Diplomat Cites North Korea as Among Worst Religious Freedom Violators

(AgapePress) – The Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom says this year’s annual State Department report to Congress on religious liberty around the globe shows that North Korea is one of the worst offenders, with more political and religious prisoners than any other country on Earth. John Hanford, head of the U.S. Department of State’s Office of International Religious Freedom, says it is very difficult to confirm all the information coming out of North Korea . However, he says credible reports indicate that religious believers, particularly Christians, often face terrible persecution, or even death, because of their faith. “We hear of horrible cases of Christians starved to death, basically, in prison camps,” Hanford says. “It is our belief that there probably are more political prisoners and more religious prisoners in North Korea than in any other nation.”