One in seven Christians globally face high levels of persecution and discrimination for their faith, an increase of 15 million since last year, MPs were told at the parliamentary launch of the Open Doors World Watch List 2025 on 15 January.
The launch event was co-hosted by Philip Mounstephen, Bishop of Winchester (pictured right), and the Rt Hon. Sir Stephen Timms MP, and included moving first-hand accounts of persecution given by Christians from Nigeria and Bangladesh.
Henrietta Blyth, CEO of Open Doors UK and Ireland (pictured left), confirmed that North Korea continues to be the most dangerous country for believers, but highlighted how ‘rising authoritarianism – particularly in Central Asia – sees Christians being hounded by governments who want to stifle public criticism and peaceful dissent’. MPs were also shown a powerful video of the top ten countries on the World Watch list, and Blythe asked attendees: ‘What part are we called to play in addressing this?’
The event closed with words from the newly appointed Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief, David Smith MP (see report on page 5), previously Bible Society’s Head of International Programme. He observed that ‘freedom of religion and belief should be and is at the centre of what it means to be British’ and should not be taken for granted, nor should Parliamentarians shy away from sharing these with international partners. He quoted his valedictory speech in Parliament, given just six months ago, where he mentioned Proverbs 31, encouraging MPs to speak up for the rights of the destitute and defend the rights of the poor.
Following the event, Tim Farron MP commented: ‘Freedom of religion and belief matters because, if we care about human rights, we have to care about them in every part of the world.’
The event was attended by 102 MPs.
