Catholic aid agency report: China, North Korea fail to respect rights

Published: 2006-06-27

ROME (CNS) -- While totalitarian regimes such as China and North Korea still fail to respect a person's freedom to worship, religious liberty is also threatened by democratic governments that display a "hyperactive secular attitude," a Catholic aid agency report said. Aid to the Church in Need, a Catholic organization funding religious projects in 145 countries, released its annual report on religious freedom at a press conference June 27 in Rome. The 423-page report compiles information directly from the churches the aid agency assists, news articles, official government documents and human rights organizations. When it comes to suppressing or restricting religious communities that have not received government approval, China "remains at the top of the list of persecutors" along with Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam and North Korea, the report said.

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