Irreligion in the United Arab Emirates

Irreligion in the United Arab Emirates is rare, with only up to 4% of people reporting irreligious beliefs according to a Gallup poll. It is illegal,[1] with apostates from Islam facing a maximum sentence of the death penalty under the country's anti-blasphemy law.[2] As such, there have been questions regarding freedom of religion in the United Arab Emirates.

Atheism in the region is mainly present among foreign expatriates and a very small number of local youth.[3][4] According to Sultan Sooud Al-Qassemi, due to Islam being founded in the Arabian Peninsula over 1,400 years ago, the Persian Gulf region enjoys a long Islamic history and tradition, and it is strongly associated with national identity; thus, any distancing or criticism of religion "equates to distancing oneself from national identity".[5] Al-Qassemi notes that the use of social media via the internet remains the strongest medium of expression for Gulf atheists, while providing anonymity; a pioneering Gulf blogger is the Emirati atheist Ahmed Ben Kerisha, who is known in the Arabic blogosphere for advocating atheist and secular views.[5][6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ AbOhlheiser. "There Are 13 Countries Where Atheism Is Punishable by Death". The Wire.
  2. ↑ "Freedom of Thought Report - Map". freethoughtreport.com.
  3. ↑ "Is Gulf youth increasingly drawn to atheism?". The National. 19 August 2012. Retrieved 11 July 2015.
  4. ↑ "Email from an Arab atheist". Al-Bab. 11 August 2013. Retrieved 11 July 2015.
  5. 1 2 Al-Qassemi, Sultan Sooud. "Gulf atheism in the age of social media". Al-Monitor. Retrieved 11 July 2015.
  6. ↑ Al-Qassemi, Sultan Sooud (20 December 2011). "Pioneer Bloggers in the Gulf Arab States". Jadaliyya. Retrieved 11 July 2015.
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