Sudan demolishes second church in less than two weeks

Another church has been demolished in Sudan's capital of Khartoum last week, just ten days after a church building was torn down in nearby Soba Al Aradi suburb.

A Sudanese Church of Christ (SCOC) building in Algadisia district has been torn down on May 17 after someone claimed ownership of the property without providing any proof.

According to Christian charity Middle East Concern (MEC), the church tried to show ownership documents, but authorities went on with the demolition, stating they had orders to do so.

A total of 27 churches has been scheduled for demolition by the Sudanese government, claiming they violated the designated purposes for the land. The government, however, has refused to designate any plots of land for church buildings, saying there is no need for new churches in Sudan.

Apart from the demolition of the 27 churches, the authorities are also gradually confiscating properties belonging to the Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church in Bahri and Omdurman.

According to World Watch Monitor, the demolition of churches was based on a 2014 decision, which introduced four land use distinctions: worship, residential, commercial and government. It prohibits the construction of churches on land not designated for worship, but it appears that some of the church buildings were built before the 2014 decision.

Government officials have denied that Christians were specifically targeted in the demolitions. The Commissioner of Jebel Awliya, Jalaleldin El Sheikh El Tayeb, noted that the removal order also included 12 mosques and Quran schools. However, a local source told World Watch Monitor that the government will not allow the construction of new churches, while none of the schools or mosques will face the same restriction.

In April 2013, the Sudanese Minister of Guidance and Endowments announced that it will no longer grant new licenses for the construction of new churches. The government has insisted that there is no need for new churches in the country as the Christian population has been reduced after the 2011 secession of South Sudan.

Shortly after the secession, seven former Sudanese dioceses moved to South Sudan, leaving only two dioceses for the small Christian minority in Sudan.

Ján Figel, the Special Envoy for the Promotion of Freedom of Religion or Belief outside the EU, has written a letter to Sudan's new Minister of Religious Guidance and Endowments to raise the issue of the church demolitions.

After visiting Sudan in mid-March, he was given the impression that the order to demolish the churches had been temporarily suspended.

"I am sure you would agree with me that these events generate tensions and go counter [to] the many efforts deployed by Sudan to preserve its capital of religious diversity," he said in the letter to the new Minister.

"Regarding the ongoing confiscations of religious properties from Evangelical churches, I cordially encourage you in your new important assignment to ensure your Government's full protection of the rightful legal church committees, as recognised by the respective religious leaders and the Supreme Court of the Republic of the Sudan," he went on to say.

After his March visit, Figel said he reminded Sudanese authorities about "importance of upholding FORB [Freedom of Religion or Belief] in the Constitution and recommended the construction of a civil state based on equal citizenship for all."