Amid concerns over heightened government pressure on churches and Christians in Algeria, the World Evangelical Alliance's (WEA) Religious Liberty Commission has called on authorities there to ensure religious freedom for people of all faiths.
Meanwhile, L'Église Protestante d'Algérie (EPA), the WEA's national member body in Algeria, is calling on churches around the world to join them in a week of prayer and fasting for their nation.
In recent months, authorities in Algeria have stepped up restrictions against Christian churches in the country leading to an increase in arrests of Christians in the country.
According to reports cited by the WEA, in November 2017, Algerian authorities formed a committee to inspect churches on its compliance with safety regulations. But despite its main aim supposedly being safety issues, the committee has also questioned churches on whether they possesses permits to conduct religious activities.
The committee has reportedly ordered several churches, two Bible schools, and a Christian-owned bookshop to close down.
The WEA highlighted that in March 2006, the Algerian parliament adopted 'Ordinance 06-03', which effectively confined non-Muslim worship to specific buildings approved by the national commission for non-Muslim religious groups.
Not a single permission has so far been granted for Algerian churches, the WEA said. According to Middle East Concern, an associate member organisation of WEA, 'Church leaders inform local authorities about their activities and provide all relevant documentation, including statements confirming affiliation to L'Église Protestante d'Algérie (the EPA), the only Protestant denomination officially recognised by the Government'.
The deputy secretary general of the WEA and head of its Religious Liberty Commission, Godfrey Yogarajah, said: 'We call on the government of Algeria to ensure that the religious freedom of Christians is safeguarded in accordance with international law. We also call on the government, in keeping with the country's constitution, to take all steps necessary to guarantee the freedom of worship for all religious groups in the country.'
The EPA is calling on churches and believers around the world to join them in a week of prayer and fasting for their nation.
Bishop Efraim Tendero, the secretary general of the WEA, said: 'Please join me in uplifting the situation of our Algerian brothers and sisters in prayer, so that God may change the hearts of those in government and allow them to see the great blessing that Christians are to their nation.
'Religious freedom for people of all faiths is at the foundation of a healthy society and Algeria can only flourish as a country if believers – Christians and others – are allowed to worship freely and without discrimination.'
There are estimated to be a few hundred thousand Protestant Christians at most in Algeria.
