This gap in analysis is the central focus of Asia Centre’s report,“Religious Freedom in Cambodia: Unpacking the Rankings,” published on September 28. At its core, the report interrogates what standard metrics capture and, more importantly, what they deliberately or inadvertently leave out.
onsdag 21. oktober 2026
Behind the Veil of Religious Harmony in Cambodia
On paper, Cambodia often appears as a site of religious tolerance, boasting favorable scores in global indices that measure selected elements of freedom of religion or belief (FoRB). Over the years, these “rankings” have manufactured a facade of harmony that masks realities on the ground. State influence over Buddhist institutions, structural inequalities, and the quiet marginalization of minority groups and the destruction of Indigenous sacred places are routinely obscured by aggregate rankings that mistake the absence of overt conflict and the fear of speaking up for genuine harmony.
This gap in analysis is the central focus of Asia Centre’s report,“Religious Freedom in Cambodia: Unpacking the Rankings,” published on September 28. At its core, the report interrogates what standard metrics capture and, more importantly, what they deliberately or inadvertently leave out.
This gap in analysis is the central focus of Asia Centre’s report,“Religious Freedom in Cambodia: Unpacking the Rankings,” published on September 28. At its core, the report interrogates what standard metrics capture and, more importantly, what they deliberately or inadvertently leave out.