Tue, Mar. 25, 2008
Posted:
14:47:24 PM EST
The Christian Post
http://www.christianpost.com/article/20080325/31674.htm
Algeria,
a close to fully Sunni Muslim country in northern
Africa,
has ordered 13 Protestant churches to shut down since November, the head
of
Algeria’s
Protestant church group said Monday.
Churches were told to close their doors until they are issued a permit
that allows non-Muslim groups to hold organized worship.
Algeria
passed a law in February 2006 that required non-Muslim congregations to
obtain a permit from their regional prefecture to hold worship
gatherings. It also banned the production of media intended to “shake
the faith of a Muslim,” according to Compass Direct News.
After the law’s passage, however, there had not been any enforcement and
no Christian churches have been closed until recently.
"Thirteen chapels, including 11 in Tizi Ouzou, one in Bejaia and one in
Bouira have been closed on the orders of local officials," said Pastor
Mustapha Krim, who is president of the Protestant Church of Algeria
(EPA), according to South Africa’s News24.
No official reason has been given for the government order, but the
decision might be linked to recent tension over allegations that
Christians were trying to convert Muslims.
“It would be better that authorities give us the possibility to be in
conformity with the law and not order us to close the churches,” Krim
wrote in a March 9 appeal, according to Compass.
Krim said he has made a formal request to the Algerian state’s
representative in the Tizi Ouzou region for explanation on the decision.
Tension recently flared when Muslim leaders accused Protestant
evangelists of trying to convert Muslims to Christianity.
Earlier this month, the former chairman of the Protestant group,
American pastor Hugh Johnson, was expelled from the country over links
to evangelization campaigns, according to some religious freedom groups.
Johnson is said to have imported and distributed religious books without
the Algerian government’s permission. Sources also say Johnson is active
in non-accredited local Protestant associations in the country,
according to Kenya Today.
The Algerian government, however, has denied that reason for his
expulsion was religious. They claim it was simply due to administrative
reasons – his resident visa had expired – according to Kenya Today.
In addition to Johnson’s expulsion, three Algerian Christians were
convicted of “insulting Islam” on Feb. 5 and unofficially told they
would be sentenced to three years in prison and fined.
Among the churches ordered to close is the 1,200-member
Full
Gospel
Church,
according to Compass.
Algeria’s
Protestant
Church
claims to have 50,000 followers, with 10,000 of them active churchgoers,
according to News24. But the ministry of religious affairs, says there
are only 11,000 Christians in
Algeria,
most of them Catholic, compared to the Muslim population of 33 million.
About 99 percent of the country ascribe to Sunni Islam – the official
state religion. Christians and Jews make up only one percent of the
country, according to the CIA World Factbook.
Ethan Cole
Christian Post Reporter
