Religious police are any police force responsible for the enforcement of religious norms and associated religious laws. Nearly all religious police organizations in modern society are Islamic and can be found in countries with a large Muslim populace, such as Saudi Arabia or Iran. The responsibilities of religious police heavily vary by religion and culture. For example, the Islamic religious police prioritize the prevention of alcohol consumption, playing of music, public displays of affection, Western holidays, and prayer time absences. On the other hand, the religious police force in Vietnam are responsible for monitoring religious extremists, such as Dega Protestants or Ha Mon Catholics. As of 2012, at least 17 nations (9% worldwide) have police that enforce religious norms, according to a new Pew Research analysis of 2012 data. These actions are particularly common in the Middle East and North Africa, where roughly one-third of countries (35%) have police enforcing religious norms. As of 2012, religious police forces were not present in any country in Europe or the Americas.
Evolution of religious police
Religious police can be divided into two categories, those who are upholding the values of a certain religion and those who are responsible for extremist religious groups. Every major religion has a set of rules expected to be followed by their believers as a lifestyle and passages to support its enforcement.
In Islam, the doctrine of Hisbah dictates a duty for the Muslims to promote moral virtue and intervene when another believer is not acting accordingly. The passage holds a core value from the Quran of enjoining good and forbidding wrong. Throughout history, there is evidence that Islamic religious policing has existed for centuries. In the earliest form of religious policing, Muhtasib or “market inspector” is a public official entrusted with preventing fraud, public morality infractions, and disturbance of public order. However, this position disappeared worldwide as society modernize before reappearing in the first Saudi state, Diriyah, from 1745 to 1818. In the early 20th century, Ibn Sa’ud appointed his followers as muhtasibs and very strictly enforced the rules, which caused a conflict between foreign pilgrim and the local population.
The other side of religious policing are forces who are overseeing, if considered to be, religious extremist groups. With the recent spike in interest for religious groups, more people are joining extreme religious groups worldwide. Governments often create a task force in local areas where most group members are based in. However, if an extreme religious group poses a threat to public safety, the responsibility often lies on a more formal intelligence agency instead of a local task force. However, in certain cases, the fear for public safety is simply a ruse to be used as an excuse by governments to limit religious freedom, such as the case of Dega Christians in Vietnam. Ethnic minorities who are Evangelical Christians were chased out of their homes and into the forest as harassment and discrimination against them ran rampant. In Vietnam, a religion must be approved by the VCP (Communist Party of Vietnam) and have their leaders vetted by government authorities for worship services to be legal. However, unregistered Protestant “house churches” in minority areas are deemed “illegal” or a Dega Christian. The Vietnamese Communist Party created a task force to watch the Dega Christians and in some cases, harass and assault them.
Despite its controversial nature, religious police forces are still common in some Islamic societies. These institutions have the powerful support of the conservative part of the population and government officials but are often met with opposition from its younger population and liberals. However, religious police forces often conflicts with local police. For example, the Nigerian State of Kano witnessed a rocky relationship between their religious police force and civil police force. Some religious forces only survived because of protection from the country's constitution, namely Iran and Saudi Arabia. Despite Hassan Rouhani's stern criticism of Iran's religious police, he did not have power to change anything as the acting president.