Apr 24, 2021
USCIRF Welcomes Administration’s Historic Decision to Recognize Armenian Genocide
Washington, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) welcomes President Joseph R. Biden’s historic decision to recognize the Armenian Genocide on the somber occasion of its 106th anniversary. Beginning in 1915, the Ottoman Empire embarked on a systematic campaign to deport and kill over one million Armenians over the course of the ensuing years. The Biden administration’s recognition of the Armenian Genocide as such marks a significant and long overdue step to acknowledge the reality of the nature of those atrocities.
“The White House commendably joins the U.S. Congress in recognizing as genocide the horrific killings of countless Armenians—as well as Greeks, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Syriacs, Arameans, Maronites, and other religious and ethnic minorities—in the final years of the Ottoman Empire,” said USCIRF Chair Gayle Manchin. “As we remember and commemorate the many lives lost, we also recognize the tireless efforts of survivors, their descendants, and so many others to finally and firmly place the United States on the right side of that terrible history.”
USCIRF Vice Chair Tony Perkins added, “While we hope that this brings some solace and consolation to Armenians around the world who have fought for this day, we also hope that it will portend greater reflection and a renewed commitment to speak up and stand against the perpetration of crimes against humanity everywhere.”
“As we honor the memories of those killed more than a century ago, we must not turn a blind eye to the acts of genocide and other atrocities still committed today,” said USCIRF Vice Chair Anurima Bhargava. “This includes refocusing efforts on a genocide determination for the atrocities committed against the Rohingya people and working to hold the Chinese government accountable for the genocide and crimes against humanity that it continues to perpetrate against Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims in Xinjiang.”
In 2019, USCIRF welcomed the U.S. House of Representatives’ recognition of the Armenian Genocide with the passage of H.Res.296, and urged the U.S. Senate to pass its companion resolution, S.Res.150, which it passed at the end of that year. USCIRF also commemorated the centennial anniversary of the Armenian Genocide in 2015.
In May, USCIRF will hold a hearing on U.S. government genocide determinations and next steps.
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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] or Danielle Ashbahian at [email protected].
Apr 24, 2021
This op-ed was originally published by the Arkansas Gazette, on April 24, 2021.
By Commissioner James W. Carr and Rep. French Hill
Apr 23, 2021
USCIRF Reiterates Call to Release the Panchen Lama
Washington, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today reiterated its call for the Chinese government to release Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, one of USCIRF’s Religious Prisoners of Conscience. On May 15, 1995, His Holiness the Dalai Lama chose the then six-year-old Gedhun to be the 11th Panchen Lama. Three days later, Chinese authorities kidnapped him and his family. He has not been seen or heard from since.
“It has been nearly 26 years since the Chinese Communist Party’s enforced disappearance of Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, who was only six years old at the time of his abduction. As Gedhun turns 32 on April 25 this year, his whereabouts and wellbeing remain unknown. This lack of information is unacceptable,” noted USCIRF Commissioner Nadine Maenza, who advocates for Gedhun Choekyi Nyima as part of USCIRF’s Religious Prisoners of Conscience Project. “USCIRF renews its call for the Chinese government to allow an independent expert to visit and confirm the wellbeing of the 11th Panchen Lama, and to release him immediately and unconditionally.”
In July 2020, USCIRF applauded the Trump administration’s targeted sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Act against four senior Chinese officials, including Chen Quanguo, the current Communist Party Secretary of Xinjiang and former Secretary for Tibet until 2016. Chen is responsible for the egregious religious freedom and human rights violations in Tibet and Xinjiang.
“It is despicable that the Chinese Communist Party continues to interfere in the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Lama,” added USCIRF Commissioner Nury Turkel. “The combination of the level of absurdity and ruthlessness in the CCP’s persecution of the Tibetan community should alarm the international community, which should stand united in calling for the release of the Panchen Lama.”
In December 2020, USCIRF welcomed the enactment of the Tibet Policy and Support Act (H.R.4331 / S.2539), which establishes an official U.S. policy affirming the right of the Tibetan Buddhist community in selecting and venerating their own religious leaders, including the Dalai Lama. The law imposes sanctions on Chinese officials who interfere in the selection of a successor to His Holiness the Dalai Lama. In addition, it requires the Secretary of State to seek to establish a consulate in Lhasa.
U.S. Representative James McGovern also advocates on behalf of Gedhun Choekyi Nyima through the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission’s Defending Freedoms Project.
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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] or Danielle Ashbahian at [email protected].