslims.
Religious Affairs and Endowments Minister, Mohamed Issa, considered that the report’s figures of 400.000 Christians in Algeria is neither logical nor real, and the Open Doors USA report opposed with the figures that are provided by the Archbishop of the Catholic Church in Algeria, Paul Desfarge, who told CNN Arabic, a few days ago, that the situation of Christians in Algeria is good and there are no problems for religious practices remarks.
“There are efforts by the State which aimed at creating all the necessary conditions for Christians to practice their religion”, as Desfarges statements were supported by Algeria Religious Affairs’ Minister, Issa Mohamed, who said: “I am a Minister of all religions and not only the Islamic religion.”
The official also denied the existence of a negative view by the Algerian Christians, saying; “Christians live their faith nor in secret neither in public, and at the official level, there are no problems, but at the community level some Algerian Christians and others are disqualified. Ordinary Muslim does not accept that one of his/her family members converts to Christianity, but with the passage of time these Christians will be accepted in the Algerian society.”
For its part, the Algerian government defends the status of non-Muslims in Algeria, and the Minister of Religious Affairs and Endowments, Mohamed Issa, said in this regard, that the new constitution protects freedom of belief, and guarantees the rights of Christians in Algeria.
