According to Patmos, the government denied a considerable number of religious visas, including to a group of missionaries from Florida that had visited annually to rebuild temples. In 2020 the vast majority of people worldwide—88.7 percent—profess to adhere to a religion, up from 80.8 percent in 1970. It provides the best estimates for each of the religions as well as major traditions for Muslims, Christians, Hindus and Buddhists, in every country in the world (234) for the period 1900 to 2050. They also said ineligibilities for registration sometimes included determinations by the MOJ that another group had identical or similar objectives, using this argument as a pretext to favor certain factions of a religious denomination or one religious group’s activities over others. Two house churches of the same denomination may not exist within two kilometers (1.2 miles) of one another and detailed information – including the number of worshippers, dates and times of services, and the names and ages of all inhabitants of the house in which services are held – must be provided to authorities. According to media, in August the ORA informed Catholic leaders that it had cancelled the annual Catholic public youth day celebrations, except in the city of Santiago. But during and after the 1959 communist revolution, 94% of the Jews left for the United States and other countries. The ministry stated the deeds had been lost. [31] The distance between the city and the countryside made it very difficult for slaves to participate in the syncretism of Santeria with Catholicism and Christianity. Nevertheless, certain incidents as detailed below and religious persecution kept them from prospering. Some Cubans trace Jewish ancestry to Marranos (converts to Christianity) who came as colonists, though few of these practices Judaism today. 77.3 years. It claims to have engaged in discussion with the government on issues such as political prisoners and free-market reforms. According to EchoCuba, however, several religious leaders, particularly those from smaller, independent house churches or Santeria communities, said the government was less tolerant of groups that relied on informal locations, including private residences and other private meeting spaces, to practice their beliefs. In 1511, colonization systematically began when the Conquistador Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar established the Catholic Church in Cuba with the early priest Fray Bartolomé de las Casas known commonly as "the Protector of the Indians". The Catholic Church estimates 60 percent of the population identifies as Catholic. According to media, in April authorities arrested homeschooling advocates Reverend Ramon Rigal and his wife Ayda Exposito. The government is prioritizing higher domestic food production - particularly of beans, a critical source of protein. Many house church leaders continued to report frequent visits from state security agents or CCP officials. Only faith, hope, and love, embodied in a renewed church, can sustain believers in the dark age that has overtaken us. These are the days for building strong arks for the long journey across a sea of night. Toledano was arrested while live streaming the destruction on Facebook. A CCC religious leader said, “Cuba doesn’t need aid from those who serve a government which has wanted to create humanitarian crises with a political and economic agenda for 60 years.” Other religious leaders also said the government continued to restrict their ability to receive donations from overseas. Over time, they developed the means to communicate with other surrounding secret camps via the plantation slaves and friendly White Cubans. Rastafarian adherents also have a presence on the island, although the size of the community is unknown. When Fidel Castro’s regime overtook the country in 1959, Protestant churches were legally allowed to continue. The Roman Catholic Church is made up of the Cuban Catholic Bishops' Conference (CCBC), led by Jaime Lucas Ortega y Alamino, Cardinal Archbishop of Havana. According to Olaine Tejada, a member of the Jewish community in Nuevitas, Camaguey Municipality, local state prosecutor Mary Vidal forced him on January 6 to sign a legal document acknowledging that if his sons came to school wearing kippahs, he and his wife Yeliney Lescaille would be arrested and charged with “acts against the normal development of a minor,” with a potential one-year jail sentence. They are the majority and constitute about 64% of the entire population. Due to government public health restrictions, they continued to hold outdoor services. [4] In a survey sponsored by Univision, 44% of Cubans said they were not religious and 9% did not give an answer while only 34% said they were Christian.[5]. It is estimated that around 80 to 90 percent of Cubans consult with Santería priests, making it the most widely practiced religion in Cuba. According to media, the government continued to prohibit the construction of new church buildings. The demographic characteristics of Cuba are known through census which have been conducted and analyzed by different bureaus since 1774. While there are no independent sources on religious demographics in Cuba, a reported 60-70 percent of Cuba's population of an esti-mated 11.1 million self-identify as Catholic, while Protestants account for 5 percent. Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 (CDA), 22 U.S.C. According to EchoCuba, the ORA approved some registration applications, but it took up to two to three years from the date of the application to complete the process. According to Sandor Perez Pita, known in the Rastafarian world as Rassandino, reggae was not allowed on most state radio stations and concert venues, and Rastafarians were consistently targeted in government crackdowns on drugs, incarcerating them for their supposed association with drugs without presenting evidence of actual drug possession or trafficking. Another couple in their church was also sentenced to prison for refusing to send their children to state schools. Some religious leaders continued to report government obstacles prevented them from importing religious materials and donated goods, including bureaucratic obstruction and arbitrary restrictions such as inconsistent rules on computers and electronic devices. According to some observers, Pentecostals and Baptists are likely the largest Protestant denominations. According to Patmos, the Cuban Association for the Divulgation of Islam was unable to obtain a container of religious literature embargoed since 2014. Cuba experienced population growth up until 2016, when the population peaked at 11.34 million people. On one occasion, the teacher humiliated his son in front of his peers for saying that he believed in God. Protestants are making phenomenal gains in Latin America. This is the first general account of the evangelical challenge to Catholic predominance, with special attention to the collision with liberation theology in Central America. According to media, because of the government’s intensified pressure on the movement, it lost significant momentum. The application process requires religious groups to identify the location of their activities, their proposed leadership, and their funding sources, among other requirements. The World Religion Database contains data on 18 major religious categories, including atheists and agnostics. The government continued to block some religious leaders and activists from traveling, including preventing several religious leaders from traveling to the United States to attend the Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom at the Department of State in July and other religious gatherings outside of Cuba. International migrants and refugees. The pivot event was the collapse of Communism in the late twentieth century and the opening of China to the rest of the world. The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Cuban global shipments during 2020, at the 2-digit Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) code level. Nationwide, 58% of Cuban registered voters say they affiliate with or lean toward the . For example, Pastor Daniel Gonzalez told online magazine evangelicodigital.com that for several years, police in his town of Florida, Camagüey Province, failed to investigate individuals throwing rocks at his church during services. A law in force since July 2019 curtails freedom of expression on the internet to protect against “disseminating information contrary to the common good, morals, decency, and integrity through public data transmission networks.” The penalty for violating the law is 3,000 Cuban pesos ($120) or two to four years in prison. The Jewish community estimates it has 1,200 members, of whom 1,000 reside in Havana. Groups failing to register face penalties ranging from fines to closure of their organizations and confiscation of their property. Found insideThis report examines the links between inequality and other major global trends (or megatrends), with a focus on technological change, climate change, urbanization and international migration. Religious leaders continued to report government opposition to and interference in religious groups’ providing pastoral services. CSW attributed the change to the government’s overall closure of borders to tourists as part of its efforts to limit the spread of COVID-19. The Methodist Church reportedly submitted all necessary ownership documentation, but government officials again took no action on the case during the year. She said that after three years working at a CIMEX store in Havana, her supervisor summoned her and the head of Human Resources and told her she could no longer wear a hijab. This page provides - Cuba Tourist Arrivals- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news. According to CSW, the government, through the Ministry of Interior, continued to systematically plant informants in all religious organizations, sometimes by persuading or intimidating members and leaders to act as informants, or by sending informants to infiltrate a church. Roughly 6 in 10 Americans say religion is "very important" in their own lives, and another 26% say it is fairly important. [26][27] From 1938 to 1947, the number of Jehovah's Witnesses in Cuba increased from about 100 to 4,000. Immigrants and native-born citizens practice several different Buddhists traditions, with estimates of 6,200 followers. The country’s constitution, in effect since February 25, contains written provisions for religious freedom and prohibitions against discrimination based on religious grounds. Military service is mandatory for all men, and there are no legal provisions exempting conscientious objectors from service. In some cases, the government held up religious materials or blocked them altogether. They discussed the principal issues of religious freedom and tolerance affecting each group, including freedom of assembly, church expansion, access to state-owned media, and their inability to open private religious schools. According to the constitution, “the state recognizes, respects, and guarantees religious liberty” and “distinct beliefs and religions enjoy equal consideration.” The constitution prohibits discrimination based on religious beliefs. The Nuevitas municipal director of education imposed the kippah ban after a government commission found a school guard guilty of failing to protect the older of the two boys, who had been beaten by fellow students on a regular basis for several months. The government notes, “With respect to the scope and implementation of some of the provisions of this international instrument, Cuba will make such reservations or interpretative declarations as it may deem appropriate.”. Another member of the Apostolic Movement and leader of the Emanuel Church in Santiago de Cuba, Alain Toledano Valiente, reported to CSW that police had summoned him three times during the year. The constitution prohibits discrimination based on religion. PDF | CSV Updated: 5-Nov-2020. According to EchoCuba, in exchange for their cooperation, CCC members continued to receive benefits other nonmember churches did not always receive, including building permits, international donations of clothing and medicine, and exit visas for pastors to travel abroad. In most instances, the accounts posting attacks targeting religious leaders seemed to be linked to state security. Oliva, Enrique Lopez. Authorities told him if he tried to leave his town again, he would be imprisoned for “disrespect.” Reportedly, Fernandez Izaguirre did not leave town during the year, partly due to the government order and because of COVID-19 restrictions. Public Policy and Administration and Religious Studies. Language other than English spoken at home, percent of persons age 5 years+, 2015-2019. This page provides - Cuba Tourist Arrivals- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news. The government had started a process to confiscate the Nazarene Church in April 2019 but took no further action during 2020. Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is a country comprising the island of Cuba as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Religious groups also said the government applied the law in an arbitrary and capricious manner. He said authorities opposed the construction of a new church (authorities demolished the previous Emanuel Church and detained hundreds of church members in 2016), even though he had the permits to build the new church. A coalition of evangelical Protestant churches, Apostolic churches, and the Roman Catholic Church continued to press for legal changes, including easing registration of religious groups, ownership of church property, and new church construction. The 2020 Annual Report assesses religious freedom violations and progress during calendar year 2019 in 29 countries and makes independent recommendations for U.S. policy. Many religious groups said notwithstanding constitutional provisions providing for freedom of conscience and religion and prohibiting discrimination based on religion, the government continued to use threats, detentions, violence, and other coercive tactics to restrict certain religious groups, and leaders’ and followers’ activities, including the right of prisoners to practice religion freely, and applied the law in an arbitrary and capricious manner. The penal code states membership in or association with an unregistered group is a crime; penalties range from fines to three months’ imprisonment, and leaders of such groups may be sentenced to up to one year in prison. [34] Santeria lineage is structured in the connection through Sibs (a group of kin) with each Sib being traced back to a common male ancestor linking the bloodlines to the religion. 03 / Select Countries You can add more than one country or area. In recent decades, Protestantism has seen some flourishing,[6][7] Other Christian denominations include the Greek Orthodox Church, the Russian Orthodox Church, Jehovah's Witnesses and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Military service is mandatory for all men, and there are no legal provisions exempting conscientious objectors from service. By year’s end, the government again did not grant the Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (CCB) public requests to allow the Catholic Church to reopen religious schools and have open access to broadcasting on television and radio. Embassy officials met with the head of the CCC and discussed concerns unregistered churches faced to gain official status. $134.2 billion (2015 est.) Between FY 2010 and FY 2020, 75 percent of LAC admissions were from Cuba (see Figure 3). Information is included by sex and age group as follows: 0-14 years (children), 15-24 years (early working age), 25-54 years (prime working age), 55-64 years (mature working age), 65 years and over (elderly).The age structure of a population affects a nation's key socioeconomic issues. According to media, prison authorities continued to abuse Christian rights activist Mitzael Diaz Paseiro for his refusal to participate in ideological re-education programs while incarcerated. The country has also been an . For example, despite spending thousands of dollars in fees and finally receiving ORA approval in 2017, in April the ORA rescinded permission for renovations to the Baptist Church in Holguin after church leaders participated in a campaign to abstain from nationwide voting on the new constitution. According to EchoCuba, the government continued to give preference to some religious groups and to discriminate against others. National accounts. Santería blends elements of Christianity and West African beliefs and as such made it possible for the slaves to retain their traditional beliefs while appearing to practice Catholicism. Found insideIn White Working Class, Joan C. Williams, described as having "something approaching rock star status" by the New York Times, explains why so much of the elite's analysis of the white working class is misguided, rooted in class cluelessness ... According to EchoCuba, the government continued to give preference to some religious groups and discriminated against others. The Catholic Church continued to offer coursework, including entrepreneurial training leading to a bachelor’s and master’s degree through foreign partners. Catholic and Protestant Church leaders, both in and outside the government-recognized Council of Cuban Churches (CCC), continued to report frequent visits from state security agents and CCP officials for the purpose of intimidating them and reminding them they were under close surveillance, as well as to influence internal decisions and structures within the groups. The ARDA provides free access to the most authoritative religion statistics, data and church membership reports from around the world, including Christian statistics and adherents data. According to EchoCuba, the application of the decree to religious groups was likely part of the general pattern of government efforts to control their activities. According to CSW, the government continued to use endless requirements for permits that could be arbitrarily cancelled at any time, plus other bureaucratic practices, to control and restrict freedom of religion or belief. Fernandez said he believed the detentions were because of his reporting on authorities’ religious freedom abuses. note: folk religions include religions of African origin, spiritualism, and others intermingled with Catholicism or Protestantism; data is estimative because no authoritative source on religious affiliation exists in . In December, Diario de Cuba reported state judicial officials denied Ayda parole. But religious commitment and religious affiliation vary considerably across the U.S. states. The Catholic Church estimates 60 percent of the population identifies as Catholic. Despite a 2019 letter from Cuban Ambassador to the United States Jose Cabanas to the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ in Salt Lake City stating that the denomination was “welcome” in Cuba, the MOJ had not approved the Church’s registration by year’s end. Although restrictions on religion in Cuba were minimal compared to other communist nations like the Soviet Union or China, the large atheist population was most likely caused by the communist atmosphere of Marxist-Leninist atheism. Public opinion polling has long shown the United States to be a very religious country. In this case, a triangular relationship existed between the child, the parent, and the Orisha. Last updated September 25, 2020 8:00 am (EST) Summary. According to CSW, during the year, the government increased pressure on leaders of the Cuban Evangelical Alliance, including through a state television broadcast of a purported investigation of the growth of “dangerous fundamentalism” on the island. < 0.3%. About 60 percent of Cuba's 11 million people are baptized Catholic, the Church says, but experts say at least an equal number practice Santeria or another form of Afro-Cuban religion. On October 23, Ambassador to the United States Jose Cabanas met with the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ in Salt Lake City and told church leaders the denomination was “welcome” in Cuba; however, the ORA did not approve the Church’s registration by year’s end. According to Toledano’s Facebook page, state security officials organized several “actos de repudio” (state-sanctioned crowds) to intimidate and socially isolate him. [20], As of 2016 the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Cuba has more than 34,041 members worshiping in 328 churches and congregations and is reported as one of the largest Protestant churches in Cuba. Christian 70.6%. Part of this effort has involved converting of state farms into cooperatives. There is no independent, authoritative source on the overall size or composition of religious groups. Some religious groups continued to report the government allowed them to engage in community service programs and to share their religious beliefs. As of 2012, most of the 10,000 Cuban Muslims were converts to the religion. Found inside – Page 187Compared to 2016, the decline in Trump's support was associated with the percentage of college graduates, percentage ... the 2020 Florida electorate was slightly more female, older, slightly more Hispanic, less educated, less religious, ... There is no independent, authoritative source on the overall size or composition of religious groups. Cuba paid for the oil, in part, with the services of Cuban personnel in Venezuela, including some 30,000 medical professionals. [31] Attributing to the increase of Santeria was that many other slaves and freemen began to practice the religion of Santeria, thereby increasing the span of influence and affiliation in a more diverse manner. In the run-up to the constitutional referendum, Pastor Sandy Cancino, who had been publicly critical of the draft constitution, was criticized on social media and accused of being a “religious fundamentalist paid by the imperialists.”. groups and supporters of religious freedom. [31] Other slaves and freemen who lived in rural areas formed secret societies and groups in which they exercised their religious beliefs of Santeria out of public view to avoid colonial reform and oppression. The outmost layer that represents divinity is the value of knowledge, direction, and understanding that is acquired from Orishas and personal experience. Rastafarian adherents also have a presence on the island, although the size of the community is unknown. According to media, between June and July, evangelical Protestant pastors Uberney Aguilar and Yalina Proenza received at least six visits and official summons from various government agents aimed at shutting down their congregation, Jehovah Shalom Church, in Holguin. The Methodist Church of Cuba said it continued to struggle to reclaim properties confiscated by the government, including a theater adjacent to the Methodist church in Marianao, Havana. According to its representatives, the country’s small Muslim community was subject to discrimination. Updated. On July 9, Holguin Minister of Justice Nelson Flavio Plutin Santos and Ormani Rodriguez Tamayo, the head of the provincial Department of Associations, denied their request for government recognition, which they had submitted in 2019. Unlike other Hispanic registered voters in the United States, most Cuban Americans identify as Republican - a pattern that could have electoral implications as President Donald Trump seeks to recapture the important swing state of Florida this year. On December 3, media reported schoolmates took off his kippah and beat him in the face with a pistol. In March an officer informed Yoel Ruiz Solis in Pinar del Rio that he was operating an illegal church in his home and threatened to confiscate his house and open criminal proceedings against him. According to some Christian leaders, evangelical Protestant groups continue to grow in the country. The officers then dragged him to their police car. Echavarría had previously been detained by state security in October and early December. Life Expectancy (Years) Life Expectancy in Cuba from 1955 to Present Males, Females, and Both Sexes combined Males Females Both Sexes 1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 0 25 50 75 100. The Afro-Cuban healers and Spanish curanderos served as the only medical practitioners in Cuba and were responsible for treating both the black and white population. According to online media outlet CiberCuba, on February 22, security agents from the Technical Department of Investigation (Departamento Tecnico de Investigaciones, or DTI) arrested Roberto Veliz Torres, a minister of the Assembly of God in Palma Soriano, allegedly for pressuring his congregants to vote “no” in the constitutional referendum. According to CSW, on February 12, CCP officials summoned Christian, Yoruba, and Masonic leaders in Santiago, to “confirm” they and their congregations would vote to adopt the new constitution. Reportedly because of internal restrictions on movement, government agencies regularly refused to recognize a change in residence for pastors and other church leaders assigned to a new church or parish. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Cuba 2020 information contained here. [14], On October 20, 2008, the first Russian Orthodox Church in Cuba opened during an official ceremony attended by Raul Castro. According to CSW, several cases of authorities’ arbitrary confiscation of church property remained unresolved or under review, including a church in Artemisa that belonged to a registered religious group and that the government confiscated in March 2019, and the Nazarene Church of Manzanillo. Some religious groups continued to state their concern that the new constitution, in effect since February 2019, significantly weakened protections for freedom of religion or belief, as well as diluting references to freedom of conscience and separating it from freedom of religion. Concentrating on the Caribbean Basin and the coastal area of northeast South America, Yvonne Daniel considers three African-derived religious systems that rely heavily on dance behavior--Haitian Vodou, Cuban Yoruba, and Bahamian Candomble. ", The decade following the 1960s was turbulent, and many people lost interest in religion because much of the religious hierarchy opposed the popular revolution. However, the numbers have fallen dramatically since FY 2015, when the United States and Cuba began normalizing relations. According to recently released prisoner Roberto de Jesus Quinones, during his time in prison, officials repeatedly “lost” copies of his request for pastoral care and punished him for fasting on holy days by placing him in solitary confinement or suspending other privileges. According to media, on September 8, authorities impeded celebrations of the country’s patron saint, the Virgen de la Caridad de Cobre, an unofficial but important holiday also known as Feast Day, and security officials arrested scores of activists. Some religious leaders continued to report government obstacles preventing them from importing religious materials and donated goods, including bureaucratic obstructions and arbitrary restrictions such as inconsistent rules on computers and electronic devices.