USCIRF ADVOCATE: Nury Turkel
Country:
ChinaKey Fact:
well-known Uyghur poet, reporter at the state-run People's Radio, and author
Detained Since:
Dec 1, 2017
Biography:
Adil Tuniyaz is a well-known Uyghur poet, reporter at the state-run People's Radio, and author of the books Questions for an Apple and Manifesto for Universal Poetry. Tuniyaz and his wife, Nezire Muhammad Salih, were both arrested in December 2017. Their eldest son, Imran (19 years old), was also arrested at a Beijing school where he was studying Arabic. Imran was reportedly sent to a detention facility in Xinjiang. It is believed that their three younger children have been placed in state-run orphanages for Uyghur youth whose guardians have been detained. Adil's father-in-law, the well known Uyghur scholar Muhammad Salih Hajim, died in a re-education camp in Urumqi in January 2018.
A Chinese officer at a prison in Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture's Miquan county, where another relative is being held, informed family members in February 2018 that they "shouldn't hold out any hope for Nezire and Adil" because of the seriousness of the accusations against them. Reportedly, they were targeted at least in part because they translated religious materials, including hadiths, which drew the attention of the Chinese government.
Nov 20, 2020
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
USCIRF Welcomes U.S. House Passage of Ukraine Religious Freedom Support Act
Washington, DC – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) welcomes the passage by the U.S. House of Representatives of the Ukraine Religious Freedom Support Act (H.R. 5408) and urges Senate passage of the bill.
“The Ukraine Religious Freedom Support Act (H.R. 5408) is a critical piece of legislation that will help hold Russia accountable for its many religious freedom violations in occupied Ukraine,” USCIRF Commissioner Nury Turkel stated. “We welcome passage of the bill in the House, and commend Representatives Joe Wilson and Emanuel Cleaver for their effective bipartisan leadership. USCIRF urges swift approval in the Senate and asks the President to sign it.”
Representative Wilson recently spoke about the importance of this bill at USCIRF’s hearing on Religious Freedom in Russia and Central Asia.
“Russia continues to persecute Crimean Tatar Muslims, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Ukrainian Orthodox, and other religious minorities through its illegal occupation of Ukraine,” added USCIRF Commissioner Gary Bauer. “The time has come for the Department of State to designate Russia a County of Particular Concern (CPC) for its systematic, ongoing, and egregious religious freedom violations. H.R. 5408 will help to make that a reality, which is sorely needed by the longsuffering people of occupied Ukraine.”
USCIRF recommended that the State Department designate Russia as a CPC in its 2020 Annual Report, and advocated for this action in a recent editorial, as well as through reports on Religious Regulation in Russia and the Global Persecution of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. The State Department’s next CPC designations are expected before the end of this year.
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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].
Nov 20, 2020
The State Department has designated Pakistan as a Country of Particular Concern since 2018, but it has not taken any action as a consequence of that designation and has continued to violate freedom of religious belief. USCIRF recently issued a press release concerning the uptick in blasphemy cases against Shia Muslims which in some cases led to mob violence. There have also been a number of targeted killings of Ahmadi’s in Pakistan over the past four months. Why are religious minorities particularly vulnerable to blasphemy laws and violence in Pakistan? Find out in this week's episode!
Featuring:
Dwight Bashir, Director of Outreach and Policy, USCIRF
Niala Mohammad, Senior Policy Analyst, USCIRF