In many Muslim countries, religious conversion is taboo

"In the Middle East, Jordan is known as a tolerant country, but when a Muslim man converted to Christianity two years ago, a court convicted him of apostasy, took away his right to work and annulled his marriage.

Such prosecutions are rare — because they're hardly ever needed. The law heavily discourages — or outright forbids — conversion by Muslims in most nations in the region. But weighing against it even more heavily are the powerful influences of family and society.

The sensitivity of the issue is highlighted by the case of an Afghan man who faced the death penalty for converting from Islam to Christianity — creating an outcry in Western nations, which pressured Afghanistan for his release."

"There are exceptions. In strongly secular Turkey, a convert can walk into a Demographic Records office, sign a declaration saying they have converted from Islam to Christianity and leave an hour later with a new identity card reflecting the change. While Islam is the religion of 99 per cent of Turkey's 71 million people, it has no official religion.

"Turkey is a democratic country and, according to law, you can choose whatever you want," said Soner Tufan, himself a convert from Islam, who runs a Christian radio station in Ankara. But, he said, "if someone converts, they can suffer some problems from their friends, relatives and neighbours" — or face difficulties getting a job in the civil service."
TheStar.com - In many Muslim countries, religious conversion is taboo: "Turk"