Law and Religion Headlines
Friday, 22 September 2023
Afghanistan: 2 years ago, the Taliban banned girls from school. It’s a worsening crisis for all Afghans
(Riazat Butt, Associated Press)
Chinese court imposes life sentence on Uyghur scholar
(Sophie Richardson, Human Rights Watch)
Kashmir’s top pro-freedom cleric leads Friday prayers after four years
(Al Jazeera)
India: Ornate Indian Hindu temple will open on old mosque site, fulfilling Modi’s election promise
(Rhea Mogul and Vedika Sud, CNN)
Who was Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the Sikh activist whose killing has divided Canada and India?
(Krutika Pathi and David Cohen, Religion News Service)
Indian govt seeks detailed report on anti-Christian violence
(Bijay Kumar Minj, Union of Catholic Asian News)
Tinmel – Morocco’s medieval shrine and mosque – is one of the historic casualties of the earthquake
(Abbey Stockstill, The Conversation)
AI won’t be replacing your priest, minister, rabbi or imam any time soon
(Pauline Hope Cheong, The Conversation)
Legislation factsheet: Blasphemy (2023 update)
(Luke Wilson, United States Commission on International Religious Freedom)
India-Canada tensions shine light on complexities of Sikh activism in the diaspora
(Deepa Bharath, Associated Press)
Incendiary rhetoric on Sikh's murder stokes debate in Canada diaspora
(Nadine Yousif, BBC News)
Why India fears the Khalistan movement and how Canada became embroiled in diplomatic spat over killing of Sikh separatist
(Mark Juergensmeyer, The Conversation)
Leaders of Muslim world slam West at UN over Quran desecrations
(Daily Sabah)
Surveillance of Indian diplomats in Canada led to allegations around Sikh killing, official says
(Rob Gillies, Associated Press)
Uzbekistan: USCIRF deeply troubled by Uzbekistan’s backsliding on religious freedom
(U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom)
South African “hate speech” bill would violate human rights; Free speech experts address Parliament
(ADF International)
Netanyahu tells UN that Israel is ‘at the cusp’ of a historic agreement with Saudi Arabia
(Associated Press)
Turkey's Erdogan to Jewish leaders: Antisemitism is 'crime against humanity'
(Zvika Klein, The Jerusalem Post)
Iran hijab bill: Women face 10 years in jail for 'inappropriate' dress
(David Gritten, BBC News)
Iranian court gives a Tajik man 2 death sentences for an attack at a major Shiite shrine
(Associated Press)
Photos of the Week: Yom Kippur; Brazilian religious freedom march
(Kit Doyle, Religion News Service)
Pakistan: What happened to Zoroastrians in Karachi?
(Mohammad Salman, Deutsche Welle)
Tajikistan: Secret Supreme Court hearing bans Jehovah's Witnesses
(Mushfig Bayram, Forum 18 News Service)
Indonesia police slammed for violent action inside church
(Union of Catholic Asian News)
Turkish, Malaysian leaders condemn Quran burnings, populist discourse inciting hate speech
(Servet Gunerigok, Anadolu Agency)
Cuba: Ecumenical delegation meets with Cuban president Miguel Diaz Canél in New York
(World Council of Churches)
Colombia: WCC appointed as permanent accompanier in Colombian peace talks
(World Council of Churches)
Zimbabwe: “Migrants need security to stop moving,” says Archbishop Kaliyanil ahead of World Migrants and Refugees Day
(Arnold Neliba, Catholic Information Service for Africa)
Over 2000 homes of Jehovah’s Witnesses searched in 6 years in Russia
(Willy Fautré, The European Times)
Argentina: The Chamber of Deputies approved October 31 as the Day of the Evangelical and Protestant Churches (Spanish)
(Tiempo Argentina)
Wednesday, 20 September 2023
China’s strange battle against Buddhists releasing mineral water into rivers
(Gladys Kwok, Bitter Winter)
China: Tech companies in China leverage censorship against religious content
(ChinaAid)
China: Among Uyghurs, China aims to ‘meld Islam with Confucianism’
(Eziz, Radio Free Asia)
India may be linked to Canadian Sikh leader's death - Trudeau
(Nadine Yousif, BBC News)
Vatican pushes nations to ensure religious freedom in Jerusalem
(Catholic Review)
Pope condemns hitting civilian targets after Caritas warehouse destroyed in Lviv
(Elise Ann Allen, Crux: Taking the Catholic Pulse)
Canada probe of India's role in Sikh separatist's murder strains ties further
(Kanishka Singh, Reuters)
Canada: Manitoba churches appealing unjustified church closures to the Supreme Court of Canada
(Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms)
Canada: Freedom and equality not in conflict, report tells legal community
(Cardus)
Canada: Survivors and victim of 2017 Quebec mosque attack awarded medals of bravery
(CBC News)
Trudeau links India’s government to slaying of Sikh separatist leader in Canada
(Clemente Lisi, Religion Unplugged)
India expels Canadian diplomat, escalating tensions after Trudeau accuses India in Sikh’s killing
(Krutika Pathi and Rob Gillies, Associated Press)
Ancient mosques damaged in Morocco earthquake
(Christopher Parker, Smithsonian Magazine)
Palestinian politicians lash out at renowned academics who denounced president’s antisemitic remarks
(Associated Press)
Tunisian president’s remarks on Storm Daniel have been denounced as antisemitic and prompt an uproar
(Associated Press)
Religious alternatives to democracy?
(Mark Tooley, Juicy Ecumenism, Institute on Religion and Democracy)
Church of Scotland ministers protest against persecution of Christians in Pakistan
(The Church of Scotland)
Japan: Why the Unification Church should not be dissolved. 1. A general outline
(Tatsuki Nakayama, Bitter Winter)
Japan: Why the Unification Church should not be dissolved. 2. Dissolving would be contrary to the law
(Tatsuki Nakayama, Bitter Winter)
Thai king’s estranged son urges open discussion of monarchy, in rejection of anti-defamation law
(Jintamas Saksornchai, Associated Press)
Indonesia: TikToker jailed for two years over pork video
(Derek Cai, BBC News)
Egypt: Jewish community in Cairo celebrates Rosh Hashanah for the first time in 70 years
(CSW: Everyone Free to Believe)
Uzbekistan turning down the volume on Islam
(Chris Rickleton, Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty)
Influential Muslim scholar receives award from Jewish organisation promoting Israel normalisation
(Middle East Eye)
World Economic Forum’s Faith in Action accelerator
(Brian Grim, Religious Freedom & Business Foundation)
Ultra-Orthodox anti-Zionists meet with Iranian President Raisi at United Nations
(The Jerusalem Post)
USCIRF releases new report on religiously based family law in the Middle East and North Africa
(U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom)
Iranian-Armenian pastor begins 10-year sentence for his ‘disturbing’ teachings
(Article 18)
Cuba’s political police threaten young evangelical Christian because of his leadership
(Yoe Suárez, FoRB in Full: A blog by CSW)
Monday, 18 September 2023
In a first, Volodymyr Zelensky met with Chabad rabbis ahead of Rosh Hashanah
(Jackie Hajdenberg, Jewish Telegraphic Agency)
The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, the Pope Francis, and Russia’s war against Ukraine
(Thomas Mark Németh, Talk About: Law and Religion - Blog of the International Center for Law and Religion Studies)
UN extends mandate of team probing Daesh/ISIS war crimes for 1 final year
(Betül Yürük, Anadolu Agency)
Canada: Ethical issues in euthanasia and assisted suicide in Canada
(Cardus)
Canada expels Indian diplomat as it investigates India's possible link to Sikh activist's slaying
(Rob Gillies, Associated Press)
India: New report points to growing persecution of Indian Christians
(Union of Catholic Asian News)
URI youth at the G20 Interfaith Forum 2023
(United Religions Initiative)
India: Sikh-Hindu collaboration revives mosques in Indian villages
(Zaffar Iqbal, Religion Unplugged)
India: A Hindu-Muslim dispute tests centuries of interfaith culture in India's Varanasi
(Sushmita Pathak, NPR)
Quest to bring priest charged with torture in Argentina to justice
(BBC News)
Egypt: ‘Where is the equality? Where is the religious freedom? Where is the law?’: Egypt’s Christian wonder
(Raymond Ibrahim, Coptic Solidarity)
Egypt: A decade of curricular reform? Egypt’s schools still teach division and discrimination
(Ishak Ibrahim, Coptic Solidarity)
Iraq: USCIRF releases new report on religious freedom in Iraq
(U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom)
It’s halftime for the Sustainable Development goals. Are they achievable?
(Eden Stiffman, The Chronicle of Philanthropy)
Pakistan: “Religious fanaticism is ruining Pakistan”
(Jonatán Soriano, Evangelical Focus)
Global Interfaith Monitor No. 15
(Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs, Georgetown University)
Myanmar’s Christians: As our churches burn and people flee, we need the US’s help
(Zo Tum Hmung, David Moe, John Indergaard, Christianity Today)
Secretary-General of the MWL launches the visual identity of the International Commission of Jurists (video)
(Twitter, Muslim World League)
Articles of interest - 18 September 2023
(Howard Friedman, Religion Clause)
China: priest convicted for refusing to register with the schismatic church
(FSSPX)
China: Religious persecution and issues – Bimonthly digest September 01-15
(Human Rights Without Frontiers International)
Russia: Religious persecution and issues – Bimonthly Digest September 01-15
(Human Rights Without Frontiers International)
Churches march in New York City to declare no faith in fossil fuels
(World Council of Churches)
Kazakhstan: prisoners of conscience still in jail, others under multiple long-term punishments
(Felix Corley, Forum 18 News Service)
UNESCO votes to list ruins near ancient Jericho as a World Heritage Site in Palestine
(The Times of Israel)
Israel opens first-ever mixed-observance seminary for Jewish girls
(The Jerusalem Post)
Reassessing democracy: Contemporary Christian and Islamic perspectives
(Whittney Barth, Canopy Forum on the Interactions of Law & Religion)
Mexico: Church looks to new apostolates to combat upsurge in Mexico's violence
(La Croix International)
Brazil: Bishops campaign against decriminalization of marijuana in Brazil, but not all Catholics agree
(Eduardo Campos Lima, La Croix International)
Australia: Church seeks exemption for religious belief in misinformation bill
(Paul Sakkal, Sydney Morning Herald)
Sri Lankans are positive about religious diversity, says Pew survey
(Rathindra Kuruwita, The Diplomat)
Legal Journal Number 10 (18): August (Spanish)
(Observatorio de Libertad Religiosa de América Latina y El Caribe)
Friday, 15 September 2023
5 facts about religion in South and Southeast Asia
(Johnathan Evans, Pew Research Center)
Canada: Sikh student attacked while taking bus home from school in Kelowna, RCMP say
(Akshay Kulkarni, CBC News)
Conflicting rights?: Balancing equality and fundamental freedoms
(Kristopher E. G. Kinsinger, Cardus)
Iraq steps up repatriations from Daesh camp in Syria, hoping to reduce militant threats
(Arab News)
Iraq sentences Daesh member to death over pilgrim bombing
(Arab News)
Egyptians divided over recent niqab ban at schools
(Umut Uras, Al Jazeera)
Taiwan International Religious Freedom Summit warns about China’s long arm of repression
(Feng Ziwei, Taiwan News)
Nicaragua: Plea for justice for wrongfully imprisoned Nicaraguan Bishop Rolando Álvarez submitted to international human rights body
(ADF International)
USCIRF releases updated blasphemy factsheet and blasphemy law compendium
(U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom)
Email Subscription
The International Center for Law and Religion Studies maintains a Law and Religion Headlines service covering news about freedom of religion or belief internationally. All interested may subscribe to this service, free of charge, using the link below.
Subscribe