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Editorial Introduction to the 2019 edition By Bob Churchill Bob Churchill is Editor of the Freedom of Thought Report and Director of Communications and Campaigns at Humanists International The push to abolish ‘blasphemy’ laws is proceeding apace in many western countries. This is a trend that must be welcomed as […]

Preface to the 2023 edition By Andrew Copson Andrew Copson is the President of Humanists International In a time when the very foundations of democracy are being challenged across our world, it is crucial to recognize the role humanists play in defending and revitalizing democratic institutions. Humanists are not mere […]

Foreword to the 2023 edition By Panayote Dimitras Panayote Dimitras is the co-founder of the Humanist Union of Greece   Thirty years ago I co-founded the Greek Helsinki Monitor and Minority Rights – Greece and in 2010 the Humanist Union of Greece, a Member of Humanists International. Inspired by humanist […]

EMBARGOED FOR 5 DECEMBER 2017 – 00:01 (GMT) This page is not navigable from the site menu and is only made available for press contacts prior to the launch of the Report. A preview of The Freedom of Thought Report 2017 “Key Countries” edition is available for press contacts: > Download the preview […]

Today in Brussels we launched the fifth edition of the Freedom of Thought Report. And in a huge change this year the report is no longer primarily a downloadable PDF. We have been busy building an online system so that each country in the world now has its own individual […]

Credits for the 2022 edition Editor Emma Wadsworth-Jones Contributing Editor Elizabeth O’Casey Volunteer researchers Lawrence Rickardand our anonymous contributors Contributors Gary McLellandRishvin Ismath Special thanks to the following Humanists International Members and Associates: Humanists BarbadosCouncil of Ex-Muslims of Sri LankaFederation of Indian Rationalist AssociationsFilipino FreethinkersHumanist Alliance Philippines, International Special thanks […]

We defer to the United Nations geo-schema1<unstats.un.org/unsd/methods/m49/m49regin.htm> in general to list and organize nation states. We endeavor to include all fully independent and sovereign states in the report; while some disputed territories, overseas territories, dependencies, constituent countries, or non-self-governed territories are not included. If there is known information pertinent to a […]

By Bob Churchill Bob Churchill is Director of Communications at the IHEU, and Editor of the Freedom of Thought Report This report records discrimination against the non-religious, from the relatively minor to the most serious. At that most serious end of the scale, we record how numerous states continue to systematically […]

By Andrew Copson Andrew Copson is President of the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) Published by the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU), the Freedom of Thought Report is now in its fifth annual edition. In 2012, our first edition was an expanded version of a submission by several […]

By Ahmed Shaheed Dr Shaheed is the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief, as of 1 November 2016. The right to freedom of religion or belief is a right that is frequently misunderstood by its conflation with narrowly defined views on religious freedom. Such narratives often overlook the […]