They are restricted in their practices today, forbidden, for example, from building new places of worship or repairing old ones . .
Some Muslims reformers or apologists have argued that certain Quranic verses support the idea of freedom of religion. They cite verses such as, "Let he who chooses to believe, believe, and he who chooses to disbelieve,desbelieve," and, "There is no compulsion in religion." This viewpoint has not been adopted, however, as mainstream Muslim doctrine. Generally, such verses were interpreted as rejecting the idea of forced conversion to Islam. However, adherents of other religious have historically been pressured to voluntarily convert to Islam in order to reap the social and financial benefits of becoming a Muslim.
Sharia maintains that apostasy-- the abandonment of Islam-- is punishable by death. Furthermore, the rights of non-Muslims or Muslims who convert to another religion are not protected by Sharia law as they are in Universal Declaration of Human Rights .
Freedom of Religion in Muslim Majority Countries .
Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights guarantees religious freedom, including the right to change one`s religion or belief. This article has been one of the most controversial with Many Muslims, Who say it cannot be followed without breaking Islamic law.
The Cairo Declaration does not address equality of religions or the right to the freedom of religion. Instead is states, "Islam is the religion of true unspoiled nature." In line with Sharia , the Declaration notes that no one should be forced to change his religion, but it does not spell out specific rights to practice religion freely or to change religions.
In many Muslims majority states there have been human rights violations in the treatment of minority religions. In Pakistan, for example, the constitution guarantees religious freedom, yet Pakistan law contradicts this right, at least for the Ahmaddiyya religious community.
