USCIRF Issues its 2016 Annual Report
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 2, 2016
What's New at USCIRF
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USCIRF 2016 Annual Report
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released its 2016 Annual Report on May 2, 2016. In the report, USCIRF recommends that the State Department add these eight countries to its list of “countries of particular concern,” defined under law as countries where particularly severe violations of religious freedom are tolerated or perpetrated: Central African Republic, Egypt, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, Syria, Tajikistan, and Vietnam.
USCIRF also recommends that the following nine countries be re-designated as “countries of particular concern,” or CPCs: Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
In addition, USCIRF also recommends ten countries as Tier 2 Countries, those countries whose governments engages in or tolerates at least one of the elements of the "systematic, ongoing, and egregious" standard, but do not fully meet the CPC standard: Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Cuba, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Laos, Malaysia, Russia, and Turkey. Other Countries Monitored include: Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Horn of Africa, Kyrgyzstan, Western Europe.
Barriers to Protection
USCIRF on August 2, 2016 released a new report, Barriers to Protection: The Treatment of Asylum Seekers in Expedited Removal, which highlights serious problems with the U.S. government's treatment of asylum seekers in Expedited Removal. View the report here. USCIRF presented findings from the report at an August 3, 2016 event with Human Rights First. Watch the event here.
Europe at a Crossroad
USCIRF held an event on April 11, 2016 at the National Press Club entitled "Europe at a Crossroad: Civil Society Efforts to Combat Religious Hatred and Bigotry in Europe." The event featured a keynote address by Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, a panel of European civil society leaders, and remarks by USCIRF Commissioners.
Teaching Intolerance in Pakistan
A new study of Pakistani public school textbooks found that these textbooks negatively portray religious minorities and teach bias, distrust, and inferiority. The study was sponsored by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom and was conducted by the Pakistan-based NGO Peace and Education Foundation (PEF). See below USCIRF's launch event of the report.
Testimony of USCIRF Chairman Robert P. George on "Confronting the Genocide of Religious Minorities: A Way Forward"
USCIRF Chairman Robert P. George testified on Tuesday, April 19, 2016 before the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission at a hearing entitled "Confronting the Genocide of Religious Minorities: A Way Forward."
From the testimony:
USCIRF Welcomes CPC Designations: Urges Additional Designations and Actions
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 20, 2016
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) welcomes Secretary of State John Kerry’s re-designation on April 15, 2016 of Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, as “countries of particular concern,” or CPCs, under the International Religious Freedom Act, and the designation for the first time of Tajikistan as a CPC.
BURMA: USCIRF Urges Government to End Religious Freedom Abuses
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 14, 2016
Pakistan: Public School Textbooks Continue to Teach Intolerance
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 11, 2016
New USCIRF Commissioner Appointed
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 21, 2016
WASHINGTON, DC – At the recommendation of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Ambassador Jackie Wolcott was appointed to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) on March 14. Ambassador Wolcott will serve a two-year term and succeeds Commissioner Mary Ann Glendon whose term expires on May 14.
USCIRF Welcomes Genocide Determination; Urges Focus as well on al-Assad Regime
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MArch 18, 2016
Crimea: Religious Freedom Abuses Must Stop
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 18, 2016
Syria: Five Years of Suffering Must End
For Immediate Release
March 14, 2016
India: USCIRF Not Issued Visas
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 3, 2016
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Indian government today failed to issue visas to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) in time for a long planned trip to India. The goal of the Commission’s trip was to discuss and assess religious freedom conditions in that nation.
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Who We Are
USCIRF is an independent, bipartisan U.S. federal government commission, the first of its kind in the world, that monitors the universal right to freedom of religion or belief abroad.
What We're About
Inherent in religious freedom is the right to think as we please, believe or not believe as our conscience leads, and live out our beliefs openly, peacefully, and without fear.
We are about freedom…
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