Sudan sanctions lifted
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is disappointed by the decision to permanently lift U.S. trade and economic sanctions on Sudan.
What's New at USCIRF
Open Letter from USCIRF Commissioner Tenzin Dorjee to the Panchen Lama on His 29th Birthday (April 25, 2018)
Washington, D.C. –
Your Holiness Gedhun Choekyi Nyima:
Tashi Delek. With mixed feelings, I write you again, this year to wish you a happy and healthy 29th birthday. Unfortunately, you may never read this, but please know that all Commissioners on the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), Tibetans, and friends around the world are thinking of you on this special day.
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Please join the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) for the release of our 2018 Annual Report.
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The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) was disappointed today by a Turkish court decision to continue proceedings in the case of Pastor Andrew Brunson, an American citizen and leader of a small Protestant Christian church who is facing up to 35 years imprisonment on false terrorism and espionage related charges. USCIRF has condemned the charges against Pastor Brunson and called for his immediate release.
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In November 2017, USCIRF Commissioners and staff traveled to Burma (also known as Myanmar) to meet with government officials, civil society, and religious representatives in Rangoon, Mandalay, and Naypyidaw. In January 2018, USCIRF staff traveled to Dhaka and Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, to gather information on the situation of Rohingya Muslim refugees.
This document provides an overview of what USCIRF learned during these visits about the religious freedom challenges Burma faces and violations specific to Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine State.
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In a new study of select textbooks currently in use in Saudi Arabia, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) uncovered content promoting violence and hatred toward religious minorities and others. While the Saudi government has been engaged in textbook reform for the last 15 years, the presence of these passages makes clear how little progress has been made and highlights an immediate need for the Saudi government to more seriously address this issue, as well as the exportation of these textbooks internationally, as a part of its ambitious reform process.
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Religious Prisoners of Conscience Project
USCIRF's Religious Prisoner of Conscience Project highlights individuals imprisoned for exercising their freedom of religion or belief, as well as the dedicated advocacy of USCIRF Commissioners working for their release. Please click the photos below for more information on the prisoners, and the Commissioners' efforts on their behalfs.
Featured Religious Prisoner:
Raif Badawi (Saudi Arabi
Click here for information on Raif Badawi and religious freedom conditions in Saudi Arabia.
Click here to watch the launch of the Religious Prisoners of Conscience Project.
USCIRF Religious Prisoners of Conscience
Click on the prisoner names to view more information on their cases.
Prisoner of Conscience List
Click here for USCIRF's Prisoner of Conscience List which is mandated by Public Law 114-281, the Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act.
Tweets from @USCIRF
USCIRF Focus: Blasphemy Laws
Respecting Rights? Measuring the World’s Blasphemy Laws catalogs the offending laws found in a wide range of countries. In some countries, blasphemy laws are enforced weakly, if at all, yet such laws, “in both theory and practice, harm individuals and societies.” The report details laws spanning the globe from countries such as Canada and Switzerland to Iran and Indonesia with penalties ranging from fines to death. Surprisingly, more than one-third of the world’s nations have blasphemy laws today.
Selected Blasphemy Cases seeks to put a human face on blasphemy laws. The individuals highlighted here are only a sample of those who have been negatively impacted by blasphemy laws. For some we have pictures, but for many we do not. Read their stories, the charges against them, and their sentences to better understand the devastating impact of these laws and the need for repeal.
Women and Religious Freedom: Synergies and Opportunities
While a common misperception persists that women’s rights to equality and freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) are clashing rights, the two are actually indivisible and interrelated, as shown in Women and Religious Freedom: Synergies and Opportunities. FoRB is neither a right of “religion” as such, nor an instrument for support of religiously phrased limitations on women’s rights to equality. Harmful practices affecting women and girls cannot be accepted as legitimate manifestations of FoRB because the assertion of one human rights claim cannot be used to extinguish other rights.
White House Permanently Lifts Sudan Sanctions
“USCIRF is disappointed that the White House chose to lift the Sudan sanctions,” said USCIRF’s Chairman Daniel Mark. “Sudan is an egregious violator of religious freedom and should again be designated a CPC."
USCIRF Delegation meets with Pastor Andrew Brunson
USCIRF's Vice Chairwomen, Sandra Jolley and Kristina Arriaga, met with Pastor Andrew Brunson in Turkey this week. Pastor Brunson has been detained for a year on fabricated charges. During his meeting he told commissioners, "Knowing that I am not forgotten is important to me." More here.
Vice Chairwoman Arriaga Testifies Before House Oversight
On Oct. 11, USCIRF Vice Chairwoman Kristina Arriaga testified to the National Security Subcommittee of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on the U.S. government role in protecting international religious freedom. Read her testimony here.
TURKEY: USCIRF Delegation Visits Imprisoned U.S. Citizen Pastor Andrew Brunson
USCIRF's Vice Chairwomen, Sandra Jolley and Kristina Arriaga, met with Pastor Andrew Brunson in Turkey this week. Pastor Brunson has been detained for a year on fabricated charges. During his meeting he told commissioners, "Knowing that I am not forgotten is important to me."
A Right for All: Freedom of Religion or Belief in ASEAN
A Right for All: Freedom of Religion or Belief in ASEAN examines the religious freedom-related challenges in the region that transcend country borders and emphasizes the strategic important of robust U.S. engagement.
A Right for All: Freedom of Religion or Belief in ASEAN
The report documents ASEAN’s and the Member States’ approaches to the freedom of religion or belief, underscores the religious freedom-related challenges in the region that transcend country borders, and emphasizes the strategic importance of robust U.S. engagement on these issues with ASEAN as a collective and the 10 individual Member States.
Burma's Rohingyas
"The deprivation of [Rohingya Muslims’] rights—by both government and societal actors—is one of the most profound human rights tragedies of the 21st Century." USCIRF Report December 2016
IRAN: Mahvash Sabet, Religious Prisoner of Conscience, Released
“Mahvash Sabet has been unjustly imprisoned under terrible conditions simply for daring to practice her religion and educate her fellow Baha’is. Mahvash’s courage in the face of persecution and her dedication to her faith are truly inspiring,” said USCIRF Vice Chairwoman Kristina Arriaga
Selected Blasphemy Cases
SELECTED BLASPHEMY CASES
Respecting Rights? Measuring the World’s Blasphemy Laws, a U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) report, documents the 71 countries – ranging from Canada to Pakistan – that have blasphemy laws (as of June 2016). The individuals highlighted here are only a sample of those who have been negatively impacted by blasphemy laws. For some we have pictures, but for many we do not. Read their stories, the charges against them, and their sentences to better understand the devastating impact of these laws and the need for repeal.
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About the Commission
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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