Algeria
(1999)
Section I. Freedom of Religion
The Constitution declares Islam to be the state religion
but prohibits discrimination based on religious belief, and the Government
generally respects this right in practice. Islam is the only legal
religion, and the law limits the practice of other faiths; however, the
Government follows a de facto policy of tolerance by not inquiring into the
religious practices of individuals.
The vast majority of citizens belong to the Sunni branch
of Islam. There are no official data available on the number of non-Muslim
residents. Many citizens who practice non-Muslim faiths have fled the
country as a result of the civil war. Thus, the number of Christians and
Jews in the country is significantly lower today than the estimated total
before 1992. The small Christian community, which is predominantly Roman
Catholic, has approximately 25,000 members, and the Jewish community
numbers perhaps fewer than 100.
For security reasons, both Christians and Jews have
concentrated in Algiers and the larger cities of Constantine and Oran.
There is also a Christian community in the eastern region of Kabylie. The
small Christian and Jewish populations practice their faiths without
government interference.
The law prohibits public assembly for purposes of
practicing a faith other than Islam. However, there are Roman Catholic
churches, including a cathedral in Algiers, which is the seat of the
Archbishop, that conduct services without government interference. In 1994
the size of the Jewish community diminished significantly, and its
synagogue has since been abandoned. There are only a few smaller churches
and other places of worship; non-Muslims usually congregate in private
homes for religious services.
Because Islam is the state religion, the country's
education system is structured to benefit Muslims. Education is free to all
citizens below the age of 16, and the study of Islam is a strict
requirement in the public schools, which are regulated by the Ministry of
Education and the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Private primary and
secondary schools are not permitted to operate.
The Government appoints preachers to mosques and gives
general guidance on sermons. The Government monitors activities in mosques
for possible security-related offenses. The Ministry of Religious Affairs
provides some financial support to mosques and has limited control over the
training of imams.
Conversions from Islam to other religions are rare.
Because of safety concerns and potential legal and social problems, Muslim
converts practice their new faith clandestinely. The Shari'a-based Family
Code prohibits Muslim women from marrying non-Muslims, although this
regulation is not always enforced. The code does not restrict Muslim men
from marrying non-Muslim women.
Non-Islamic proselytizing is illegal, and the Government
restricts the importation of non-Islamic literature for widespread
distribution. Personal copies of the major works of other religions, such
as the Bible, may be brought into the country. Occasionally, such works are
sold in local bookstores in Algiers. However, many vendors refuse to sell
these works due to fear of reprisal by Islamic extremists, and, to a lesser
extent, because of government policy. The Government also prohibits the
dissemination of any literature that portrays violence as a legitimate
precept of Islam.
Under both Shari'a (Islamic law) and Algerian law,
children born to a Muslim father are Muslim, regardless of the mother's
religion. Islam does not allow conversion to other faiths at any age.
There was no change in the status of respect for
religious freedom during the period covered by this report.
During the period covered by this report, an
indeterminate number of persons were serving prison sentences because of
their alleged Islamist sympathies or membership in Islamist groups;
however, there were no reports of cases in which it was clear that persons
were arrested or detained based solely on their religious beliefs.
There were no reports of the forced religious conversion
of minor U.S. citizens who had been abducted or illegally removed from the
United States, or of the Government's refusal to allow such citizens to be
returned to the United States.
The country's 7-year civil conflict has pitted radical
Muslims against moderate Muslims. Almost 77,000 civilians, terrorists, and
security forces have been killed during the past 7 years. Extremist
Islamists have issued public threats against all "infidels" in
the country, both foreigners and citizens, and have killed both Muslims and
non-Muslims, including missionaries. During the period covered by this
report, Islamic extremists continued attacks against both the regime and
moderate Muslim and secular civilians. The majority of the country's
terrorist groups do not, as a rule, differentiate between religious and
political killings. In the majority of cases during the period covered by
this report, in which both security forces and civilians died at the hands
of terrorists, the preferred methods of assault were knifings (particularly
throat-slitting), and shootings.
Section II. Societal Attitudes
The majority of cases of harassment and security threats
against non-Muslims come from radical Islamists who are determined to rid
the country of those who do not share their extremist interpretation of
Islam (see Section I). However, a majority of the population subscribes to
Islamic precepts of tolerance in religious beliefs. Through joint
communiques, moderate Islamist religious and political leaders have
criticized publicly acts of violence committed in the name of Islam.
In general, noncitizens who practice faiths other than
Islam enjoy a high level of tolerance within society. However, citizens who
renounce Islam generally are ostracized by their families and shunned by
their neighbors, and expose themselves to the risk of attack by radical
extremists. The Government generally does not become involved in these
kinds of internal family disputes.
Section III. U.S. Government Policy
The U.S. Embassy maintains frequent contact with the
National Observatory for Human Rights (ONDH), a quasigovernmental
institution that was established by the Government in response to
international and domestic pressure to improve Algeria's human rights
record. The Embassy assists wherever possible to augment the ONDH's ability
to address human rights abuses.
Because Algiers was rated as a "critical
threat" post during the period covered by this report, the U.S.
Embassy's staff level was one-third the size that it would have been under
normal circumstances. Officers were confined to the Embassy grounds and
moved outside its walls, for business purposes only, with armed escorts.
For practical and logistical purposes, the Embassy could not maintain
regular contact with leaders in the Muslim community or with the Ministry
of Religious Affairs. Nevertheless, the Embassy tracked human rights
issues, including religious freedom, as closely as possible under these
restrictive working conditions.
The Embassy maintains close contact with religious
leaders in the non-Muslim community, who cite the dangers posed by radical
Islamists as their principal concern regarding the safe practice of their
faith.
In July 1998, the Embassy provided support for the visit
of U.S. Congressman Frank Wolf, who met with local religious leaders,
including the Roman Catholic Archbishop and a Protestant missionary who has
lived in Algeria for more than 30 years.
Sources: U.S. State Department - Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor |