A record-breaking 192 countries and territories witnessed harassment of religious groups in 2022, according to the latest analysis by the Pew Research Center. The findings highlight a troubling rise in hostilities, with government actions and societal pressures contributing to the increase.
The 'Government Restrictions on Religion Stayed at Peak Levels Globally in 2022', marks the 15th year of Pew’s research into religious restrictions and social hostilities across 198 nations. It found that harassment by governments or social groups had increased in three additional countries compared to 2021, reaching an all-time high.
“Governments harassed people for their religious beliefs and practices in 186 countries in 2022, up from 183 in 2021,” the report said. “Social groups or private individuals harassed people due to their religion in 164 countries, the same number as in 2021. Governments and/or social actors harassed religious groups in 192 countries, including 158 countries where both governments and social groups or private individuals engaged in harassment.”
Christians were the most targeted religious group, facing harassment in 166 countries — the highest figure recorded in the study’s history.
Among the cases cited was the arrest of a man in Mauritania whose son brought Christian literature across the border from Senegal. Another example involved attempts by militias to seize Christian properties in Bartella, a historically Christian town in Iraq’s Nineveh province.
The study revealed widespread physical harassment, including property damage, assaults, detentions, displacements, and killings, impacting religious groups in 145 countries in 2022. This marked an increase from 137 countries in 2021. Governments used physical force against religious groups in 111 countries, while social groups or private individuals did so in an equal number of nations.
Property damage was the most common form of harassment, reported in 61 per cent of countries, followed by detentions (47 per cent), physical assaults (45 per cent), displacements (26 per cent), and killings (25 per cent).
While Cape Verde, Fiji, and New Zealand were among the few countries where no government-led harassment of religious groups occurred, other nations, including the United States, were cited for widespread intimidation. Religious groups in the U.S. faced property damage and physical assaults, though no killings or displacements were recorded. Organised efforts to dominate public life with specific religious views also emerged as a concern.
Muslims faced harassment in 148 countries, a record high since Pew began its research. Jews experienced harassment in 90 countries in 2022, a decline from the record 94 countries reported in 2020.
The report also acknowledged that members of “other religions” faced harassment in 68 countries, tying a record set in 2019, and the religiously unaffiliated were targeted in 32 countries, marking another record high.