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Benin Suppresses Freedom of Worship

PERHAPS you know the country as Dahomey. But last November this small West African nation changed its name to the People’s Republic of Benin. Since that time the country has stepped up efforts to suppress the Christian worship of Jehovah’s Witnesses.

Dozens of Witnesses have been arrested, and some cruelly beaten. In April the branch office of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society was seized, and the branch personnel as well as the missionaries were expelled from the country. All the Kingdom Halls, where Christian meetings are held, have been closed. And hundreds of Witnesses have fled for their safety to neighboring countries.

Why have Jehovah’s Witnesses been so viciously attacked in Benin? What is happening there?

A Nation Undergoing Change

More than just the name has changed in this former French colony. Since Dahomey gained independence in 1960 it has experienced five coups. The latest occurred on October 26, 1972, when a military government headed by Colonel Mathieu Kerekou took over Dahomey.

Seeking to develop this largely agricultural country, its leaders have looked to the Soviet Union and China for direction. The New York Times of November 23, 1975, reported:

“‘Socialism is our chosen path, Marxist-Leninism is our guide,’ has become the slogan of Dahomey’s leaders since the country embarked on a new political course a year ago.

“Dahomey’s military leaders have decided that socialism is the way to development for this agricultural state . . .

“Chinese assistance to Dahomey, which includes a loan of $50 million, has been most noticeable in agriculture . . .

“The swing to socialism dates from November 30, 1974.”

Significantly, the announcement regarding the changing of the country’s name was made November 30, 1975. Ceremonies were at the time being held to mark the first anniversary of the proclamation of the country as a “Marxist-Leninist scientific socialism.”

Influenced especially by the Chinese Communists, life in Benin has undergone considerable reorganizing, especially during the past year or so. Ideology classes have been set up at places of employment, where instruction is given from Chairman Mao’s little red book. Compulsory flag ceremonies are also held at these places of work. People are expected to greet one another with political slogans, even when answering the telephone. And persons who do not conform to such requirements are reported to the authorities.

Commenting on the country’s new spirit of nationalism, Minister of Interior Martin Dohou Azonhiho said in a speech April 16, 1976: “As you know, when we are together as militants, we sing the national anthem, we shout the revolutionary slogans and we stand at attention before our national emblem.”

It is this new nationalistic spirit in Benin that has led to the vicious persecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses. Why is this?

Effect on Jehovah’s Witnesses

In his April 16 speech Mr. Azonhiho explained:

“If they do not change their attitude these expatriates will be expelled from our national territory. Theirs is no way to act. I have already given firm instructions to the neighborhood authorities that, if by the end of the month, Jehovah’s Witnesses do not shout the revolutionary slogans, do not sing the national anthem, do not respect the flag, I am going to expel all the expatriate representatives of Jehovah’s Witnesses, these licensed agents of the C.I.A.”

So Jehovah’s Witnesses have been persecuted because they do not participate in nationalistic services. They are considered enemies of the State​—the native-born Witnesses as well as missionaries from other lands. But think: If they indeed were enemies of the People’s Republic of Benin, seeking its downfall, would they be so stupid as to refuse to sing its anthem or to salute its flag? Do not spies, traitors and other subversives feign patriotism so that they can unobtrusively continue their work of subversion?

A Matter of Worship

The fact is, Jehovah’s Witnesses do not sing anthems or salute emblems of any nation, not just those of Benin. And the reason that they do not is their religious beliefs; it has nothing to do with preferring one form of political rule over another. What happened long ago in the nation of Babylon well illustrates the religious issue involved.

Babylon’s King Nebuchadnezzar set up a huge image of gold and ordered that at the sound of certain musical instruments all persons should bow before the image. However, three Hebrew servants of Jehovah God refused to bow, even though they knew that the penalty for not doing so would be execution by being thrown into a fiery furnace. Yet they said: “Let it become known to you, O king, that your gods are not the ones we are serving, and the image of gold that you have set up we will not worship.”​—Dan. 3:1-18.

The situation is similar today. To achieve a nationalistic spirit among their peoples, nations have set up objects that actually are given religious veneration. As historian Carlton Hayes observes in his book What Americans Believe and How They Worship: “Nationalism’s chief symbol of faith and central object of worship is the flag, and curious liturgical forms have been devised for ‘saluting’ the flag, for ‘dipping’ the flag, for ‘lowering’ the flag, and for ‘hoisting’ the flag. Men bare their heads when the flag passes by; and in praise of the flag poets write odes and children sing hymns.” It was because of refusing to take part in this religious exercise that Jehovah’s Witnesses were bitterly persecuted in the United States in the early 1940’s.

In keeping with the example of the Hebrew servants of Jehovah God in ancient Babylon, Jehovah’s Witnesses do not salute any national emblem or sing any national anthem. It is not that they do not respect the flags of the nations in which they live, including the flag of the People’s Republic of Benin. They do. And they show this respect by their honesty and exemplary obedience to the laws of their respective countries. In Benin, Jehovah’s Witnesses have proved themselves to be fine, hardworking citizens, as President Kerekou himself should know.

And as to the charge that Jehovah’s Witnesses are licensed agents of the United States C.I.A. (Central Intelligence Agency), nothing could be farther from the truth. To those who know Jehovah’s Witnesses, it can only sound ridiculous, for always they maintain a course of strict neutrality in political affairs, following the example of Jesus Christ, who said of his followers: “They are no part of the world, just as I am no part of the world.”​—John 17:16.

So the action against the more than two thousand Benin Witnesses is indeed a suppression of freedom of worship without a cause. And what is being done to them is extremely serious. Please consider.