August 5, 2011| by USCIRF

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) urges an end to all violence and restrictions on peaceful religious activity in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR) of China.    

Recent violence in the cities of Hotan and Kashgar has led reportedly to the death of dozens of Uighur Muslim and Han Chinese, the most since June 2009 ethnic clashes in the XUAR. Beijing’s official media described the violence as acts of terrorists fueled by “religious extremism,” points disputed by Uighur groups outside of China. Chinese officials in the XUAR announced yesterday new “high pressure” security measures and stated their intent to show “no mercy” toward anyone pursuing separatism or violence.     

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August 4, 2011

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom today urged the U.S. and Iraqi governments to make security for Christians and other vulnerable religious minorities an important issue in their discussions on the presence of U.S. military trainers in Iraq after the end of this year.   

“Tuesday’s bombing of a Syriac Christian church in Kirkuk and the attempted bombing of two other churches that day demonstrate that terrorists continue to target Iraqi civilians based on their religion or belief,” said Leonard Leo, USCIRF Chair.  “The ability to protect vulnerable religious minority sites and areas from such violence must be a priority for the Iraqi security forces, and for any U.S. training of those forces, going forward.  Without such protection, Iraq’s smallest, most vulnerable religious minorities, such as Christians, Mandaeans, and Yazidis, will continue to flee their homeland.”         
 

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July 28, 2011

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today called the verdict in a February mob attack in Indonesia targeting Ahmadiyah Muslims “troubling and disappointing.”  

 An Indonesian court sentenced the leader of the attack in Banten Province to 5 1/2 months in prison. Eleven others were convicted of lesser charges. Indonesian human rights groups called the sentence far too lenient and a blow to tolerance and religious freedom in Indonesia.

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July 27, 2011

WASHINGTON, DC - The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) condemns Vietnam’s government for taking Father Nguyen Van Ly, a Roman Catholic priest and religious freedom advocate, from his home in Hue Monday, despite his ill health which requires treatment for several strokes and an apparent brain tumor.  Since March 2010, Father Ly has been on medical parole from a sentence he received in May 2007.        

WHERE: 2103 Rayburn House Office Building

WHEN: Friday, July 29, 2011 --- 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm


The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) invites you to a staff briefing, “The Interplay between Religious Freedom, Extremism, and Security: Implications for U.S. Policy” on Friday, July 29 from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm in Rayburn 2103.  

A panel of experts will discuss the interplay between religious freedom, extremism, and security with a particular focus on U.S. policy toward Egypt, Nigeria, and Pakistan.  Three of the panelists, Daniel Philpott, Tim Shah, and Monica Duffy Toft, will present findings and offer policy recommendations from their recently published book, God’s Century: Resurgent Religion and Global Politics. Current USCIRF Fellow Ziya Meral will speak about patterns of ethno-religious violence with case studies from countries he recently visited, Egypt and Nigeria. Questions and answers will follow.

Please contact Kristina Olney (at 202-786-0613 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) with any questions.  

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July 21, 2011

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today urged U.S. Under Secretary Maria Otero to make religious freedom a priority in her discussions with government officials and civil society in Indonesia this week.

“Extremist groups, intolerance and impunity are threatening Indonesian democracy and religious freedom,” said Leonard Leo, USCIRF Chair. “How Indonesia responds to these threats will determine its future stability. We urge Under Secretary Otero to make the protection of religious freedom and pluralism a critical focus of her discussions, as it is vital to U.S. security, economic, and political interests in Indonesia.”

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July 8, 2011

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) congratulates the Republic of South Sudan on its independence and calls on the United States and the international community to strongly support the South in its democratization and development efforts.

“July 9, 2011 is a tremendously exciting day for the people of South Sudan and the world, marking the end of the Southern Sudanese’s decades-long struggle and sacrifice for religious freedom and human rights,” said Leonard Leo, USCIRF chair.

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June 30, 2011

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Commission on Religious Freedom (USCIRF) marks the tragic July anniversaries of two major assassinations in Pakistan and urges Pakistan’s government to bring the perpetrators to justice.

July 4th is the six-month anniversary of the assassination of Salman Taseer, the Governor of Punjab province.  July 2nd marks four months since the Pakistani Taliban assassinated Shahbaz Bhatti, the Federal Minister for Minorities Affairs.

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June 27, 2011

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today expressed concern that the lower house of the Tajik parliament has adopted further overly broad restrictive measures on religion.  State-imposed restrictions on religious activity have been steadily increasing in recent years, as documented in the May USCIRF Annual Report.

On June 15, Tajikistan's Parental Responsibility Law was approved by the lower house of parliament. Under the draft law, only children enrolled in state-approved institutes of religious education can participate in religious activity. The parliament refused to consider a proposal from the Islamic Renaissance Party that children be allowed to attend religious education after school.

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June 10, 2011

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On the two-year anniversary of the disputed June 9, 2009 elections in Iran, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) welcomes the addition of three Iranian government entities and one Iranian government official to a sanctions list for serious human rights abuses in Iran.

The original executive order President Barack Obama signed on September 29, 2010 named eight Iranian officials. Yesterday's designation brings the total to eleven, eight of whom USCIRF identified as severe religious freedom abusers in May 2010.

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June 8, 2011

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Azizah Y. al-Hibri, Professor of  Law at the University of Richmond and founder and president, KARAMAH: Muslim Women Lawyers for Human Rights, was appointed by President Barack Obama yesterday (June 7), to serve as a commissioner on the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF).

“My fellow Commissioners and I are most pleased to welcome Professor al-Hibri to the Commission. She comes with a distinguished record of service as a human rights advocate devoted to the protection of freedom of religion for people of all faiths, and we look forward to working with her,” said Leonard Leo, USCIRF chair.