Religious Freedom in Asia (presented on 14th December 2023 at the University of Central Lancashire)

RELIGIOUS
FREEDOM IN ASIA
Brandon Reece Taylorian
Associate Lecturer at UCLan
and Lancaster University
brtaylorian@uclan.ac.uk

A I M S O F T H E S E S S I O N
• To understand current religious
freedom concerns and violations in
Asia.
• To explore models of state-religion
relations used in countries across Asia.
• To explore case studies of conditions of
religious freedom in key Asian
countries.

PRINCIPLES OF
RELIGIOUS
FREEDOM

WHAT RIGHTS DOES
RELIGIOUS
FREEDOM INCLUDE?

S I X C A R D I N A L R E L I G I O U S R I G H T S
Right to express in private
Right to observe in private
Right to express in public
Right to observe in public
Right to organise
Right to refrain from doing any of the above

B R A N C H E S O F R E L I G I O U S F R E E D O M
Right to worship
and engage in
ritual
Right to have
and express a
religion or belief
Right to teach a
religion or belief
Right to convert
from one religion
or belief to another
Right to
propagate a
religion or belief
Right to have one’s
religion or belief
recognised and registered
Right to preach
and proselytise
Right to observe
one’s religion in
public or private
Right to
conscientious
objection on
religious grounds
Right to
organise a
religious group
Right to have no
religion or to
express non-belief
Right to instruct
one’s children in a
religion or belief

I C C P R
1. Everyone shall have the right to freedom of thought, conscience and
religion. This right shall include freedom to have or to adopt a religion or
belief of his choice, and freedom, either individually or in community with
others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in worship,
observance, practice and teaching.
2. No one shall be subject to coercion which would impair his freedom to
have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice.
3. Freedom to manifest one's religion or beliefs may be subject only to such
limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary to protect public safety,
order, health, or morals or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others.
4. The States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to have respect for
the liberty of parents and, when applicable, legal guardians to ensure the
religious and moral education of their children in conformity with their own
convictions.
Article 18, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966

T E N E T S O F R E L I G I O U S F R E E D O M
• Limited de
fi
nition: some governments establish definitions of religious
freedom at the national level that do not correspond with international
definitions (i.e. ‘freedom to worship’ is considered to have a narrower
meaning than ‘freedom of religion or belief’).
• Claims to FoRB: governments make various claims to uphold religious
freedom in their constitutions, legislation and party policy but these
claims are not always upheld in practice.
• Sixfold right to religious freedom: to express, observe and organise
one’s religion or belief in public and in private or to refrain from doing
so.
• Conditional right: some governments place caveats on their
commitments to religious freedom (e.g. the Cairo Declaration of
Human Rights in Islam denied the right to proselytise non-Islamic
religions in Muslim countries).

T H E M E S T O C O N S I D E R
• Pluralism vs traditionalism and exclusivism vs inclusivism
• Collective rights vs individual rights vs institutional rights
• Groups most likely to suffer from violations include new religious
movements (e.g. Jehovah’s Witnesses), minority religious
communities (e.g. Yazidis) and religious groups divergent from an
established or majority religion (e.g. Ahmadi Muslims).
• Authoritarian states aim to maintain as much control for the
government as possible while democratic states struggle to deal
with societal fallout from religious diversification, increases in
immigration, inter-religious conflict and multiculturalism.
• Cultural relativism can be used to rebuff human rights including
religious freedom.

R E L I G I O U S F R E E D O M V I O L AT I O N S
• Retributions for unauthorised religious
activity: arbitrary arrest, corporal
punishment, discrimination, false
imprisonment, harassment, intimidation,
kidnapping, violence, threats and torture.
• Underground religion: due to the
prevalence of stringent registration policies
that outlaw all unregistered religious
groups, many congregations in
authoritarian countries have resorted to
converting private houses into places of
worship or holding worship services in
secret.
• Violent persecution and genocide:
Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar; Uighur
Muslims in Xinjiang; Falun Gong
practitioners in China; Christians in China,
North Korea, Pakistan and Afghanistan;
Hindus in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Uighur detainees in a re-
education camp in Xinjiang
House church in Beijing.

MODELS OF
STATE-RELIGION
RELATIONS

F O U R G E N E R A L A P P R O A C H E S
Establishment
Separation
Favouritism
Facilitation

E S TA B L I S H M E N T
• Establishment of religion is when a government officially endorses
one religion over all others. Establishment results in state religions
or state denominations. This practice has roots in Ancient Egypt.
• Today, Islam is the most common established religion in Asia (17
countries) followed by Buddhism (4 with state religion and a further
three that give Buddhism special status).
• Can you name any countries that have either Islam or Buddhism
as their state religion?
• State religion is when a religion is established without specification
to a denomination. For example, in Pakistan, Islam is established as
the state religion while in Malaysia, specifically Sunni Islam is
established.

FAV O U R I T I S M
• State favouritism or state privilege is when a country is officially
secular but continues to extend special status or benefits to one or
more religions over others.
• For instance, Thailand is a secular state but gives Buddhism a
special status and Buddhist institutions have influence over public
policy.
• Can you think of any more examples of religious favouritism?
• One of the benefits of religious favouritism is that members of
favoured groups are less impacted by state restrictions on religion.
• Sometimes the religion of the majority is automatically favoured in
government services.

S E PA R AT I O N
• The principle of the separation of the state from
religion emerged in the writings of English
Enlightenment philosopher John Locke (1632–
1704).
• The European concept of the divine right of
kings was mirrored in China by the doctrine of
the Mandate of Heaven. This doctrine held that
heaven (known as Tian) bestows a mandate upon
a virtuous ruler. Natural disasters were viewed as
divine retributions of Tian’s displeasure with a
ruler. Sacred kingships could be found
throughout Asia and still exist today in certain
places.
• Following the Communist revolution in Russia in
1917 and the formation of the Soviet Union,
hardline secularism and intolerance of all religion
was adopted, the pinnacle of which is state
atheism. By 1960, hypersecularism had spread to
half of the countries of Asia, Eastern Europe,
some in Africa and a couple of Central America.
John Locke (1632–1704).
Thailand’s king is viewed as a
divine monarch.
Light red: formerly practises state atheism
Dark red: currently practises state atheism

FA C I L I TAT I O N
• Facilitation involves the state reducing limits on religious activity and repealing laws
and policies that are discriminatory. State funding is religious institutions is often
part of facilitative activities but can become discriminatory.
• Governments might also decide to fund events supporting interfaith dialogue,
include religious leaders from a diverse range of religions, beliefs and non-belief in
public ceremonies and include the teaching of many religions in the national
religious education system.
• Views on state facilitation of religious activity can be divided into three categories:
• Abolitionism: state recognition systems should be abolished because they cause
the state to discriminate between religions and beliefs.
• Regulationism: state religions should be abolished but the state regulates
religious activity according to certain norms to filter out what the state deems to
be ‘cults’ and ‘extremist’ organisations.
• Retentionism: state recognition of religions, including establishment or
favouritism, should continue often on the basis of preserving culture, tradition
and national identity.

M A P O F R E L I G I O U S R E C O G N I T I O N
State neutrality: when a government claims to be secular and
this corresponds with their practices.
State privilege: when a government claims to be secular yet
continues to favour one or more religions or over others.
State atheism: when a hypersecular government professes irreligion
and advocates for atheism.
State religion: when a government establishes an official religion.
State denomination: when a government establishes a specific
religious denomination.
State hostility: when a hypersecular government does not
discriminate between the religions it restricts.

E A S T A S I A
• The policies of the Chinese Communist
Party (CCP) dominate this region. State
atheism remains an official policy in China
and North Korea.
• The CCP closely controls the practice of
religion through its bureaucratic
registration system. Religions deemed
“foreign” are particularly affected. The
regions of Tibet and Xinjiang are highly
controlled with violence, resulting most
recently in the genocide of the Uighur
Muslims in Xinjiang.
• North Korea practises the strictest and
most violent control of religion in the world.
• Japan, South Korea and Taiwan are freer
although issues persist including limited
access to legal registration.
• Hong Kong and Macau are increasingly
controlled by the CCP, making basic
human rights more vulnerable.
• Mongolia is formerly communist and
state atheist although limits on
religious freedom due to the
government’s preference for Buddhism
and its authoritarian tendencies to
control through a registration system
for religious or belief organisations.

C H I N A’ S I S S U E W I T H R E L I G I O N
Put no God before the Party (i.e. socialism must reign supreme).
Foreign influence (e.g. the Pope in Rome).
The CCP interprets certain religious language as encouraging revolution (e.g.
the figure of the Dalai Lama in Tibet was interpreted this way).
The CCP interprets religiosity with extremism (e.g. Uighur Muslims wishing to
grow beards or Muslim women wishing to address in clothing suitable to
Sharia Law).
The CCP is more accepting of religions indigenous to China (e.g. Taoism and
Confucianism) as long as they remain loyal to the Party than religions that
have originated in the West (i.e. Christianity).

S O U T H E A S T A S I A
• Brunei and Malaysia both establish Sunni
Islam as the state denomination. Brunei is
authoritarian while Malaysia is only partly free.
• Cambodia and Thailand are Buddhist-majority
countries. Buddhism is the state religion of
Cambodia and proselytising remains banned.
Thailand recognises five religions and refuses
to recognise any more.
• Laos and Vietnam are still run by authoritarian
communist governments which means state
atheism is an official policy and religious
activity is tightly controlled by the state.
• The government of Myanmar established
Buddhism as the state religion and
orchestrated a genocide against the Rohingya
Muslims in 2017 which forced three quarters of
a million to flee to neighbouring Bangladesh.
• Singapore has banned Jehovah’s
Witnesses and some other new
religions. Public religious observance
is restricted.
• East Timor and the Philippines are
Catholic majority countries and their
government favours the Catholic
Church.

C E N T R A L A S I A
• All five of the Central Asian nations were formerly
part of the Soviet Union and so practised state
atheism and undertook a hardline form of
secularism.
• Although no longer atheist states,
hypersecularism remains entrenched in
government institutions in all five countries
meaning the authority of the government
overrules religious institutions. Most are run by
authoritarian dictators with Turkmenistan and
Tajikistan being particularly brutal regimes.
• Kazakhstan bans the activities of unregistered
religious groups. The government has broad
authority to outlaw religious groups it deems
“extremist.”
• Turkmenistan is the least free of the five countries
(Freedom House even lists Turkmenistan as less
free than North Korea). Members of unregistered
religious groups face home raids, beatings,
harassment and imprisonment.
• Kyrgyzstan is the freest of the give countries
although religions deemed “untraditional”
such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses often face
police harassment there.
• Tajikistan bans minors and women from
attending religious services, restrict laws
discouraging wearing religious clothing are
sometimes violently enforced. The
government uses registration laws to limit
when and how religious groups may legally
gather.

S O U T H A S I A
• In the western part of the region, Afghanistan
has become dominated by the Taliban that
denies the right to religious freedom while
Pakistan is ruled by a conservative government
that maintains institutional hurdles for non-
Muslims. Both countries establish Islam as the
state religion. Religious minorities face the
constant threat of Islamist militant attacks.
• Although the Indian constitution guarantees
religious freedom, the government is pro-Hindu
while the caste system and social stigma
surrounding religious conversion, including the
threat of violence, undermine religious freedom
in the country.
• In the southern part of the region, Sri Lanka
establishes Buddhism as the state religion but
has major Hindu and Muslim minorities which
causes ongoing inter-religious conflict while the
Maldives establishes Sunni Islam as its state
religion and severely restricts all non-Sunni
religious activity.
• In the eastern part of the region, Nepal
was a former Hindu kingdom that is
now secular but continues to privilege
Hinduism and restrict non-Hindu faiths.
Bangladesh establishes Islam as the
state religion and limits proselytising
for non-Muslims while Bhutan
establishes Vajrayana Buddhism as the
state denomination and uses
administrative restrictions to limit non-
Buddhist activities in the country.

T H E M I D D L E E A S T
• This region is dominated by Islam with 11 countries
out of the 15 countries having established some form
of Islam as the state religion or state denomination.
• Iran establishes Shia Islam as the state denomination
and recognises Jews, certain Christian groups and
Zoroastrians as religious minorities which are allowed
to practise but subtly.
• Ongoing civil wars in Syria and Yemen as well as
political instability in Iraq, Palestine and Lebanon
have caused many religious minorities to flee the
region. Jordan is the most tolerant regarding religious
minorities.
• Israel is officially secular although shows favour to
Judaism and is currently involved in violent conflict
with Hamas in Gaza, destabilising the region further.
• Turkey maintains a fragile relationship with the secular
ideals on which the modern Turkish state was
founded as the government continues to favour Islam
underhandedly. Non-Muslim religious groups are
subtly restricted as a result.
• Meanwhile, on the Arabian peninsula,
Saudi Arabia dominates and its approach
to religious freedom has been adopted by
many of the smaller states surrounding it
(including Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman
and the UAE). This approach allows
religious minorities to practise but only
privately in their homes while their
members must not proselytise or express
their religion in public which ignores
various elements of the internationally
established definition of religious freedom.

M A P O F R E L I G I O U S R E G I S T R AT I O N
Unconditional registration: registration is not required for a
group to conduct any activities.
Non-registration: no coherent registration system established.
Stipulatory registration: registration is not required except to
legally conducted certain ‘registrable religious activities’.
Pseudo-mandatory: a country claims not to mandate registration yet requires
registration for a group to conduct at least one of the ‘basic religious activities’.
Broad mandatory: registration is mandatory for all or most religious
organisations to legally operate.

C A S E S T U D Y – I R A N
• Iran makes only a partial claim to freedom of
religion or belief. State denomination is Twelver
Ja’afari Shia Islam.
• “Recognised Religious Minorities" are Christians,
Jews and Zoroastrians. Iran’s registration system
is classified as both ‘mandatory’ and ‘non-
registration’.
• The Iranian government both mandates that all
groups belonging to one of the “Recognised
Religious Minorities” must register but also
provides no procedures for groups the
government considers not to be either Christian,
Jew or Zoroastrian.
• Registration conveys certain rights such as
permission to use alcohol for religious purposes
such as sacramental wine.
• Iran also practises individual registration.
Authorities may close a place of worship and
arrest its leaders if congregants do not register
or if unregistered individuals attend services.
Iranian Christians worship at a house
church.
House of the Báb
being destroyed by
Revolutionary
Guardsmen in 1979.
Zoroastrian Fire
Temple of Yazd, Iran

H O W I S R E G I S T R AT I O N M I S U S E D ?
• Mandatory registration order (subjecting ‘basic religious activities’ to registration).
• Limiting access to registration (e.g. instituting all kinds of quotas including those
on membership and longevity).
• Creating onerous registration procedures (e.g. multi-step procedures, multiple
government departments and ministries involved, delays or non-responses).
• Using registration for surveillance (e.g. misusing excessive informational
requirements, monitorial requirements).
• Inauthentic registration (e.g. religious activities may be legal due to successful
registration but they are still not free).
• Registration often has far-reaching complications for many related issues such as
conscientious objection, employment, religious conversion and religious practice.

RELIGIOUS
FREEDOM BY
COUNTRY OR
GROUP

R E L I G I O U S F R E E D O M – D E E P D I V E
Pakistan
Mongolia
North Korea
Maldives

G R O U P R E S E A R C H A C T I V I T Y
What religions are accepted
and recognised
Examples of persecutions and
restrictions of religious groups
Short history of religious
freedom in the country
How are religions restricted

P E R S E C U T E D R E L I G I O N S – D E E P D I V E
Falun Gong
Buddhists
Muslims
Christians

G R O U P R E S E A R C H A C T I V I T Y
Briefly describe where the
religious group exists in Asia
How is the group
persecuted and by who?
Any specific examples of
persecution or discrimination?

R E L I G I O N I N B H U TA N
• Bhutan is a small mountainous country
sandwiched between China and India in the
Himalayas.
• Buddhism is the state religion of Bhutan
and is practiced by around 85% of the
population practising form of Buddhist
teaching. There are Hindu (11.3%) and Bon
(3.2%) minorities. Christians and Muslims
make up less than 0.5% of the population
and these two Abrahamic religions are not
recognised in the Bhutanese constitution.
• Bhutan is a constitutional monarchy that has
recently undergone democratic reforms.

B U D D H I S M I N B H U TA N
• The Bhutanese mainly follow the Vajrayana form of
Buddhism which developed in India in the
medieval period and spread to Tibet, Nepal and
Mongolia where it is still practised today.
• This form of Buddhism is supported financially by
the government through annual subsidies to
Buddhist monasteries, shrines, monks and nuns.
• Vajrayana Buddhism developed out of Mahayana
Buddhism and is characterised by its focus on
tantra which involves reciting mantras, performing
yoga, meditation and other rituals that make it
distinct from other Buddhist traditions.

R E S P E C T F O R R E L I G I O U S F R E E D O M
• Although the Constitution of Bhutan claims to protect the
right of citizens to freedom of religion, this claim is often not
upheld in practice.
• Local authorities are known to harass non-Buddhists,
including Hindus, Bon practitioners, Christians and Muslims.
• Christian churches struggle to attain registration from the
government which means they cannot operate legally.
• Non-Buddhist missionaries barred from entering the country,
the government places limits on the construction of non-
Buddhist places of worship and restricts the celebration of
non-Buddhist festivals and feast days.

ARE THERE
REASONABLE LIMITS
TO RELIGIOUS
FREEDOM?

R E A S O N A B L E L I M I T S ?
Public safety?
Public
disruption?
National unity?
Cultural
heritage?
Maintaining
tradition?
Morality and
decency?
Hygiene?
Public health?
Rights and
freedoms of
others?
Public order?
National
security?
Animal rights?
Preserving
beauty?

HOW CAN
GOVERNMENTS
SUPPORT RELIGIOUS
FREEDOM?

P O T E N T I A L M E T H O D S ?
Interfaith
dialogue?
Non-
discrimination?
National unity?
Pluralist
approach?
Maintaining
tradition?
Financial
benefits?
Religious
education?
Inclusive
recognition?
Accessible
registration?
State funding?
Equal
treatment?
Regulation of
religion?
Protection
against cults?

SHOULD
GOVERNMENTS BE
ALLOWED TO
FAVOUR RELIGIONS?

S TAT E - R E L I G I O N R E L AT I O N S
Which model is
best for religious
freedom?
Separation of
church and
state?
Religion and
citizenship?
What about
the irreligious?
Are most secular
states really
secular?
Religion
involved in
ceremony?
Majority rules?
Taxpayers
funding religion?
Religion and
national
identity?
Religious
influence on
public policy?
Oversecularisation?
Can states
facilitate without
favouring?

R E F E R E N C E S & R E S O U R C E S
• Answers 2000 Limited. 2022. Dharmic Religions – Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism,
Sikhism. [Online]. Dharmic.org. Available at: https://dharmic.org/ [Accessed 3
October 2022].
• Answers 2000 Limited. 2022. Taoic Religions – Confucianism, Shinto, Taoism,
Caodaism. [Online]. Taoic.org. Available at: https://taoic.org/ [Accessed 3 October
2022].
• Attané, I & Guo, W. (2019). Social Mobility of Uighur Population in Mainland China:
A Comparative Perspective. Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs. 1 (1), p2-11.
• Barratt, B.B. (2010). The Influx of Asian Wisdom. In: The Emergence of Somatic
Psychology and Bodymind Therapy. Critical Theory and Practice in Psychology and
the Human Sciences. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/
10.1057/9780230277199_10
• Brophy, D (2016). Uyghur Nation: Reform and Revolution on the Russia-China
Frontier. United States: Harvard University Press. p22-26, p204-210, p271-278.

R E F E R E N C E S & R E S O U R C E S
• Caprioni, E. (2011). Daily Encounters Between Hans and Uyghurs in Xinjiang:
Sinicization, Integration or Segregation?. Pacific Affairs. 84 (2), p267-287.
• Gojnik, I. & Sokol-Gojnik, Z. (2021). Contemporary Architecture as a Meeting Point
of Christian Religious Concepts with the Religious Concepts of the Far East. Actas
de Arquitectura Religiosa Contemporánea. 8 (1), 80-81. [Online]. Available at:
http://hdl.handle.net/2183/30285 [Accessed 5 September 2022].
• Phan, P. C. (2003). Multiple Religious Belonging: Opportunities and Challenges for
Theology and Church. Theological Studies. 64 (3), p495-519.
• Şenel, E. (2019). Dharmic Religions and Health: A Holistic Analysis of Global Health
Literature Related to Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism. Journal of
Religion and Health. 58 (4), p1161-1171. [Online]. Available at: https://
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30218371/ [Accessed 26 October 2022].
• Tschantret, J. (2018). Repression, opportunity, and innovation: The evolution of
terrorism in Xinjiang, China. Terrorism and Political Violence. 30 (4), p569-588.

L I S T E N I N G
T H A N K Y O U F O R
brtaylorian@uclan.ac.uk

Religious Freedom in Asia (presented on 14th December 2023 at the University of Central Lancashire)

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