According to a report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), Nicaragua is the worst place in the world.
USCIRF makes recommendations to the Department of State on how best to advocate for religious freedom. The suggestions often translate into US sanctions against offending countries to pressure them to improve their religious tolerance.
This year, the countries topping the USCIRF list of the world’s most egregious violators of religious freedom were Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Burma, China, Cuba, Eritrea, India, Iran, Nicaragua, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Vietnam.
The USCIRF recommends that these nations be designated as “countries of particular concern” or “CPCs,” a label that has been called the United States’ “most powerful tool” for advocating for religious freedom.
These are some of the countries with the most concerning religious freedom trends over the past year.
“There is a feeling that anything goes against Catholics”: Expert warns of attacks on religious freedom
Religious freedom and freedom of expression have continued to deteriorate in Afghanistan under the Taliban regime, according to the report. The country is violently enforcing an apostasy law that prohibits conversions from Islam. The report also says that in the past year, the Taliban implemented a series of measures to seriously restrict women’s clothing, movement, access to education and employment.
Despite USCIRF’s recommendation, Afghanistan is not currently a CPC, although the Taliban is designated as an “entity of particular concern” (EPC).