Persecution against Christians continues in Bangladesh a year after the removal of the nation’s Prime Minister, and it is not likely to end unless constitutional guarantees of religious freedom are enforced, according to an Open Doors source.
Sheikh Hasina had been the nation’s longest serving leader but was removed from office and left the country just over a year ago following mass protests and escalating violence.
An Open Doors source close to the situation revealed that the period following her departure was extremely dangerous for believers, with many targeted for their perceived support for her administration, leading to virtually daily attacks and lootings.
He told en: “The evangelical house churches and houses of the pastors and evangelists in villages have been targeted, attacked, destroyed, [while] properties were damaged and looted.
"Most of the victims were tribal Christians and Muslims who have converted to Christianity. Many local pastors, evangelists and local Christian leaders were forced to hide to save their lives.
“The local Muslim religious leaders listed the Muslim converts to Christianity and visited their houses regularly, forcing them to renounce their faith… Many local church leaders have been given threating letters by the local Muslim religious leaders.”
Persecution against Christians has continued since then, with many in hiding while about 100 families are believed to have been pressured to renounce their faith.
Some in the Muslim majority population are painting Christians as enemies and see the current state of national turmoil as an opportunity to make Bangladesh a “100 percent Islamic state”.
The source told en that while the current situation facing Christians is slightly better than it was immediately following Hasina’s resignation, there is little optimism that meaningful change is imminent due to the refusal of Bangladesh’s leaders to uphold constitutional protections of religious freedom.
He believes several changes must be made to achieve lasting change, including the proper implementation of constitutional protections of religious minorities, a widespread tolerance of religious plurality, a refusal to establish Sharia Law amidst pressure from Islamic extremists, and the provision of justice for Christians who have been falsely charged without proper investigation.
Ahead of looming elections, he said: “The constitution is applied to serve the leaders and powerful people. No one is concerned about the violation of the constitution. The religious minority people and ethnic groups were never considered and counted here.
“After more than 50 years of independence, this discrimination, persecution and negative perspective toward religious minority people has grown, not decreased. For more than 50 years, it was cultivated and fertilised intentionally. So how can we expect fair, free and equal rights from them?”
