The Maldives is often considered an idyllic paradise, but for non- Muslim residents of these strongly Muslim islands it is far from idyllic. The new constitution of 2008 has made things worse for them, and if a proposed bill is passed into law it will be even more difficult.

Libya is a major seedbed for Islam in Africa. Its leader, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, has longstanding ambitions to spread his religion throughout the continent, and to this end he aspires to bring Africa under a single government or create a United Islamic States of Africa with a single currency. His government uses the oil wealth of Libya to finance the promotion of Islam elsewhere, and the staterun Islamic university trains Muslim clerics from non-Arab countries to promote its version of Islam in their own contexts.

In July 2009, nine Christian families (53 people) in Laos each had one of their pigs seized and slaughtered by village officials. The officials stated that this was to punish the families for believing in the Christian faith. A pig is worth about six weeks’ wages. Six days later, the village chief announced at a village meeting, “Those who follow the Christian faith are practising a foreign religion, not a religion of Laos. We have banned the Christian faith in our village.” He said that those who persisted in the Christian faith would “no longer be under the official provision and protection of the village”.

Kyrgyzstan was one of the least restrictive of the Central Asian countries for Christians until a new religion law was unanimously approved by parliament on 12 January 2009. Amongst other repressive measures, the new law states that any religious organisation needs at least 200 members to register. This makes it virtually impossible for most churches to register and thus gain the protection of a legal status. Distribution of religious literature is prohibited in public places, and activities directed to the conversion of others are forbidden altogether. The law thus brings Kyrgyzstan in one leap to a situation of intolerance comparable with many of its neighbouring countries.