Seychelles

The Republic of Seychelles, an archipelago off the east coast of Africa, has the smallest population of any African nation.

Recent census data has not recorded the religious demography of the country.[ref]https://www.nbs.gov.sc/downloads/36-data-acquisition-census/16-population-and-vital-statistics[/ref] At the time of last documentation (2010), it was estimated that 76% of the population was Roman Catholic, 6% Anglican, 2.4% Hindu, 1.6% Muslim, with other smaller religious groups including Baha’is, Brahma Kumaris, Rastafarians, and other Christian groups. 0.9% of the population reported no religious beliefs at this time, while a further 4.8% did not answer the question.[ref]https://catalog.ihsn.org/catalog/4079/related-materials[/ref]

Constitution and government Education and children’s rights Family, community, society, religious courts and tribunals Freedom of expression advocacy of humanist values
Government authorities push a socially conservative, religiously or ideologically inspired agenda, without regard to the rights of those with progressive views
‘Blasphemy’ is outlawed or criticism of religion (including de facto ‘blasphemy’ laws) is restricted and punishable with a prison sentence
Preferential treatment is given to a religion or religion in general
State-funded schools offer religious or ideological instruction with no secular or humanist alternative, but it is optional
Some concerns about political or media freedoms, not specific to the non-religious
Constitution and government
Preferential treatment is given to a religion or religion in general
Education and children’s rights
State-funded schools offer religious or ideological instruction with no secular or humanist alternative, but it is optional
Family, community, society, religious courts and tribunals
Government authorities push a socially conservative, religiously or ideologically inspired agenda, without regard to the rights of those with progressive views
Freedom of expression advocacy of humanist values
‘Blasphemy’ is outlawed or criticism of religion (including de facto ‘blasphemy’ laws) is restricted and punishable with a prison sentence
Some concerns about political or media freedoms, not specific to the non-religious
The state is secular, with separation of religious and political authorities, not discriminating against any religion or belief
Insufficient information or detail not included in this report

Countries: no countries relate to this boundary condition

Religious or ideological instruction is mandatory in all or most state-funded schools with no secular or humanist alternative
Insufficient information or detail not included in this report

Countries: Angola, South Sudan, Tuvalu

Religious courts or tribunals rule directly on some family or ‘moral’ matters; it is legally an opt-in system, but the possibility of social coercion is very clear
Insufficient information or detail not included in this report
No fundamental restrictions on freedom of expression or advocacy of humanist values
Insufficient information or detail not included in this report

Countries: no countries relate to this boundary condition

No condition holds in this strand

Countries: Lesotho, Uzbekistan

No condition holds in this strand

Countries: Andorra

No condition holds in this strand
No condition holds in this strand

Countries: no countries relate to this boundary condition

Localised or infrequent but recurring and widespread social marginalisation or prejudice against the non-religious

This condition is unusual in that it is applied in cases where there is some social discrimination, but it is not pervasive or nationwide. This condition is applied when there is sufficient background evidence to warrant the assertion that discrimination is not anomalous but widespread, and this condition may be applied for example even where if there is no legislative discrimination or where the non-religious may have legal recourse against such discrimination. However, societal discrimination (i.e. discrimination by peers, as opposed to state or legal discrimination) is not easily measured, and for this reason the Report does not currently have similar more severe boundary conditions to capture higher levels of social discrimination per se. In principle these may be introduced in future. However, we consider that countries with actual higher levels of social discrimination against the non-religious will generally already meet other higher level (more severe) boundary conditions under this thematic strand.

Countries: Albania, Botswana, Greece, Serbia, United States of America

The dominant influence of religion in public life undermines the right to equality and/or non-discrimination

Applied when the influence of religion on public life undermines others’ rights, such as SRHR, women’s rights, LGBTI+ rights.

May be applied when the influence is overt (i.e. when religious laws are applied to undermine others’ rights) or covert (i.e. where religious pressure groups exert influence to affect policy)

Countries: Albania, Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Brunei Darussalam, Burundi, Chile, Congo, Democratic Republic of, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Eritrea, Eswatini, Fiji, Gambia, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Hungary, Iran, Italy, Jamaica, Jordan, Liberia, Lithuania, Mali, Mexico, Moldova, Montenegro, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Oman, Paraguay, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Slovakia, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Timor-Leste (East Timor), Trinidad and Tobago, Ukraine, Zambia

Use of Conscientious Objection clauses resulting in the denial of lawful services to women and LGBTI+ people
Complete tyranny precludes all freedoms of expression and thought, religion or belief

Applied when overriding acts of oppression by the State are extreme, to the extent that the question of freedom of thought and expression is almost redundant, because all human rights and freedoms are quashed by authorities.

Countries: Afghanistan, North Korea

The non-religious are barred from some government offices (including posts reserved for particular religions or sects)
There is a nominal state church with few privileges or progress is being made toward disestablishment

Countries: Bulgaria, Norway, Peru, Rwanda

Religious or ideological indoctrination is utterly pervasive in schools
Expression of non-religious views is severely persecuted, or is rendered almost impossible by severe social stigma, or is highly likely to be met with hatred or violence
The non-religious are persecuted socially or there are prohibitive social taboos against atheism, humanism or secularism
There is significant social marginalisation of the non-religious or stigma associated with expressing atheism, humanism or secularism
Expression of core Humanist principles on democracy, freedom and human rights is brutally repressed
Religious authorities have supreme authority over the state

Countries: Iran

State legislation is partly derived from religious law or by religious authorities
Preferential treatment is given to a religion or religion in general

This condition is applied where there are miscellaneous indicators that organs of the state offer various forms of support for a religion, or to religion in general over non-religious worldviews, suggesting a preference for those beliefs, or that the organs of that religion are privileged.

Countries: Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Belize, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Burundi, Canada, Cape Verde, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Finland, Germany, Ghana, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Montenegro, Mozambique, Nepal, New Zealand, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Oman, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Rwanda, San Marino, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste (East Timor), Tunisia, Turkey, Tuvalu, United Kingdom, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Zimbabwe

Religious or ideological instruction in a significant number of schools is of a coercive fundamentalist or extremist variety

This condition highlights countries where schools subject children to fundamentalist religious instruction with no real opportunity to question fundamentalist tenets, or where lessons routinely encourage hatred (for example religious or ethnic hatred). The wording “significant number of schools” is not given a rigid quantification (sometimes the worst-offending schools are unregistered, illegal, or otherwise uncounted); however the condition is not applied in cases where only a small number of schools meet the description and may be anomalous, as opposed to being indicative of a widespread problem.

Countries: Bangladesh, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia

State-funded schools provide religious education which may be nominally comprehensive but is substantively biased or borderline confessional
There is a pattern of impunity or collusion in violence by non-state actors against the non-religious
Some religious courts rule in civil or family matters on a coercive or discriminatory basis
‘Apostasy’ or conversion from a specific religion is outlawed and punishable by death
‘Apostasy’ is outlawed and punishable with a prison sentence

Countries: Bahrain, Comoros, Jordan, Kuwait

State legislation is largely or entirely derived from religious law or by religious authorities
Anomalous discrimination by local or provincial authorities, or overseas territories
Religious or ideological instruction is mandatory in at least some public schools (without secular or humanist alternatives)
Government figures or state agencies openly marginalize, harass, or incite hatred or violence against the non-religious
Government authorities push a socially conservative, religiously or ideologically inspired agenda, without regard to the rights of those with progressive views
‘Blasphemy’ or criticism of religion is outlawed and punishable by death
Quasi-divine veneration of a ruling elite is enforced, or a single-party regime holds uncontested power, subject to severe punishment
Legal or constitutional provisions exclude non-religious views from freedom of religion or belief
It is illegal to register an explicitly Humanist, atheist, secularist or other non-religious NGO or other human rights organization, or such groups are persecuted by authorities
Prohibitive interreligious social control (including interreligious marriage bans)
It is illegal to advocate secularism or church-state separation, or such advocacy is suppressed
The non-religious are barred from holding government office
There is a religious tax or tithing which is compulsory, or which is state-administered and discriminates by precluding non-religious groups
It is illegal or unrecognised to identify as an atheist or as non-religious
Some concerns about children's right to specifically freedom of religion or belief

This condition may apply if specifically religious education, religious materials, or specific religious denominations are so tightly controlled that children are in fact over-protected from exposure to religion and are likely unable to explore or construct their own worldview in accordance with their evolving capacities. This condition helps us to classify states (perhaps with secular constitutions) which have criminalized specifically religious beliefs or practices. This condition is not applied if the restricted beliefs or practices are found to be outlawed due to their being of an extremist variety. While this condition does not directly reflect discrimination against non-religious persons or non-religious ideas, it does represent an overall threat to freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief; such restrictions could spill over to affect non-religious beliefs later; and they pose a risk of backlash against over-zealous secular authorities or even against non-religious individuals by association.

Countries: China, Congo, Democratic Republic of, Cuba, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Guinea, Guyana, Italy, Kazakhstan, Laos, Madagascar, Mali, Mexico, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Tajikistan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Viet Nam, Zimbabwe

It is made difficult to register or operate an explicitly Humanist, atheist, secularist or other non-religious NGO or other human rights organization
Legend
 
Severe Discrimination
Systemic Discrimination
Mostly Satisfactory
More information about rating table

Constitution and government

The preamble of the Constitution contains multiple invocations to “Almighty God,” going so far as to describe the Seychelles as “one Nation under God.”

Article 21 of the Constitution[ref]https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Seychelles_2017[/ref] grants citizens the right to freedom of conscience, thought and religion, which includes the right to change religion or belief, and makes plain that the profession of religious beliefs shall not be required as a qualification for public office. It also prevents the inclusions of provisions within law that establish any religion or impose religious observance on others. The Constitution also enshrines the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association.

Education and children’s rights

There are no faith-based schools and the Government prohibits compulsory religious education in state schools. It does however permit religious organizations to provide their own religious instruction during school hours.[ref]https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-report-on-international-religious-freedom/seychelles/[/ref]

Reportedly, non-Catholic students in public schools that provide Catholic instruction are not consistently offered alternative activities during those classes, according to research conducted by the US State Department.[ref]https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-report-on-international-religious-freedom/seychelles/[/ref]

Family, community & society

Article 39(1) enshrines “the right of every person to take part in cultural life and to profess, promote, enjoy and protect the cultural and customary values of the Seychellois people.”

LGBTI+ rights

Same-sex marriage is expressly prohibited under Article 32(2) of the Constitution, in order to safeguard the family as “the natural and fundamental element of society.”

While there have been no reports of violence against members of the LGBTI+ community, the US State Department has reported discrimination against members of the LGBTI+ community in relation to securing public housing.[ref]https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/seychelles[/ref]

Sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights

The law reportedly prohibits access to contraceptives for persons under the age of 18, even though the legal age of consent is 15.[ref]https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/seychelles[/ref] Perhaps as a result, the rate of teenage pregnancy is reported to be high.[ref]https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/03/14/submission-committee-african-charter-rights-and-welfare-child-republic-seychelles[/ref]

Witchcraft

The penal code has provisions against witchcraft practices.[ref]https://www.warnathgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Seychelles-Penal-Code.pdf[/ref] In October 2023 it was reported that the main opposition leader in the Seychelles, Patrick Herminie, was charged with witchcraft, along with seven others.[ref]https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-66992504[/ref] At the time of writing, those charged are set to appear before the Magistrate’s Court.[ref]https://bnn.network/politics/courts-law/eight-seychellois-individuals-face-court-on-witchcraft-charges[/ref]

Freedom of expression, advocacy of humanist values

In its 2023 World Press Freedom report, Reporters Without Borders indicated that media pluralism has steadily been increasing over the past decade. In addition, the organization reported that self-censorship is reported to be on the decline.[ref]https://rsf.org/en/country/seychelles[/ref]

The government can restrict the broadcast of material considered to be “objectionable.”[ref]https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/seychelles[/ref]

Religious broadcasting

Religious groups may publish newspapers, but may not obtain commercial radio or television licenses. Instead registered religious groups are afforded airtime on national radio and television, and are permitted to broadcast religious services upon request.[ref]https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-report-on-international-religious-freedom/seychelles/[/ref]

The State broadcasting corporation reportedly broadcasts religious programming for holidays such as Christmas, the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, and the feast of the Immaculate Conception. Catholic and Anglican religious services are reportedly broadcast weekly on the radio, while Friday prayers for Muslims are reportedly broadcast on television. The broadcasting corporation reportedly reviews all programming to ensure that hate speech is not broadcast.[ref]https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-report-on-international-religious-freedom/seychelles/[/ref]

‘Blasphemy’

Section 128 of the Penal Code prescribes one year in prison to anyone who “with the deliberate intention of wounding the religious feelings of any other person, writes any word, or any person who, with the like intention, utters any word or makes any sound in the hearing of any other person or makes any gesture or places any object in the sight of any other person.”

The Penal Code also includes provisions against damaging or defiling objects of religious worship (section 125), disturbing lawful religious assembly (section 126), and trespassing on burial places (section 127).

Humanists International was not able to find evidence that the de facto blasphemy provision has been applied in practice.