East Renfrewshire MP Kirsten Oswald attended an event at Westminster last month which marked the launch of this year’s World Watch List by Open Doors UK and Ireland.

Open Doors is a charity that raises awareness of the persecution of Christians by working with churches and local partners to provide bibles and emergency relief.

The event ranked 50 countries where Christians face extreme persecution and estimated that 5,621 Christians were murdered because of their faith last year.

Ms Oswald was one of more than 90 MPs who went along, with those in attendance hearing from persecuted Christians from North Korea, East Africa and India. 

She told the Barrhead News: “I have attended every Open Doors event at Westminster while I have been elected.

“I want to thank Open Doors for the great work they do in highlighting the persecution of Christians across the world.

“Many of my constituents in East Renfrewshire contact me regarding freedom of religion and the importance of being able to follow the faith – or no faith – of your choice.

“Freedom of religion is a fundamental human right and I am grateful to Open Doors for all they do to support those who do not have this freedom and for their work in ensuring continued awareness of this issue.”

Henrietta Blyth, CEO of Open Doors UK and Ireland, started the launch event by telling MPs of “the intensifying persecution of Christians across the world.” 

“Since 1993, both the intensity and spread of persecution of Christians worldwide has dramatically increased,” she said. 

“In the past 30 years, the number of countries in which Christians face high to extreme levels of persecution has nearly doubled from 40 countries to 76.

“There is no question that life is becoming more difficult for Christians in many countries.”