Freedom of religion in Algeria
Freedom of religion in Algeria is regulated by the Algerian Constitution, which declares Islam to be the state religion (Article 2) but also declares that "freedom of creed and opinion is inviolable" (Article 36); it prohibits discrimination, Article 29 states "All citizens are equal before the law. No discrimination shall prevail because
of birth, race, sex, opinion or any other personal or social condition or circumstance".
In practice, the government generally respects this, with some limited exceptions. The government follows a de facto policy of tolerance by allowing, in limited instances, the conduct of religious services by non-Muslim faiths in the capital which are open to the public. The small Christian and tiny Jewish populations generally practice their faiths without government interference. The law does not recognize marriages between Muslim women and non-Muslim men; it does however recognise marriages between Muslim men and non-Muslim women. By law, children follow the religion of their fathers, even if they are born abroad and are citizens of their (non-Muslim) country of birth.
Human rights in Algeria
A child can inherit Algerian nationality from either parent. The child of a Muslim father is automatically Muslim. Education through high school is free and, up to age 16, compulsory. Although illegal, child abuse is a problem, attributed to a "culture of violence". Child sexual abuse is technically punishable by 10–20 years in prison but offenders rarely receive such long sentences. Algeria is not a signatory of the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction.