Legislative Council Fifty-Fourth Parliament, First Session (54-1) 54 1 Parliament of South Australia Legislative Council published Matters of Interest Matters of Interest International Christian Faith Persecution International Christian Faith Persecution The Hon. D.G.E. HOOD Legislative Council The Hon. D.G.E. HOOD (15:25): On the first Sunday of every November many Christians worldwide observe the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church. In fact, it is understood that over 100,000 congregations and millions of individuals dedicate this time to praying for believers of the faith who are experiencing various levels of persecution right around the world. It certainly served as a reminder to me personally of the increasingly worse situation countless Christians are facing internationally and the fact that most Australians would not be aware of the extent of their mistreatment, in some countries in particular. Although I have spoken about this particular matter in the council previously, I was compelled to revisit the issue due to the findings of an independent review into the global persecution of Christians that was recently commissioned by the British foreign secretary of state Jeremy Hunt, which were very concerning indeed. The report arising from this review, which was led by the Bishop of Truro, the Right Reverend Philip Mounstephen, found that out of the one-third of people suffering from religious persecution an estimated 80 per cent are Christian. According to the document, the killings of Christians in some regions have reached almost —in their words—genocidal levels. It states, and I quote: The many and egregious acts of persecution that played such a significant part in causing [an] exodus of Christians can, arguably, be classified as genocide according to the definition adopted by the United Nations. Evidence clearly shows 'intent to destroy, in whole or in part' individual Christian communities across most if not all the five sub-sections of Article II of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. The review discovered that in the 50 countries considered the most hostile toward Christianity, 245 million experienced what is regarded as high levels of persecution, which is an increase of 30 million from the previous year. It also found that within five years the number of countries classified as having extreme persecution of Christians rose from just one, which was previously regarded as North Korea, to some 11. It now includes—perhaps you might call them the usual suspects—Afghanistan, Somalia, Libya, Pakistan, Sudan, Yemen, Iran, parts of India, and Syria. In 2016, Christians were subjected to persecution in 144 countries, which rose from 125 countries in 2015. The type of persecution experienced throughout the world includes but is not limited to verbal assault, physical attacks, the suppression of public expressions of the faith through discriminatory bureaucratic means, torture perpetrated by the state, extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, and mass violence committed by non-state actors, including the bombing of churches. Foreign secretary Hunt has been determined to ensure the issue of Christian persecution remains a key focus of his foreign secretaryship. In his speech following the release of the independent report, he declared: …I am not convinced that our efforts on behalf of Christians have always matched the scale of the problem, or indeed have reflected the evidence that it is Christians who frequently endure the heaviest burden of persecution… Perhaps because of a misguided political correctness… I am pleased Mr Hunt recognises the current state of affairs and is intent on not only raising awareness of the extent of Christian persecution around the world but initiating appropriate action where possible. I look forward to seeing how the report’s recommendations impact the lives of those who are in precarious predicaments due to simply exercising their universal right to freedom of religion and freedom of belief. It is sobering to realise that, in terms of the number of people affected and the severity of offences committed against these Christians, it is clear that the persecution of this particular demographic is at its worst today than it has been at any other time in history. From time to time, I am made aware of how I can advocate on behalf of other victims of Christian persecution by contacting relevant officials abroad. If other members would be interested in assisting in this particular exercise, I would be more than happy to inform them on how they can do it. I have been informed of individual Christians who have been simply taken hostage and who have been placed before various judiciary bodies in their own countries and for many, many months have not been aware of what the charges are against them. There are situations where their family members have been taken from them, where they have simply been told not to attend their place of employment and other completely horrendous situations, merely because they have chosen to take on the Christian faith, particularly in those countries that I outlined. This is unacceptable and it must stop.