There is an issue that neither candidate will likely touch on during the presidential debates that has massive ramifications for foreign policy and national security. As we continue to see terrorist attacks at home and abroad at a staggering pace, this issue will continue to be a concern for the American people, and the millions that are affected overseas. That issue, in a word, is persecution.
My organization, International Christian Concern, has been dealing with the fallout of radical Islamic attacks for over 15 years. In our mission to assist persecuted Christians globally, we have seen the worst of the worst, from bombings in Pakistan to church burnings in Egypt to full-on genocide in Iraq and Syria. Just keeping up with the dizzying pace of carnage is a serious challenge. Long after these incidents fade from the headlines, we find ourselves still on the ground, starting over and over again the lengthy process of providing healing and relief.
When looking at the overarching causes behind these attacks, there are two common threads that link the vast majority of them. The first, and most frequently commented on, is radical Islamic theology. While this is an extremely important topic and one that I’ve addressed before, there is another problem that’s almost never discussed: The fact that most people in the world do not have religious freedom.
In nearly every country in the Middle East where ICC works, and even outside of the Middle East, there is a profound lack of respect for religious freedom. Few Americans realize that religious liberty remains one of the most endangered human rights globally. According to the Pew Forum’s most recent study on the subject, 74 percent of the world’s population live in countries with “high or very high restrictions or hostilities” toward religion. That means that nearly three out of four people on Earth do not enjoy the same freedom to practice their faith that we do in the United States. Christians alone remain harassed in 108 countries, the most of any group in 2014.
The implications of this staggering phenomenon are profound. The Pew Forum’s study goes on to note that “where government restrictions on religion are high, so are social hostilities involving religion.” By stifling the freedom of anyone except those who are a part of the majority religion to practice their faith, governments around the world have helped to build environments that foster religiously based hostility and violence. This in turn destabilizes the region, creates conflict, and helps to develop a training ground for violent extremists, including the ones doing their best to inspire lone-wolf attacks here in the U.S.
There are also potentially severe economic consequences. Research done by Georgetown University and Brigham Young has found that “religious hostilities and restrictions create climates that can drive away local and foreign investment, undermine sustainable development, and disrupt huge sectors of economies.” It also found that “perhaps most significant for future economic growth … young entrepreneurs are pushed to take their talents elsewhere due to the instability associated with high and rising religious restrictions and hostilities.”
One of the antidotes to all of this is simply religious freedom. When the rights of religious minorities are upheld, when perpetrators of religious violence are brought to justice, and when people of all faiths are allowed to discuss and share their beliefs openly, extremism is forced back into the dark recesses of society. That doesn’t mean that groups like the Islamic State should not be confronted with force or that the educational roots of radical Islamic ideology should not be addressed, but those approaches must be combined with the establishment of genuine religious freedom. Otherwise whatever successes are achieved may be short lived.
Our next president, whoever he or she may be, has an opportunity to make international religious freedom a serious priority. They will also have the backing of the American people. A recent poll from Open Doors USA found that 76 percent of American adults agreed that “the next U.S. president be committed to addressing the persecution that some Christians face around the world (e.g., imprisonment, beheadings, rape, loss of home and assets).”
Of course, religious freedom is not built overnight, and there remains a tremendous amount of work to be done. But if one day we hope to wake up with the news of bombings and stabbings by radical Islamists a distant thing of the past, then we must work to make sure that religious freedom is not just a right for us, but a right for all, especially in the Middle East. Our next president should lead the way.
Jeff King is president of International Christian Concern (ICC) Thinking of submitting an op-ed to the Washington Examiner? Be sure to read our guidelines on submissions.
