Joseph Francis, Pakistani veteran minority rights advocate, dies at 81
Joseph Francis, a distinguished Pakistani minorities rights defender, passed away on Wednesday, Feb. 11, after a prolonged illness. He was 81.
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Religious Freedom
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Opinion
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Four million Christians are facing death and persecution in Myanmar
In Myanmar, the Church is often the strongest surviving institution in an isolated community, destroying it weakens not only worship but the community’s capacity to resist the oppressive control of Myanmar's military junta. Christians are often thought of as collateral damage in Myanmar’s civil war, but they are also being targeted.
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Viral West Papua documentary forces Indonesia to confront what it tried to hide
A documentary about indigenous land dispossession and military violence in West Papua has been watched more than 13.6 million times on YouTube within days, after Indonesian authorities failed to suppress organized screenings in cities throughout the country. More than 107,000 people in April 2026 have been displaced and most of them Christian.
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Hindu nationalists try to dodge growing scrutiny over persecution in India
The Hindu nationalist organization, widely regarded as the ideological backbone of India’s ruling party, has launched an international outreach campaign aimed at countering growing criticism over its role in religious persecution and sectarian violence. It can try to dodge, but it cannot hide the robust and verified experience of Indian Christians.
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Nepal's uncertain but hopeful future
It is widely understood that Nepal has a rapidly growing Christian population. As it starts to stabilize and mature, the Church in Nepal is seeking official status and protections for their many congregations. The Nepal Christian Grand Trust now provides a pathway for official recognition, while theological, spiritual, and practical leadership development remains an urgent need.
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Imprisonment of human rights attorneys in Pakistan condemned
By CDI StaffThe imprisonment of prominent Pakistani human rights attorney couple Imaan Mazari and Hadi Ali Chattha has triggered strong condemnation from the United Nations, international legal bodies and domestic rights groups.
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Laura Fernández pledges a government that respects religious freedom in Costa Rica
After her electoral victory Sunday, Feb. 1, with more than 48% of the vote, Costa Rica’s president-elect, Laura Fernández, held her first news conference, outlining how her administration will relate to the country’s religious sector.
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Pastor, daughter and son-in-law slain in Plateau state, Nigeria
Fulani herdsmen last month killed a pastor, his daughter and her husband, leaving the couple’s 3-month-old baby with a machete wound, in Plateau state, Nigeria.
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China exporting repression of religion worldwide, Brownback says
By Edward RossChina is helping totalitarian regimes to repress religion around the world, even as the U.S. administration has cut or stalled programs vital for religious freedom globally, officials told a hearing of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee.
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Two Christian nurses in Pakistan acquitted of blasphemy
A court in Pakistan has acquitted two Catholic nurses who have been in hiding for nearly four years after they were charged with blasphemy in 2021, rights advocates said.
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Refugees face stiff obstacles to religious freedom, IRF Summit told
By Edward RossRecord numbers of people are displaced by conflict and persecution worldwide, and they continue to face extraordinary obstacles to religious freedom as refugees, advocates told the sixth annual International Religious Freedom Summit this week.
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'How do we prevent suicide among your teenage friends?' — A podcast on listening to the next generation
“How do we prevent suicide among your teenage friends?” This powerful question sits at the heart of today's episode of Faith Without Frontiers, where host Gordon Showell-Rogers speaks with Geordon Rendle, Youth for Christ’s global youth advocate, about faith, mental health, grief, hope, and the urgent need to truly listen to today’s teenagers.
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