Jakarta – Christmas is the most awaited moment for Christians around the world every year on December 25. This moment is usually considered the perfect time to gather with family and close relatives.
In Indonesia, Christmas is celebrated as a National Holiday and is followed by joint leave for employees. However, it turns out that there are several countries that actually prohibit the celebration of Christmas.
One of them is Indonesia’s neighbor, Brunei Darussalam. Why? Here is the information quoted from Euro Weekly, Tuesday (12/17/2024).
5 Countries That Prohibit Christmas Celebrations
- Brunei Darussalam
Brunei Darussalam prohibits the use of Santa Claus hats and other Christmas-related accessories in public places. This neighboring country of Indonesia has only officially recognized Islam as its state religion.
Nevertheless, Christians living in Brunei are still allowed to celebrate Christmas. Provided that they do not display it in public places. - Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia also prohibits signs related to Christmas celebrations. Because this country follows the Lunar calendar, not the Gregorian calendar.
Saudi Arabia also prohibits other celebrations such as Valentine’s Day or Halloween. In 2012, 41 Christians were arrested by the police on charges of conspiring to celebrate Christmas. - China
China has become an open country when it comes to market capitalism. But this country is also very strict about traditions.
In some regions of the Bamboo Curtain country, there are zones where Christmas celebrations are considered illegal. One of them is the city of Wenzhou (in western China). Wenzhou prohibits all schools and other public facilities from holding activities related to Christmas. India Today added that China has banned this since 1949.
Nevertheless, the people still go out and celebrate it in their own way. Even though they don’t sing songs in public due to strict regulations. - North Korea
North Korea is one of the most unfriendly places in the world when it comes to celebrating Christmas. There, Christmas is just like any other day.
Christmas has never been openly celebrated in North Korea since the Kim Dynasty took drastic measures against religious freedom in 1948. Anyone proven to celebrate it will face the risk of imprisonment or even harsher punishment.
In 2013, North Korea declared war on South Korea. One of the reasons is that South Korea erected a large Christmas tree at the border between the two countries. Instead of celebrating Christmas, Christmas Eve in North Korea is celebrated as the birthday of the Holy Mother of the Revolution, Mother Kim Jong Il. Somalia
The country of Somalia has also banned Christmas since 2013. Somalia proclaims itself as a Muslim country, so there is no need to celebrate Christmas.
In 2015, they also banned New Year’s Eve celebrations. So at this time, the police are asked to remain on guard.
Christmas is Not a National Holiday in These 36 Countries
As mentioned earlier, Christmas is a national holiday celebration in Indonesia. Besides the 5 countries that explicitly prohibit Christmas, there are a total of 36 countries that do not make Christmas a national holiday.
All government services remain open, and people continue to go to work or school. Various countries included in this list are quoted from World Population Review, namely:
- Afghanistan
- Algeria
- Azerbaijan
- Bahrain
- Bhutan
- Brunei Darussalam
- Cambodia
- China
- Comoros
- Iran
- Israel
- Japan
- Kuwait
- Laos
- Libya
- Maldives
- Mauritania
- Morocco
- North Korea
- Oman
- Pakistan
- Qatar
- Saudi Arabia
- Somalia
- Taiwan
- Tajikistan
- Thailand
- Tunisia
- Turkey
- Turkmenistan
- United Arab Emirates
- Uzbekistan
- Vietnam
- Western Sahara
- Yemen
So, those are the 5 countries that prohibit Christmas celebrations, as well as the 36 countries that do not make Christmas a national holiday in their country.
