International Religious Freedom
Report 2006
Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
Uruguay
The constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the
Government generally respected this right in practice.
There was no change in the status of respect
for religious freedom during the period covered by this
report, and government policy continued to contribute to
the generally free practice of religion.
The generally amicable relationship among religious groups
in society contributed to religious freedom.
The U.S. government discusses religious freedom issues with
the Government as part of its overall policy to promote
human rights.
Section I. Religious Demography
The country has an area of 68,039 square miles and a population
estimated at 3.2 million. While the Government keeps no
statistics concerning religious affiliation, a 2004 survey
published in the daily newspaper El Pais reported that 54
percent of those interviewed designated themselves as Roman
Catholics, 6 percent as evangelical Protestants, 5 percent
as Protestants, 9 percent as believers without a religious
affiliation, and 26 percent as nonbelievers. The mainline
Protestant minority was composed primarily of Anglicans,
Methodists, Lutherans, and Baptists. Other denominations
and branches included evangelicals, Pentecostals, Mennonites,
Eastern Orthodox, and Jehovah's Witnesses. In 2006 a religious-based
nongovernmental organization (NGO) estimated that 400,000
persons considered themselves to be evangelical Protestants.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons)
claimed 100,000 members. There were approximately 25,000
Jews. According to local Jewish leaders, since 2002 the
number of Jews has declined due to emigration. An April
2006 newspaper report indicated that approximately 850 families
practiced Buddhism. The Unification Church was active in
the country and had major property holdings, including a
daily newspaper. There was a Muslim population that lived
primarily near the border with Brazil. An Islamic cultural
representative estimated approximately 300 to 400 Muslims
in the country but noted that the majority were minimally
observant. The estimated 4,000 Baha'is were concentrated
primarily in Montevideo.
Many Christian groups performed foreign missionary work.
Groups reported no difficulties obtaining visas for religious
work. Statistics indicated that there were an estimated
780 Mormon missionaries from neighboring countries and the
United States in the country.
Section II. Status of Religious
Freedom
Legal/Policy Framework
The constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the
Government generally respected this right in practice. The
Government at all levels sought to protect this right in
full and did not tolerate its abuse, either by governmental
or private actors. The constitution and law prohibit discrimination
based on religion. The penal code prohibits mistreatment
of ethnic, religious, and other minority groups.
There is strict separation of church and state. All religious
groups are entitled to tax exemptions on their houses of
worship, and there were no reports of difficulties in receiving
these exemptions. To receive the tax exemptions, a religious
group must register as a nonprofit entity and draft organizing
statutes. It then applies to the Ministry of Education and
Culture, which examines the legal entity and grants religious
status. The group must reapply every five years. Once the
ministry grants religious status, the church can request
an exemption each year from the taxing body, which is usually
the municipal government.
The religious holy days of Three Kings Day, Carnival (the
Monday and Tuesday prior to Ash Wednesday), Holy Thursday,
Good Friday, All Souls' Day, and Christmas are celebrated
as official national holidays but with secular names.
Muslims may obtain an optional identity card that identifies
their religious affiliation to employers and allows them
to leave work early on Friday. A Muslim representative stated
that employers generally respected this practice.
Religious instruction in public schools is prohibited. Public
schools allow students who belong to minority religious
groups to miss school for religious holidays without penalty.
There are private religious schools, which are mainly Catholic
and Jewish.
Foreign missionaries faced no special requirements or restrictions.
Restrictions on Religious Freedom
Government policy and practice contributed to the generally
free practice of religion.
There were no reports of religious prisoners or detainees
in the country.
Forced Religious Conversion
There were no reports of forced religious conversion, including
of minor U.S. citizens who had been abducted or illegally
removed from the United States, or of the refusal to allow
such citizens to be returned to the United States.
Section III. Societal Abuses and
Discrimination
The generally amicable relationship among religious groups
in society contributed to religious freedom. The Christian-Jewish
Council met regularly to promote interfaith understanding.
In addition, the mainstream Protestant denominations met
regularly among themselves and with the Catholic Church.
There were several NGOs that promoted interfaith understanding.
Section IV. U.S. Government Policy
The U.S. government discusses religious freedom issues with
the Government as part of its overall policy to promote
human rights. Embassy staff met with human rights and religious
NGOs, including B'nai B'rith and the Israeli Central Committee
of Uruguay. They also met with the leaders of religious
communities, including representatives of the Catholic Church,
the Jewish community, the Islamic community, the Mormon
Church, and Protestant groups.
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