OIDAC Europe, as an internationally recognized NGO well-versed in the subject matter, highlighted some startling statistics in its report dedicated to the year 2024, released prior to a conference. According to the report, which was updated in November 2024 with international statistics, a comparison of police statistics and civil society data identified 2,444 hate crimes against Christians in 35 European countries, including 232 personal attacks on Christians. The countries most affected in 2023 were France, the United Kingdom, and Germany, with the number of anti-Christian hate crimes doubling in Germany compared to the previous year. There is widespread discrimination against Christians in the workplace and various areas of society. The expression of traditional religious beliefs increasingly meets with hostility, leading to discrimination and harassment, which according to the report, could even result in job loss for offenders.

The report points out that Christian politicians are particularly vulnerable to discrimination based on their personal religious beliefs, and many may be forced to choose between their political career and their religious convictions. According to the report’s authors, these forms of discrimination have a long-term chilling effect, which compels many Christians, especially among the younger generation, to self-censor or even hide their beliefs at universities and workplaces.

The authors of the report identified several restrictions on religious freedom affecting Christians in Europe, including public prayer, religious manifestations, public expression of religious beliefs, religious autonomy, parental rights, and conscientious objections to military service and certain medical procedures. During 2023-24, several people were fined and prosecuted for peacefully praying in public streets within so-called ‘buffer zones’ around abortion clinics, including a man in the UK who was merely praying silently.

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