FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 24, 1999

Contact:
Lawrence J. Goodrich, Communications Director, (202) 523-3240

The Chairman of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, Rabbi David Saperstein, today hailed as progress a Russian Constitutional Court decision that religious groups already registered in 1997 do not have to re-register under a restrictive law passed that year.

That law, which has been criticized by religious groups, human-rights organizations, and Western governments, created a two-tiered system of religious registration. "Traditional" faiths in the first tier, including the Russian Orthodox Church, Judaism, Islam, and Buddhism, are recognized under the law and enjoy full rights. But so-called "nontraditional" groups could have their rights seriously limited unless they are registered with the government. The law provides that a faith group must prove it has been in Russia for 15 years to be registered and must register by Dec. 31, 1999.

If the law were enforced to the letter, critics say, it could result in registration being denied, not only to new faiths, but to groups that were banned under Soviet rule and forced to operate underground, such as the Jehovah's Witnesses.

The court held that local religious organizations registered before the law was passed retain their status and need not re-register. At the same time, it upheld the law's constitutionality.

"This decision bodes well for the rule of law in Russia as well as religious freedom," Chairman Saperstein said. At the same time, he pointed out, the law still discriminates against smaller religious groups, relegating them to an inferior status compared to the "traditional" religions. "The true test of religious freedom is what happens to minority faiths," Saperstein said. The Commission, which has designated Russia as a country of special focus along with Sudan and China, will continue to monitor developments there closely, he added.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom was created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 to monitor the status of freedom of thought, conscience, and religion or belief abroad, as defined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and related international instruments, and to give independent policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State and the Congress." 

Rabbi David Saperstein,Chair

• Dean Michael K. Young, Vice Chair Hon. Elliott Abrams, Laila Al-Marayati, M.D.Hon. John R. Bolton, Firuz Kazemzadeh, Archbishop Theodore E. McCarrick, Nina Shea, Justice Charles Z. Smith, Ambassador Robert Seiple, Ex-Officio, Steven T. McFarland, Executive Director

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 22, 1999

Contact:
Lawrence J. Goodrich, Communications Director, (202) 523-3240

Steven T. McFarland, Executive Director of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, at the November 22nd meeting of the Commission announced the appointment of senior Commission staff:

• Lawrence J. Goodrich, director of communications. - Mr. Goodrich spent 11 years at The Christian Science Monitor, most recently as Washington-based editorial writer and as the newspapers' congressional correspondent from 1996 to 1998. Among his other positions at the Monitor were features editor, Page 1 coordinator, and assistant national news editor. From 1977 to 1988 he served as a foreign service officer in Romania, Canada, the Soviet Union, and at the State Department.

• T. Jeremy Gunn, director of research. Mr. Gunn comes from the U.S. Institute of Peace, where he worked on international religious-freedom issues. From 1994 to 1998, he served at the JFK Assassination Records Review Board, moving from associate director to general counsel and finally executive director. Gunn was an attorney at Covington & Burling from 1988 to 1994, during which time he earned a doctoral degree in religion from Harvard University.

• Christy Hines, director of governmental relations. Ms. Hines was director of public affairs from 1995 to 1999 at the Strategic Advocacy Group. From 1994 to 1995 she worked in the congressional office of Rep. Bill Thomas of California

• Tracy Shycoff, director of administration. Ms. Shycoff was most recently director of administration of the Presidential Advisory Commission on Holocaust Assets in the United States. From 1994 to 1998, she was associate director for administration and finance and later deputy director of the JFK Assassination Records Review Board. She served as associate director for administration and finance of the National Commission on AIDS from 1991 to 1993.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom was created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 and acts independently of the executive branch. Its purpose is to advise the President, the Secretary of State, and Congress and to make policy recommendations on issues of international religious freedom. It consists of nine commissioners named by the President and congressional leaders. The U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom serves as an ex-officio member.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom was created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 to monitor the status of freedom of thought, conscience, and religion or belief abroad, as defined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and related international instruments, and to give independent policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State and the Congress." src="https://www.uscirf.org/images/layout/subbottomtext1.gif" />

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 01, 1999

Contact:
Lawrence J. Goodrich, Communications Director, (202) 523-3240

WASHINGTON, November 1, 1999 - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom is urging the Administration to ban the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) and any affiliates from U.S. stock exchanges because CNPC intends to use the money it raises from its upcoming public stock offering to help finance Sudan's new oil pipeline. The Treasury Department is currently reviewing whether the 1997 Executive Order regarding sanctions against Sudan can be applied to deny such access to U.S. capital markets.

"Revenue from the pipeline would insulate the Khartoum government from the impact of economic sanctions, and thus undermine American policy and the peace process," notes Rabbi David Saperstein, Commission chair. The Sudan government has waged civil war against the south, resulting in two million deaths and four million displaced Sudanese.

CNPC reportedly will provide 40% of the financing for the Sudan pipeline, which opened in September.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom was created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 to monitor the status of freedom of thought, conscience, and religion or belief abroad, as defined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and related international instruments, and to give independent policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State and the Congress." 

Rabbi David Saperstein,Chair

• Dean Michael K. Young, Vice Chair, Hon. Elliott Abrams, Laila Al-Marayati, M.D.Hon. John R. Bolton, Firuz Kazemzadeh, Archbishop Theodore E. McCarrick, Nina Shea, Justice Charles Z. Smith, Ambassador Robert Seiple, Ex-Officio, Steven T. McFarland, Executive Director