Christians arrested and churches closed in Algeria

 

While Muslim mosques can now reopen after a decree that closed all temples in the country due to Covid-19, evangelical churches remain closed, without operating authorization and Christians who insist on meeting are arrested

Luís Alberto Alves

Hamid Soudad was arrested on January 21 in the northern province of Oran on charges of insulting the prophet of Islam, Mohammed. A day later, the court in Erzwe found Soudad guilty of blasphemy based on a social network post three years earlier, in which he shared a cartoon of Muhammad. He received the maximum sentence of five years in prison, a decision he said he would appeal.

Two other ex-Muslim Christians have also recently been convicted for similar reasons. They received six-month and three-year prison sentences, respectively, as well as a fine between $ 375 and $ 1,900 each.

Meanwhile, the forced closure of a dozen Protestant churches in recent years remains a serious concern, according to the World Evangelical Alliance during a presentation to the UN Human Rights Council last week. “The 13 sealed Protestant churches since November 2017 have remained closed. All other Protestant churches in Algeria are still closed due to COVID-19 measures, while authorities have allowed more than 180 mosques in the province of Tizi Ouzou and some Catholic churches to reopen, ”said the Alliance.

In August 2020, the Algerian Prime Minister announced that mosques with a capacity for more than 1,000 worshipers could be reopened, but made no reference to churches, causing them to remain closed due to the pandemic.

Serious consequences

Most Algerian Protestant churches are members of the Algerian Protestant Church network, known as EPA. The group is still waiting for its new formal registration under a 2006 law that requires all non-Muslim places of worship to be licensed, as well as its member churches that have also applied for registration.

The national commission that oversees the licensing process is not operating during the pandemic and has so far not granted a license to any of the churches that have applied, giving authorities an excuse to force the churches to close.

In December, three UN special rapporteurs expressed their concerns about the situation in a letter to the Algerian government. “Currently, a total of 49 places of worship and churches are threatened with closure,” which they said appeared to be a “campaign that would have serious consequences for the rights of the Protestant Christian minority to manifest and freely practice their religion or belief. . "

Reminding the government of its obligations under international law, UN representatives also said they were concerned about "alleged acts of repression and intimidation by state officials against followers and representatives of Protestant churches".

Algeria is the 24th country on the 2021 World Persecution List and Christians face severe persecution in various spheres of life.