Anna Lee Stangl is one of the experts who understands better what is happening in the world regarding religious freedom.
She started working with Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) in 1999 after finishing a BA in International Relations at Randolph Macon Woman’s College, Virginia, and an MA in Conflict Resolution at Lancaster University, U.K. From 2000-2011, she worked out of CSW’s Brussels office, coordinating all the organization’s advocacy with the European Union. During that period, she also began to develop CSW’s work in Latin America, and in 2012, she moved to Washington D.C. to coordinate the U.S.-focused advocacy. She is now the joint Advocacy Director, overseeing all the international research and advocacy.
The aggression against Christians is currently so great that it has generated campaigns such as Red Week 2025 to raise public awareness of the dramatic reality of the persecuted and to promote the right to religious freedom.
Stangl walks us through Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Global South, zones of killing and harassment for those who believe in this interview.
I know that Christian Solidarity Worldwide has been documenting cases for years in territories where democracy has not flourished, such as Cuba. What value does creating case banks like these have for a future free Cuba?
Rigorous documentation forms the basis of all of our work. Without well-documented cases, it is too easy for governments, like Cuba’s, to deflect concerns about freedom of religion or belief or to dismiss a case here or there as “isolated.”It is much more difficult for such governments to do so when they are presented with dates, names, and a detailed summary of events. Consistent documentation also makes patterns clear and is helpful in establishing that such violations are systematic rather than anomalies.
This is important for contemporary advocacy work, but it also helps to form an important database for a free Cuba in the future. We’ve seen again and again the importance of truth commissions in helping countries confront the wrongs of their pasts and seek both justice and reconciliation, however, most of those processes were at least in part, if not entirely, reliant on the memories of the individuals involved and their willingness or ability to share those memories.
A bank of information, cases documented in detail in the present — and not just information on the victims but also on the perpetrators, whenever possible, will greatly assist any such process in Cuba and give it a head start in coming to terms with all that has happened there over the past decades.
In cases like Nigeria, we see Christian communities being fiercely attacked by Fulani groups with little intervention from the state to protect them. What details and firsthand accounts can you share about what's happening there?
The situation in Nigeria, specifically Northern Nigeria, is especially complicated with the presence of various armed groups, some Islamic extremists, some criminals, but all attacking civilian populations. [There’s terrorism by] kidnapping, as in the case of Leah Sharibu, who was taken by Boko Haram in 2018 and remains in captivity, unlike her fellow students, because of her refusal to renounce her Christian faith, and massacring innocent men, women, and children.
The situation in the nation’s 12 states includes the establishment of shari’ah law, which has led to abuses affecting religious minorities, including Christians.
One of the most egregious was the brutal lynching of Christian university student Deborah Emanuel in 2022 in Sokoto State after she was falsely accused of blasphemy in a WhatsApp study group, during which security officers refused to intervene. Despite recordings of the horrific murder being shared on social media and the fact that those involved were clearly identifiable, no one has ever been brought to justice for her murder.
The Middle East is always a region of religious tensions that occasionally unleashes political earthquakes. The takeover of Syria by a regime linked to Islamist terrorism has already generated its first images of intolerance toward Christians. With the first anniversary approaching this coming December, how do you see the outlook for coexistence and freedom of worship?
The situation in the Middle East, and especially Syria, is complex and fragile.
Over the past year, CSW has condemned violent acts committed not only against Christians, but extremists have also targeted members of the Druze and Alawite minorities.
At the same time, there are people and groups making concerted efforts to build trust between different communities and establish a rule of law to try to ensure that Syria moves towards a better future. And perhaps in the process, it serves as an example to other countries in the region, which have been characterized in someways by deep divisions between different religious groups.
China remains another shadowy player in the persecution of religious groups like the Uyghurs. Specifically, underground churches have grown exponentially, as has police persecution, which this month alone resulted in the arrest of dozens of pastors. What are they typically accused of? What consequences do they face?
On November 20th, the Chinese government formally accused the 18 leaders from the Zion Church of “illegally using information networks.” They were detained on November 18th as part of a wave of arrests affecting at least 30 people from the same unregistered Protestant group in seven different cities.
These charges mean that the government is now legally able to detain them indefinitely. If and when they face trial, the charges carry a sentence of three years.
We know there is an exchange of technology and intelligence between Beijing and Havana. But are there links between the repressive methods used against churches by Chinese totalitarianism and those of Cuban totalitarianism?
Any modern totalitarian government is likely to share characteristics, and China and Cuba are no exception, especially when it comes to freedom of religion or belief. Registration requirements and refusals to register are a way of attempting to control religious groups by forcing them to operate without legal protections.
A second similarity is the widespread use of informants to disrupt, monitor, and report on religious activities — and especially religious leaders.
What is the significance of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) and its listings in the international arena and domestically, in countries that violate freedom of belief?
Over the past 27 years, since USCIRF’s establishment under the International Religious Freedom Act, it has acted as a vital monitor of freedom of religion or belief around the world. Though it is limited in its scope and could do much more if Congress allocated a more generous budget, it has generally done excellent work monitoring and reporting on freedom of religion or belief in specific countries and on wider or region specific trends.
Its recommendations, while not always adopted by the State Department, carry great weight. We’ve been gratified to see that in some cases — for example, in the case of Cuba, the State Department eventually designating recommended countries as Countries of Particular Concern — USCIRF makes a big difference.
How do you think organizations like the recently created Presidential Commission for Religious Freedom can get involved with the cause of freedom in countries like Cuba, Venezuela, or Nicaragua?
Given that the commission is relatively new — it remains to be seen how it will strike a balance between a focus on domestic and international issues. We hope that its members will take guidance from USCIRF, as well as the Office for International Religious Freedom at the State Department, and add their voices to those entities’ consistent condemnations of violations of freedom religion or belief in Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.
I’d add that although President Trump announced his nomination of Congressman Mark Walker as Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom seven months ago, he has yet to be confirmed by the Senate. We would urge the Senate to prioritize this confirmation to ensure that there is a clear, empowered voice dedicated to promoting this fundamental right around the world.
