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USCIRF Releases New Report about Pakistan

Washington, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today released the following new report:

Pakistan Policy Update - In its 2020 Annual Report, USCIRF recommended that the U.S. government enter into a binding agreement with Pakistan as authorized under the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA). Such an agreement with defined benchmarks could provide Pakistan a path toward no longer being designated by the State Department as a “country of particular concern”. This policy update discusses the usefulness of an IRFA binding agreement and highlights substantive issues that an agreement should address in order to protect religious freedom, especially for the country’s religious minorities.

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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 threats to 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] or Danielle Ashbahian at [email protected]

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USCIRF Applauds Sudan’s Repeal of Apostasy Law through Passage of New Fundamental Rights and Freedoms Act

Washington, DC – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) welcomes the decision of Sudan’s transitional government to repeal its apostasy law by adopting the Fundamental Rights and Freedoms Act.

USCIRF Vice Chair Tony Perkins said, “Sudan’s transitional government continues to live up to its commitment to justice, peace, and freedom. These new measures are important to protect the freedom of the Sudanese people to freely choose and practice their faith without punishment.”

The Act makes significant legislative changes that advances freedom of religion or belief for Sudanese citizens, including repealing the apostasy law, ending flogging, banning female genital mutilation (FGM), permitting non-Muslims to drink alcohol, and abolishing the guardianship law, which required women to get a permit from a male guardian for traveling abroad with their children. While the full text of the legislation has not yet been made public, reports indicate that the apostasy law was replaced by an article that prohibits hate speech, however the status of Sudan’s blasphemy law remains unclear.

“We applaud the significant, historic steps Sudan is taking to safeguard the rights of women and girls and the freedom of religion or belief, and urge wide, immediate, and effective implementation of these reforms,” said USCIRF Vice Chair Anurima Bhargava. “We also urge Sudan to continue with necessary legislative reform, including repealing the country’s blasphemy law and ensuring that laws regulating hate speech comply with international human rights standards and do not impede freedom of religion or belief.”

In February, USCIRF Vice Chairs Perkins and Bhargava traveled to Sudan to assess religious freedom conditions. Due to the significant progress made by the Sudanese transitional government in 2019 to address the worst religious freedom abuses of the former regime, USCIRF recommended in its 2020 Annual Report that the Department of State maintain Sudan on its Special Watch List (SWL). This was the first time since 2000 that USCIRF has not recommended Sudan for designation as a “country of particular concern” for systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom. In December 2019, USCIRF released a report entitled Apostasy, Blasphemy, and Hate Speech Laws in Africa, which explains how overbroad or vague hate speech laws can operate as blasphemy provisions and similarly restrict the freedom of religion or belief.

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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 threats to 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] or Danielle Ashbahian at [email protected].

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USCIRF Decries Decision to Change Status of the Hagia Sophia 

Washington, DC – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) decries the decision of Turkey’s Council of State (Danıştay), the country’s highest administrative court, to permit the conversion of the historic Hagia Sophia from its current status as a museum back into a mosque.

USCIRF Vice Chair Tony Perkins said, “USCIRF condemns the unequivocal politicization of the Hagia Sophia, an architectural wonder that has for so long stood as a cherished testament to a complex history and rich diversity. Both Christians and Muslims alike ascribe great cultural and spiritual importance to the Hagia Sophia, whose universal value to humankind was reaffirmed with its inclusion in the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage List in 1985.”

Built in the sixth century, the Hagia Sophia served as a Greek Orthodox cathedral for nearly 1,000 years before Ottoman Sultan Mehmet II converted it into a mosque following the conquest of Constantinople in 1453. It became a museum in 1935, following the founding of the Republic of Turkey.

“It is regrettable that the Turkish government has proceeded with these steps, and with such disregard for the feelings of its own religious minority communities,” USCIRF Commissioner Nury Turkel added. “This decision comes at a time of increased fear and insecurity due to recent attacks on churches and other threats against religious and ethnic minorities and will only add to their sense of marginalization under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government.”

In its 2020 Annual Report, USCIRF recommended that the State Department place Turkey on its Special Watch List for engaging in or tolerating severe 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 threats to 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] or Danielle Ashbahian at [email protected].