In a public statement on March 27, 2021, the Chinese government imposed a travel ban on USCIRF Chair Gayle Manchin and Vice Chair Tony Perkins and prohibited any Chinese citizens or institutions from doing business with them. The statement issued by China asserts that USCIRF should stop interfering in China’s internal affairs and refrain from “going further down the wrong path” otherwise “they will get their fingers burnt.” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken condemned China for imposing the “baseless” sanctions.

This is the first time in USCIRF’s more than 20-year history that a foreign government has taken action against individual Commissioners in this way. Meanwhile, USCIRF has been sounding the alarm about a genocide taking place in Xinjiang against Uyghurs and has recommended for two decades that the U.S. Department of State designate China as a Country of Particular Concern for its egregious violations. This begs the question, why now?

USCIRF Chair Gayle Manchin and Vice Chair Tony Perkins join us today to respond to the news about the sanctions, and to discuss what this means for the United States government and the international community moving forward.

Featuring:
Dwight Bashir, Director of Outreach and Policy, USCIRF
Gayle Manchin, Chair, USCIRF
Tony Perkins, Vice Chair, USCIRF

Read USCIRF’s official press statement responding to the sanctions.

USCIRF Highlights Impact of Financial Restrictions on Civil Society

Washington, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today released the following factsheet on the impact of financial regulations on religious organizations and religious freedom:

Factsheet on Controlling Civil Society’s Purse Strings – Around the globe, some governments misuse financial restrictions to hamper civil society actors, which can negatively impact religious communities. This factsheet explores the religious freedom implications from the use of excessive financial restrictions to harass and limit the activities of civil society organizations. The ability to solicit and receive financial contributions is an integral component of freedom of religion or belief, and these restrictions can be in violation of international human rights law. Financial harassment can take many forms, from attempts to delegitimize the work of foreign-funded civil society by enacting requirements to register as “foreign agents,” to excessive and intrusive reporting requirements, to exorbitant fees and fines for religious activity, to the seizure of assets or religious property. The factsheet also examines examples of government financial harassment of civil society organizations and its impact on religious freedom and communities in Belarus, China, India, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Russia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan.

In its 2020 Annual Report, USCIRF recommended that the U.S State Department designate China, India, Nigeria, Russia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan as Countries of Particular Concern (CPCs) for engaging in or tolerating particularly severe violations of religious freedom. USCIRF also recommended that the U.S. State Department place Nicaragua on its Special Watch List (SWL) for engaging in or tolerating severe violations of religious freedom. The State Department designated China, Nigeria, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan as CPCs, and placed Nicaragua on its SWL, in December 2020.

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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].

USCIRF Condemns the Chinese Government’s Sanctions on USCIRF Commissioners

Washington, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) strongly condemns the Chinese government’s sanctions on USCIRF Chair Gayle Manchin and Vice Chair Tony Perkins, imposed in an apparent retaliation for U.S. sanctions on Chinese officials and for USCIRF’s consistent criticism of the Chinese Communist Party government’s atrocities against Uyghur and other Turkic Muslims in Xinjiang.

“The Chinese government’s baseless sanctions on U.S. and foreign government officials who advocate for human rights and religious freedom in China are an attempt to silence growing international criticism and scrutiny of its genocidal policies against Uyghur and other Turkic Muslims in Xinjiang. This tactic will not work. USCIRF will not be silenced. We will not stop speaking out against the Chinese government’s ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity,” stated USCIRF Chair Gayle Manchin. “USCIRF thanks U.S. Secretary of State Blinken for condemning China’s sanctions and we support the U.S. government’s ongoing efforts in working with like-minded international partners to seek accountability for its atrocious religious freedom violations.”

“The Chinese Communist Party government’s baseless sanctions are tactics of intimidation revealing the communist regime is trying to save face in the international community, which has denounced their brutal and repressive policies toward their own people,” added USCIRF Vice Chair Tony Perkins. “We call on the international community, especially U.S. allies who share the same fundamental universal values and principles of freedom of religion or belief and the rule of law, to redouble their efforts and unite in standing up to Communist China. In addition to the continued imposition of coordinated sanctions against Chinese officials responsible for specific violations, there should be an impartial international investigation into the atrocities in Xinjiang and the Communist Party’s genocidal campaign, and an international effort to either move or boycott the 2022 Beijing Olympics.”  

USCIRF has consistently criticized the Chinese government and called on the U.S. government and the international community to hold it accountable for its systematic, ongoing, and egregious religious freedom violations, including abusive policies against Uyghur and other Turkic Muslims in Xinjiang. Earlier this month, USCIRF applauded the coordinated sanctions that the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the European Union imposed against Chinese officials under the Global Magnitsky Act.  Also this month, USCIRF held a hearing addressing the pressing issue of U.S. companies’ complicity in Uyghur forced labor.

In January 2021, USCIRF applauded the U.S. Department of State for designating China’s treatment of Uyghur and other Turkic Muslims in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region as genocide and crimes against humanity. USCIRF had warned in June 2020 that the Chinese government’s repressive population control measures against Uyghur and other Muslims meets the legal criteria for genocide under international law.

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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].