There is a huge hubbub on media these days as the Sultan of Brunei has banned Christmas in the country. Anyone found celebrating Christmas, sending holiday greetings, or even wearing Santa hats will be subjected to spend five years in prison.
But interestingly Brunei is not the only country which banned Christmas, there are many other nations also. Here is the list that will amaze you.
Albania
This country is completely atheist. Since Christmas is considered as a religious activity, an official ban on it came into effect in 1967. Christians could celebrate and be merry, but only behind closed doors. In 1991, when the communist party fell from power, the ban was lifted and all was good again.
Cuba
Fidel Castro played Grinch, spoilsport for Cubans for the longest time actually. During his time in power, any religious observations and celebrations were simply not allowed. He made sure Christmas wasn’t a holiday and asked the people to work on the sugar harvest instead. Thirty years later the ban was lifted on the 20th of December 1998, apparently after John Paul II urged Castro to rethink his decision.
North Korea
Not only Christmas, but all religious practices that are not approved by Supreme Leader claimed illegal. There are no holidays in North Korea, except for the ones that celebrate the birthdays of its supreme leaders of course.
Germany
Some cities including Solingen and Berlin banned it back in the day. It is apparently because Christmas is looked at as a religious activity, and since their political party, the Greens political party, was a secular one, they believed that such events should not be happening in public places. Things went back to being normal soon.
Britain
The time was mid-1600s when Britain was heavily influenced by a certain political leader going by the name of Oliver Cromwell. As a puritan, he ‘hated’ Christmas and banned it throughout the country. His view towards Christmas was a bit confused in fact. He was in favor of celebrating the birth of Jesus but was against the way it was celebrated.
United States of America
America was led by the Puritans during the mid-1600s. The General Court of Massachusetts Bay Colony passed an order which said that anyone caught celebrating Christmas would be fined.
Japan
Technically, Christmas isn’t banned in Japan. Christians comprise less than 1% of Japan’s population, hence they don’t really feel the need to celebrate it and their government doesn’t feel the need to declare it as a national holiday. So do not expect a day off for Christmas if you happen to be working in the country.
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