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2022-11-17

• More Church Leaders Detained

  

  In 2002, the government of Eritrea outlawed every religion except for Sunni Islam, Eritrean Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism and Lutheranism. Since then, the oppression against other religious groups has been severe. Even those within the approved faith groups have been at risk of opposition, particularly if they are perceived to be in conflict with the country's authoritarian regime. To review previous reports on the persecution of Christians in this East African nation, go to our country report.

• Municipal Authorities Order Demolition of Church

  

  The "Jesus Calls You" church in Abepradesa, Anuradhapura District, has been facing repeated harassment from local municipal council members, who claim that the church is unauthorized and therefore operating illegally. On September 23rd, the pastor received a letter ordering that all worship services be discontinued within 14 days or legal action will take place. (For more information, see this page.)When the church failed to comply, a different approach was taken by the officials. On October 11th, the pastor received a letter demanding that their church building be demolished within seven days. The statement warned that failure to comply will result in the demolition taking place anyway without further notice.

• Imprisonment Nearing Completion for Detained Christians

  

  In January 2020, Pastor An Yankui and Zhang Chenghao, along with five other Christians, travelled from China to attend a conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The conference speaker was highly critical of the Chinese Communist Party, which led to multiple arrests of all seven believers who were subsequently charged for "illegally crossing the national border" (see this page).