Afghanistan has suffered from chronic instability and conflict in its modern history from the Cold War to the civil wars between the Mujahedeen and the Taliban. Most recently, Afghanistan has been the stage of the Afghan War (2001-2014) – fought between a coalition of US, NATO and Afghan troops against […]

Though in theory a secular democracy, the government has frequently given into pressure from Islamist parties, and continues to threaten atheists and others on charges of “hurting religious sentiments”. As of 2013 it was estimated that 89.1% of the population were Muslim (the majority of whom are Sunni), 10% Hindu, […]

Bhutan is a landlocked country bordered by China and India, with a small population of around 770,000. The difficult topography of Bhutan has kept it isolated from global influence. Having never been colonized, Bhutan has been relatively free to forge its own identity and political system. In 2008, it transitioned […]

India is the world’s most populous democracy, religiously pluralistic, and for many years, in the main, proud of its secular Constitution. According to the most recent census data available (2011), 79.8% of the population are Hindu, 14.2% are Muslim, 2.3% are Christian, 1.7% are Sikh, a further 2% belong to […]

Iran, the second largest nation in the Middle East, has a population of more than 80 million, of which (on paper at least) 99% are identified as Muslim. The Muslim majority includes a Shia majority (90%) and 9% Sunni Muslims (Turkmen, Arabs, Baluchis and Kurds). The remaining 1% of non-Muslim […]

Though most famous internationally as a popular tourist destination, the Maldives has been described as undergoing a battle between liberal and literal interpretations of Islam, with serious human rights violations linked to fundamentalists, and attacks on perceived atheists and homosexuals in recent years. Constitution and government There is no formal […]

Prior to a civil war between Maoist rebels and the government in 2006, the country was officially a Hindu state. In 2008, Nepal became a secular democratic republic. The new Constitution as of 2015 retains “secularism” but places restrictions on freedom of religion or belief. The Nepali population is composed […]

The population of Pakistan is approximately 96% Sunni and Shia Muslim; the remaining 4% is made up of Christians, Ahmadi Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and others.1https://www.state.gov/reports/2021-report-on-international-religious-freedom/pakistan/; https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/pakistan/#people-and-society The country has suffered chronic sectarian violence against religious and non-religious minorities, with Shia Muslims subjected to the majority of the violence,2https://www.state.gov/reports/2021-report-on-international-religious-freedom/pakistan/ and many […]

The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country of just over 20 million people occupying an island in the northern Indian Ocean.  Formerly part of the British Empire, “Ceylon” attained independence in 1948, and became a republic in 1972. According to the 2012 census, the Sinhalese make up […]