Aug 5, 2022
USCIRF Releases New Report Highlighting Religious Freedom in Pakistan
Washington, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today released the following new report:
Pakistan Country Update – This report examines religious freedom conditions and the growing intolerance for religious diversity fueled by extremism and existing problematic Pakistani legislation, citing recent attacks against religious minorities in the country. Religious minorities or anyone who interprets or practices their faith differently from the majority are subject to frequent attacks and threats, including accusations of blasphemy, targeted killings, lynchings, mob violence, forced conversions, and the desecration of their houses of worship and cemeteries. Members of the Shi’a Muslim, Ahmadiyya Muslim, Christian, Hindu, and Sikh communities face increasingly aggressive societal discrimination often propagated by extremist rhetoric and enabled by Pakistani authorities who are unable or unwilling to protect these minorities.
In its 2022 Annual Report, USCIRF recommended that the U.S. State Department designate Pakistan as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) for its systematic, ongoing, and egregious religious freedom violations.
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The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is an independent, bipartisan federal government entity established by the U.S. Congress to monitor, analyze, and report on religious freedom abroad. USCIRF makes foreign policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State, and Congress intended to deter religious persecution and promote freedom of religion and belief. To interview a Commissioner, please contact USCIRF at [email protected].
Additional Name(s): فرید علوی
Gender: Male
Perpetrator: Iran
Religion or Belief: Bahá`í
Reports of Torture: No
Reports of Medical Neglect: No
Date of Detainment: August/2/2022
Current Status: Not Released
Religious Leader: No
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Detainment
Reason for Persecution: Religious Activity Religious Belief
Nature of Charges: Unknown
Farid Alavi
Extra Bio Info:
Farid Alavi is detained for his religious belief and activity.
On August 2, 2022, authorities arrested Alavi during a state-run operation to demolish Baha'i homes and confiscate Baha'i property in Roshan-Kouh village, Mazandaran province.
Publicly Available Information:
- "Baha’is Houses Demolished, One Arrested" Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA)
- "بازداشت یک شهروند بهائی در جریان مصادره زمین و تخریب منازل در روشنکوه" Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA)
Aug 4, 2022
In February 2022, Russia launched a full-scale and unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine, falsely claiming that it aimed to “demilitarize” and “denazify” the country. While many people are broadly aware of the terrible toll that Russia’s war has wrought on civilians, there is less awareness about the religious ramifications of the Russian invasion.
Ruslan Khalikov and Liliia Pidgorna, two scholars with the Workshop for the Academic Study of Religion in Ukraine, join us today to discuss the impact Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has had on religious freedom.
Read USCIRF’s 2022 Annual Report Chapter on Russia
Read USCIRF’s Backgrounder: Russia