According to the 2018 census, Buddhism is the largest religion in Thailand, practiced by over 94% of the population; Islam makes up 5% of the population. The Thai government officially recognizes five religions: Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism, and Christianity.
Due to violence in the south of the country, in 2023, the country was scored 3 out of 4 for religious freedom.Freedom House website, retrieved 2023-08-08
This article is informed by the US State Dept 2007 report. Later reports are available.US State Dept 2022 report
In Thailand, the freedom of religion is protected through statutory means. The law provides for freedom of religion, and the government generally has respected this right in practice; however, it does not register new religious groups that have not been accepted into one of the existing religious governing bodies on doctrinal or other grounds. In practice, unregistered religious organizations have operated freely, and the government's practice of not recognizing any new religious groups has not restricted the activities of unregistered religious groups. The government officially limits the number of foreign missionaries that may work in the country, although unregistered missionaries have been present in large numbers and have been allowed to live and work freely. There have been no reports of societal abuses or discrimination based on religious belief or practice; however, in the far southern border provinces, continued separatist violence has resulted in increasingly tense relations between the Buddhist and Muslim communities.
Religious demography
The country has an area of and population of 70 million. According to the government's National Statistics Office, approximately 94.8 percent of the population is Buddhist and 4.5 percent is Muslim; however, non-governmental organizations, academics, and religious groups estimated that approximately 85 to 90 percent of the population is Theravada Buddhist and up to 10 percent of the population is Muslim. Christians, mainly Catholics, represent 0.7% of the population. There are small animist, Confucian, Hindu, Jewish, Sikh, and Taoist populations. According to the Ministry of Culture's Religious Affairs Department (RAD), the numbers of atheists or persons who do not profess a religious faith make up less than one percent of the population.
The dominant religion is Theravada Buddhism. The Buddhist clergy, or Sangha, consists of two main schools, which are governed by the same ecclesiastical hierarchy. Monks belonging to the older Mahanikaya school far outnumber those of the Dhammayuttika school, an order that grew out of a 19th-century reform movement led by King Mongkut (Rama IV).
Islam is the dominant religion in four of the five southernmost provinces, which border Malaysia. The majority of Muslims are ethnic Malay, but the Muslim population encompass groups of diverse ethnic and national origin, including descendants of immigrants from South Asia, China, Cambodia, and Indonesia. The RAD reported that there are 3,567 registered mosques in 64 provinces, of which 2,289 are located in the 5 southernmost provinces. According to the RAD, 99 percent of these mosques are associated with the Sunni branch of Islam. Shi'a mosques make up the remaining 1 percent.
According to RAD statistics, there are an estimated 351,987 Christians in the country, constituting 0.5 percent of the population. There are several Protestant denominations, and most belong to one of four umbrella organizations. The oldest of these groupings, the Church of Christ in Thailand, was formed in the mid-1930s. The largest is the Evangelical Fellowship of Thailand. Baptists and Seventh-day Adventists are recognized by authorities as separate Protestant denominations and are organized under similar umbrella groups.
According to the most recent government survey in 2002, there are 9 recognized tribal groups (chao khao), comprising approximately 920,000 persons. Syncretistic practices drawn from Buddhism, Christianity, Taoism, and spirit worship are common among the tribal groups. The Sikh Council of Thailand estimates the Sikh community to have a population of approximately 70,000 persons, most of whom reside in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Nakhon Ratchasima, Pattaya, Ko Samui, and Phuket. There are 18 Sikh temples in the country. According to RAD statistics and local Hindu organizations, there are an estimated 95,000 Hindus in the country.
The ethnic Chinese minority (Sino-Thai) has retained some popular religious traditions from China, including adherence to popular Taoist beliefs. Members of the Mien hill tribe follow a form of Taoism.
Mahayana Buddhism is practiced primarily by small groups of Chinese and Vietnamese immigrants. There are more than 675 Chinese and Vietnamese Mahayana Buddhist shrines and temples throughout the country.
Religious groups proselytize freely. Monks working as Buddhist missionaries (Dhammaduta) have been active since the end of World War II, particularly in border areas among the country's tribal populations. According to the National Buddhism Bureau, as of December 2006 there are 6,458 Dhammaduta working in the country. In addition, the government sponsored the international travel of another 1,414 Buddhist monks sent by their temples to disseminate religious information. Muslim organizations reported having small numbers of citizens working as missionaries in the country and abroad. Christian organizations reported much larger numbers of missionaries, both foreign and Thai, operating in the country.
Status of religious freedom
Legal and policy framework
The law provides for freedom of religion, and the government generally respected this right in practice; however, it restricted the activities of some groups. On September 19, 2006, in a bloodless coup d'état, the military overthrew the government and repealed the constitution. On October 1, 2006, the military coup leaders promulgated an interim constitution, established an interim government, and convened a Constitutional Drafting Assembly to draft a new constitution. Legal experts maintained that the interim constitution incorporates by reference many of the civil rights and protections contained in the 1997 constitution. The repealed 1997 constitution required that the monarch be a Buddhist. This provision was retained in the April 2007 first draft of the country's next constitution. The state religion in effect is Theravada Buddhism; however, it is not officially designated as such. During the reporting period, some Buddhist organizations called for the designation of Buddhism as the state religion in the new draft constitution, but as of June 2007 such a provision had not been included.
The repealed 1997 constitution stated that discrimination against a person on the grounds of "a difference in religious belief" shall not be permitted. The September 2006 interim constitution appears to retain by reference this prohibition against discrimination, and it has been included explicitly in the April 2007 draft constitution. There was no significant pattern of religious discrimination during the period covered by this report.
The repealed 1997 constitution and the interim constitution by reference provided for a large measure of freedom of speech; however, laws prohibiting speech likely to insult Buddhism remain in place. The 1962 Sangha Act specifically prohibits the defamation or insult of Buddhism and the Buddhist clergy. Violators of the law could face up to 1 year imprisonment or fines of up to $5,800 (188,000 baht). The Penal Code prohibits the insult or disturbance of religious places or services of all officially recognized religions.
The government plays an active role in religious affairs. The RAD, which is subordinate to the Ministry of Culture, registers religious organizations. Under the provisions of the Religious Organizations Act, the RAD recognizes a new religion if a national census shows that it has at least 5,000 adherents, has a uniquely recognizable theology, and is not politically active. A religious organization must be accepted into an officially recognized ecclesiastical group before the RAD will grant registration. During the reporting period, there were five recognized religious groups: Buddhists, Muslims, Brahmin-Hindus, Sikhs, and Catholics. Four Protestant groups are recognized as subgroups of the Catholics. Government registration confers some benefits, including access to state subsidies, tax-exempt status, and preferential allocation of resident visas for organization officials. However, since 1984 the government has not recognized any new religious groups. In practice, unregistered religious organizations operated freely, and the government's practice of not recognizing any new religious groups did not restrict the activities of unregistered religious groups.
The repealed 1997 constitution required the government "to patronize and protect Buddhism and other religions." The September 2006 interim constitution appears to retain by reference this protection for religion, and it has been included explicitly in the April 2007 draft constitution. The state subsidizes activities of the three largest religious communities (Buddhist, Islamic, and Christian). The government allocated approximately $92.6 million (3 billion baht) during fiscal year 2007 to support the National Buddhism Bureau, which was established in 2002 as an independent state agency. The office oversees the Buddhist clergy and approved the curricula of Buddhist teachings for all Buddhist temples of educational institutions. In addition, the bureau promotes the Buddhist faith by sponsoring educational and public relations materials on the faith and practice in daily life.
For fiscal year 2006 the government, through the RAD, budgeted $950,000 (30.8 million baht) for Islamic organizations and $88,000 (2.85 million baht) for Christian, Brahman-Hindu, and Sikh organizations.
The budgets for Buddhist and Muslim organizations included funds to support Buddhist and Muslim institutes of higher education, fund religious education programs in public and private schools, provide daily allowances for monks and Muslim clerics who hold administrative and senior ecclesiastical posts, and subsidize travel and health care for monks and Muslim clerics. Also included is an annual budget for the renovation and repair of Buddhist temples and Muslim mosques, the maintenance of historic Buddhist sites, and the daily upkeep of the central mosque in Pattani, Thailand. Other registered religious groups can request government support for renovation and repair work but do not receive a regular budget to maintain religious buildings, nor do they receive government assistance to support their clergy. In 2007 the government budgeted approximately $580,000 (18.8 million baht) for the restoration of religious buildings of religious groups, of which $362,000 (11.7 million baht) was allotted for the Muslim community, $145,000 (4.7 million baht) for the Christian, Brahmin-Hindu, and Sikh communities, and $73,000 (2.4 million baht) for special projects of all communities. Private donations to registered religious organizations are tax deductible.