FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 31, 2020

USCIRF Releases New Report on Religious Freedom Conditions in Uzbekistan

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

Uzbekistan Country Update: This report provides an assessment of religious freedom conditions in Uzbekistan, where USCIRF commissioners and staff traveled twice over the course of 2019. Although Uzbekistan has taken some important initial steps over the past few years to allow for greater religious freedom, significant concerns remain. The report examines these ongoing issues, such as the continued imprisonment of religious prisoners, restrictions on Muslim communities, and a legal structure that severely impedes the religious activities of both majority and minority religious communities throughout the country.

In its 2019 Annual Report, USCIRF recommended that the U.S. Department of State designate Uzbekistan as a CPC due to its systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom.
 

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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 call (202) 523-3240.

For Immediate Release
January 29, 2020

USCIRF Releases New Report on Religious Freedom Conditions in Saudi Arabia

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

Saudi Arabia Policy Brief – This report provides a short overview of religious freedom conditions in Saudi Arabia in 2019. While Saudi Arabia has made some important legal reforms, particularly with regards to women’s rights, it has not addressed the underlying structural impediments to religious freedom in the country. In April, it conducted a mass execution of Shi’a Muslims, including some who were minors at the time they allegedly committed their crimes. No public worship is allowed in the country for non-Muslims, and the government continues to harass and surveil members of these communities. Women, such as Loujain al-Hathloul, who dissent from the government’s mandatory religious guardianship laws have been detained and subjected to severe mistreatment. On several occasions throughout 2019, the Saudi government released content on social media referring to feminism as a form of extremism. In late 2019, USCIRF Religious Prisoner of Conscience Raif Badawi was denied access to books and medicine and subsequently went on a hunger strike to protest these conditions.

In its 2019 Annual Report, USCIRF recommended that the U.S. Department of State designate Saudi Arabia as a “country of particular concern” (CPC) due to its systematic, ongoing and egregious violations of religious freedom.

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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 call (202) 523-3240.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 30, 2019

USCIRF Welcomes Passage of the Tibetan Policy and Support Act in House of Representatives

WASHINGTON, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today commended the U.S. House of Representatives for passing the Tibetan Policy and Support Act of 2019 (H.R.4331), which USCIRF previously endorsed, by  a vote of 392 to 22. If enacted, the bill would establish an official U.S. policy supporting the selection of Tibetan religious leaders, including His Holiness the Dalai Lama, by the Tibetan Buddhist community -- free of Chinese government interference. In addition, it would require the U.S. State Department to seek to open a consulate in Lhasa. The companion bill (S.2539) still needs to be passed by the Senate and signed by the President before the law would go into effect.

“The Chinese government has attempted to cut off Tibet from the outside world, but this bill makes it crystal clear that the U.S. government remains committed to advocating on behalf of the Tibetan people,” said USCIRF Commissioner Gary Bauer. “We urge the Senate to pass the companion bill swiftly, the President to sign it, and his administration to robustly implement all of its provisions.”

“We want to thank Representative Jim McGovern and Senator Marco Rubio for their leadership on this important legislation in Congress, as well as Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s strong floor statement and all the Members of the House who supported it,” added Commissioner Tenzin Dorjee. “We urge the Trump administration to build on this milestone by filling as soon as possible the vacancy for the Special Coordinator for Tibet at the State Department.”

In its 2019 Annual Report, USCIRF called upon the administration to use its authority under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act and International Religious Freedom Act to enact targeted sanctions against Chinese officials responsible for severe religious freedom violations, especially Chen Quanguo, the former Communist Party Secretary of Tibet and current Secretary of Xinjiang. In September 2019, USCIRF released a report documenting how the Chinese government uses surveillance cameras, biometric technology and artificial intelligence to monitor and harass Tibetan Buddhists and other 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 202-523-3240.