Attacks on religious freedom rise by 20% in Spain: most from the far-left

@ElentirENG ES 5·22·2019 · 6:07 0

In Spain, 200 attacks against religious freedom were committed during 2018, 20.4% more than in 2017. Once again, Christianophobia was behind the vast majority of these attacks.

Feminists attacked Catholic centers in several cities in Spain on March 8 but no mosques
Christianophobia: 33 Muslim countries are among the 50 that most persecute Christians

66.5% of attacks were directed against Christians

Yesterday the Observatory for Freedom of Religion and Concience (OLRC) made public its annual report on attacks on religious freedom in Spain. The report can be downloaded here. According to the document, of the 200 attacks, 133 (66.5%) were directed against Christians, of them 109 (54.5%) against Catholics, one against Evangelicals and 23 against Christians in general. In addition, there were 16 attacks against Muslims (8%), 6 against Jews (3%) and 45 attacks against religions in general (22.5%). The report highlights that Christianity is the "most attacked" religion.

Radical feminists attacked Catholic centers but no mosque

One of the most striking data of the report is the attacks on places of worship. From 8 attacks in 2014 it has gone to 44 in 2017 and to 53 in 2018. Again, Christianophobia has been behind the vast majority of these attacks: 47 were directed against Christian worship centers, 5 against Muslim centers and one against a center Jewish, specifically against the Greater Synagogue of the Call of Barcelona. Reviewing the cases compiled by the report, it is curious to see that the majority of the attackers identified against Catholic centers were radical feminists, who, however, do not appear as the authors of any of the attacks against 5 mosques.

82 attacks from far-left parties and 2 from the far-right

The region with the most attacks against religious freedom -30 in total- was the Valencian Community, governed by the Socialist Party (PSOE) and the far-leftist coalition Compromís, two political formations openly hostile to Christians. The second region with the most attacks was Andalusia (26), followed by Catalonia and Madrid (both with 21). Among the political parties, Podemos (32 attacks), PSOE (29) and Izquierda Unida (28) have been the most hostile formations against religious freedom. The report also includes two attacks by the PP and one by Citizens, among other formations. Of the main parties with representation to date, Vox is the only one that does not appear in the list of parties that attacked religious freedom in 2018. On the other hand, the far-left parties added 82 attacks to religious freedom, compared to 2 of the far-right.

What the Spanish Constitution and the Declaration of Human Rights say

The OLRC reminds the parties that respect for religious freedom "does not only benefit believers, but favors the whole society, by promoting peaceful coexistence among citizens," and also points out that non-denominational State "no means to eliminate all religious symbols and prohibit citizens from practicing their religion in public, but to respect." The observation made by the OLRC fully coincides with what is established in Article 16 of the Spanish Constitution: "Freedom of ideology, religion and worship of individuals and communities is guaranteed, with no other restriction on their expression than may be necessary to maintain public order as protected by law." It also coincides with what the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states in its Article 18: "Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance." Rights that the left and the far-left are bent on attacking and distorting with statements such as that religion should be left in the private sphere or the demands of prohibiting the teaching of religion in schools.

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Photo: Catholic nuns, accompanied by a young woman, harassed and insulted by left ultras in Madrid on August 17, 2011, during the World Youth Day in which Pope Benedict XVI participated.