Bishop Angaelos addresses Washington Summit

Bishop Angaelos, General Bishop of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the UK gave a keynote address at last week’s In Defense of Christians inaugural summit. Bishop Angaelos said the Christians and minorities in the region were facing widespread brutality which was intensifying. He also warned however that discussion around the atrocities must not be confined to religious…

Bishops’ letter on ‘Christian exodus’ in Iraq

Sir, We urge the government to promote a co-ordinated approach towards the estimated 100,000 displaced Christians around northern Iraq/Kurdistan, many of whom have nothing but the clothes on their backs. Their fate is now in the hands of outsiders after a forced exodus from areas they have inhabited since New Testament times. Western non-government organisations…

Boko Haram echoing Islamic State tactics

Boko Haram has taken over a string of locations in recent weeks in Nigeria’s remote northeast, in what looks like a plan to seize and hold a “Muslim territory” or caliphate, apparently inspired by the Islamic State (IS) in Iraq and Syria, reports Reuters. Escapees from seized northeast towns, such as Madagali, say the Islamists murder…

Magna Carta – celebrating 800 years of freedom

The Bishop of Coventry spoke at July’s General Synod in response to a motion calling for celebrations of the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta in June 2015. His speech clearly identified links between Magna Carta and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights – and particularly Article 18. Here is the full text of his speech:…

India: pre-election threats to freedom of religion or belief

John Dayal of the All India Christian Council (AICC) reported on 22 August that, despite concerted advocacy, there has been no response from either the state or federal government to concerns expressed that on the advice of Hindu nationalist (Hindutva) agitators from the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), more than 50 villages in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region had…

Religious Freedom An Asset To An Economy

Investor’s Business Daily has carried a story analysing the link between religious freedom and economic growth. Written by Katrina Lantos Swett and Daniel I. Mark of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, the article identifies the core facets of religious persecution that contribute to low levels of economic growth – namely the wasting of…

What the UK can do to advance religious freedom worldwide

Ziya Meral, a Research Associate at the Foreign Policy Centre and a co-author of last year’s APPG for International Religious Freedom or Belief report Article 18: An Orphaned Right, which analyses the role the UK can play in promoting religious freedom around the world. Ziya’s recommendations centre around the necessity of integrating religious freedom with wider issues,…

Nepal: pastor imprisoned for eating beef now released

Reverend Chhedar Lhomi Bhote, 37, was arrested in October 2012 after a Hindu mob attacked and burned his home in north-eastern Nepal near the Tibetan Autonomous Region. He was accused of having consumed beef – taboo in Nepal though not explicitly prohibited for non-Hindus – as well as having killed the cow himself, which is considered…

UK faith leaders call for action on Isil war crimes

Islamic militants attempting ‘extermination’ of religious minorities must face international justice, insists a coalition of Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu and Sikh leaders. Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Sikh and Zoroastrian leaders have written to the Daily Telegraph urging David Cameron to use the UK’s seat on the UN Security Council to begin the process of bringing war…