AFP: WASHINGTON — Religious freedom took a turn for the worse in the last year in China, Egypt and Iran, but also in normally more tolerant countries like Jordan and Algeria, the State Department said Friday.
The State Department's annual report on religious freedoms around the world for the period between July 2007 and July 2008 also singled out North Korea again as among the worst violators of religious freedom.
But there were new concerns about Jordan and Algeria, "which traditionally have been more respectful of minority faiths," according to John Hanford III, the ambassador at large for religious freedom.
"The government's de factor and de jure policies have precipitated a decline in the status of religious freedom during this reporting period," the report said.
In February, the government began enforcing an ordinance which "makes proselytizing a criminal offense," it said.
It said that the ordinance mandates "that anyone who makes, stores or distributes printed documents, or audiovisual materials with the intent of 'shaking the faith' of a Muslim may also face a maximum of five years' imprisonment" and a fine equivalent to 7,100 dollars.
"In Jordan, a Sharia Court found a convert from Islam to Christianity guilty of apostasy, annulled his marriage, and declared him to be without any religious identity," said Hanford, who oversaw the report.
"The Jordanian government also harassed individuals and organizations based on religious affiliation," he said. Religious Freedom Worsens in Jordan, Algeria: US >>> | September 20, 2008
Hat tip: Dhimmi Watch
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