A recent analysis reveals that members of religious groups faced harassment by government or social actors in a record number of countries, with hostility against Christians increasing.
The Pew Research Center released a report titled “Government Restrictions on Religion Stayed at Peak Levels Globally in 2022.” This marks the 15th time the organization has examined government restrictions and social hostilities toward religion in 198 countries and territories.
The research indicated that in 2022, “harassment of religious groups by governments or social actors occurred in 192 out of the world's 198 countries and territories.” This marked “an increase by two countries from 2021 and a new peak level for the study.”
The report further states, “Governments harassed people for their religious beliefs and practices in 186 countries in 2022, up from 183 in 2021.” Additionally, it was noted that social groups or private individuals harassed people due to their religion in 164 countries, which remained the same as in 2021.
Overall, governments and social actors harassed religious groups in 192 countries, including 158 countries where both governments and social groups or private individuals engaged in harassment. As in previous studies, Christians experienced harassment in the majority of countries, with a record high of 166 in 2022.
At least one instance of physical harassment toward a religious group occurred in 145 of the 198 countries surveyed, marking an increase from 137 in 2021. Governments used physical force against religious groups in 111 countries, while social groups or private individuals were found to have engaged in similar harassment in the same number of countries.
Property damage was the most common form of physical harassment directed at religious groups, occurring in 61% of countries. Detentions took place in slightly less than half (47%) of the countries, whereas physical assaults, displacements, and killings occurred in 45%, 26%, and 25% of the surveyed countries, respectively.
According to an appendix accompanying the report, the only countries where absolutely no harassment of religious groups occurred at the hands of the government in 2022 were Cape Verde, Fiji, Grenada, Macao, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, New Zealand, Portugal, San Marino, Senegal, and Suriname.
The United States was identified as one of 110 countries where there was widespread intimidation of religious groups “by any level of government.” In the U.S., religious groups faced issues such as property damage and physical assaults, but there were no recorded instances of displacements, killings, or detentions.
Another significant challenge for religious groups in the U.S. included organized groups using “force or coercion in an attempt to dominate public life with their perspective on religion, including preventing some religious groups from operating in the country.”
Muslims experienced some level of harassment in 148 nations in 2022, marking a record high since Pew began its research. In contrast, after reaching a peak of 94 countries in 2020, the number of countries where Jews experienced harassment decreased for the second consecutive year, totaling 90 in 2022.
The number of countries reporting harassment of Hindus also rose to a record high of 26 in 2022. Additionally, members of folk religions faced harassment in 49 countries, yet another record high. The number of nations where harassment was directed at Buddhists fell to 25 in 2022, down from a record high of 28 in 2021.
Harassment against members of “other religions” was reported in 68 countries in 2022, tying a previous record high set in 2019. Furthermore, the religiously unaffiliated were targeted in acts of harassment in 32 countries, also marking a record high.
