Dec 10
Dec 10th 9:30pm
U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom Briefing
Silencing Religious Freedom in Africa: The Impact of Speech Restrictions
Tuesday, December 10, 2019
9:30 – 10:30 AM
421 Cannon House Office building
Please join the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) for a briefing on its latest report, Apostasy, Blasphemy, and Hate Speech Laws in Africa: Implications for Freedom of Religion or Belief, and a discussion with expert panelists about restrictions on civic space in Africa and ways U.S. policy can help address these concerns.
Across the continent, more than half the countries have laws limiting speech that do, or could, also restrict freedom of religion or belief. There are numerous ways to protect religious freedom without limiting free expression, but often governments resort to harsh measures that marginalize and repress. From the arbitrary or misapplication of hate speech laws in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan, to the death sentence for blasphemy imposed on a blogger in Mauritania, to the blanket criminalization of proselytizing by non-Muslims in Algeria, speech restrictions often violate international standards and are subject to government abuse. Vague laws with severe criminal penalties also often target minority religious communities.
Panelists will discuss tools and strategies for governments and civil society to counter hate speech, discrimination, and violence based on religious identity in Africa, and will offer recommendations for U.S. government action.
Panelists:
Panelist Bio's
- Kirsten Lavery, International Legal Specialist, USCIRF
Written Statement - Ferdaouis Bagga, Policy Analyst, USCIRF
Written Statement - Mike Jobbins, Associate Vice President, Global Affairs and Partnerships, Search for Common Ground
Written Statement - Dunia Tegegn, Almami Cyllah Africa Fellow, Amnesty International USA
Moderator:
- Tony Perkins, Chair, USCIRF
Written Remarks
This briefing is open to Members of Congress, congressional staff, the public, and the media. Members of the media can RSVP at [email protected]. For any questions please contact Jamie Staley at [email protected] or 202-786-0606.
732 NORTH CAPITOL STREET, NW SUITE A714 | WASHINGTON, DC 20401 | (202) 523-3240
Tony Perkins, Chair · Gayle Manchin, Vice Chair · Nadine Maenza, Vice Chair
Gary Bauer · Anurima Bhargava · Tenzin Dorjee
Andy Khawaja · Johnnie Moore
Erin D. Singshinsuk, Executive Director
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 threats to religious freedom abroad.
Oct 23
Oct 23rd 3:00pm
U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom Hearing
Protecting Houses of Worship and Holy Sites
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
3:00 – 4:30 PM
106 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Please join the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) for a hearing about the global targeting of houses of worship and holy sites around the world and how to protect them.
Houses of worship and other religious sites should be sanctuaries where worshippers feel safe to practice their faith. Tragically, as the 2019 incidents in New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Burkina Faso attest, attacks on houses of worship are increasingly occurring around the globe. These attacks aim to destroy the place of worship precisely for its religious significance, cause harm to a unique religious group, and instill fear in those that worship there.
Alongside these horrific attacks, places of worship are often harmed more subtly through the misuse of registration procedures to prevent their construction or renovation, the malicious surveillance of holy sites to intimidate worshippers, or acts of vandalism that aim to send a threatening message and harm property. Different types of buildings and properties that are significant to religious communities, such as cemeteries, monasteries, or community centers, also have been targeted. While violent attacks on such places are typically committed by non-state actors, less overt forms of harms and restrictions are often imposed by state authorities as well. This includes the failure of states to ensure the preservation of sacred places, places of worship, and cultural property that constitutes the cultural or spiritual heritage of people.
How can the international community better work together to stem the global violent targeting of houses of worship? Witnesses will highlight U.S. programs, intergovernmental initiatives, interfaith efforts, and other policy recommendations that aim to ensure that holy places remain safe havens and not sites of bloodshed.
Opening Remarks
- Tony Perkins, Chair, USCIRF
Written Remarks
- Gayle Manchin, Vice Chair, USCIRF
Written Remarks
- Nadine Maenza, Vice Chair, USCIRF
Written Remarks
Panel I
- Honorable Sam Brownback, Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom, U.S. Department of State
Written Testimony
Panel II
- H.E. Miguel Moratinos, High Representative, U.N. Alliance of Civilizations
Written Testimony
Panel III
- Hassan Abbas, Distinguished Professor of International Relations at Near East South Asia Strategic Studies Center, National Defense University
Written Testimony
- Sharon Rosen, Global Director for Religious Engagement, Search for Common Ground
Written Testimony
This hearing is open to Members of Congress, congressional staff, the public, and the media. Members of the media can RSVP at [email protected]. The hearing will be livestreamed via the Commission website. For any questions please contact Jamie Staley at [email protected] or 202-786-0606.
Sep 26
Sep 26th 2:30pm
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Sep 26th 4:00pm
U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom Hearing
Religious Minorities’ Fight to Remain in Iraq
Thursday, September 26, 2019
2:30 – 4:00 PM
385 Russell Senate Office Building
Please join the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) for a hearing about the religious freedom situation in Iraq and the conditions that would enable religious minorities to return to and flourish in their communities.
Iraq has traditionally been home to one of the most religiously and ethnically diverse populations in the Middle East. While a majority Shi’a Muslim and minority Sunni Muslim population together account for 95-98% of the country, Iraq also once boasted a large Chaldean and Assyrian Christian population of around 1.5 million and around half a million Yazidis, in addition to an array of smaller ethno-religious communities such as Shabaks, Kaka’is, Sabean-Mandaeans, and others. However, systematic persecution and the ongoing violent conflict have caused those traditional demographics to undergo seismic shifts, displacing record numbers of people who are seeking to return to their historic homelands.
More than five years after ISIS’ genocidal rampage across northwest Iraq, circumstances for traumatized minorities remain dire. Tens of thousands of Yazidis linger in IDP camps, their villages in Sinjar still in ruin, while Iraqi Christians—of whom only an estimated 200,000 remain in the country—trickle back to towns in the Nineveh Plain while questioning whether Iraq still holds a place for them. The United States and other international partners have pledged tens of millions of dollars to help rehabilitate areas that ISIS left in ruin, and those funds have begun to make a difference—but there still remains substantial, long-term work to help those vulnerable populations return, rebuild, and remain.
Witnesses will highlight U.S. policies and programs in Iraq that support religious minorities, ongoing religious freedom-related challenges in the country such as anti-blasphemy laws and discrimination, and the factors on the ground affecting religious communities’ ability to return to their homes.
Opening Remarks
- Tony Perkins, Chair, USCIRF
Written Remarks
- Gayle Manchin, Vice Chair, USCIRF
Written Remarks
- Nadine Maenza, Vice Chair, USCIRF
Written Remarks
Panel I
- Hallam Ferguson, Senior Deputy Assistant Administrator, Middle East Bureau, United States Agency for International Development
Written Testimony
Panel II
- Pari Ibrahim, Executive Director, Free Yezidi Foundation
Written Testimony
- Reine Hanna, Director, Assyrian Policy Institute
Written Testimony
- Aaron Ashoff, Deputy Director for International Projects, Samaritan’s Purse
Written Testimony
- Scott Portman, Director, Middle East and North Africa, Heartland Alliance International
Submitted for the Record
This hearing is open to Members of Congress, congressional staff, the public, and the media. Members of the media can RSVP at [email protected]. The hearing will be livestreamed via the Commission website. For any questions please contact Jamie Staley at [email protected] or 202-786-0606.
732 NORTH CAPITOL STREET, NW SUITE A714 | WASHINGTON, DC 20401 | (202) 523-3240
Tony Perkins, Chair · Gayle Manchin, Vice Chair · Nadine Maenza, Vice Chair
Kristina Arriaga · Gary Bauer · Anurima Bhargava
Tenzin Dorjee · Andy Khawaja · Johnnie Moore
Erin D. Singshinsuk, Executive Director
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 threats to religious freedom abroad.