FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 26, 2019

USCIRF Statement on the 2^nd Annual Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom
 

WASHINGTON, DC — The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) commends the Trump Administration, particularly Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo, Ambassador-at-Large Samuel D. Brownback, and the Office of International Religious Freedom, for convening more than 1,000 civil society representatives and government officials from over 100 countries for the 2^nd Annual Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom on July 16-18, 2019. 

“By giving voice to victims of persecution and oppression, the Ministerial raised awareness of grave violations of religious freedom throughout the world and the urgent need for advocacy and action by governments that value this foundational human right,” said USCIRF Chair Tony Perkins.     

“USCIRF welcomed the participation at the Ministerial of Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, reflecting the strong bipartisan support in America for promoting international religious freedom,” said USCIRF Vice Chair Gayle Manchin.

Various country delegations co-signed nine Statements of Concern, including a Statement on Protecting Places of Worship, which was one of USCIRF’s key recommendations in its 2019 Annual Report.

Additional USCIRF recommendations that were adopted during this year’s Ministerial include:

• The Treasury Department designated two Iraqi nationals who are leaders of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) militias for Global Magnitsky sanctions for targeting religious and ethnic minorities in northern Iraq.  These sanctions block them from accessing any assets they may own in the United States and bar U.S. citizens from doing business with them.
   
• The State Department designated four Burmese military leaders as responsible for gross human rights violations against Rohingya Muslims, including extrajudicial killings within Burma’s Rakhine State.  This designation bans them and their immediate families from travelling to the United States.
   
• Vice President Michael R. Pence called for the release of four religious prisoners of conscience, including two who are part of USCIRF’s Religious Prisoners of Conscience (RPOC) Project: Raif Badawi, imprisoned on charges of blasphemy in Saudi Arabia, and Patriarch Abune Antonios, imprisoned in Eritrea for resisting government control of the Eritrean Orthodox Church. The Statement of Concern on Iran called for the release of another prisoner in USCIRF’s RPOC Project, Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani.

Appearing at the Ministerial were two former USCIRF Religious Prisoners of Conscience, whose releases USCIRF worked with the State Department to secure: Pastor Andrew Brunson, who had been held for over two years in Turkey; and Abdul Shakoor, who had been imprisoned in Pakistan for four years.

USCIRF continues to be encouraged by the Trump Administration’s commitment to promoting the right of all people to 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 Kellie Boyle at [email protected] or +1-703-898-6554.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 25, 2019

USCIRF Vice Chair Nadine Maenza Calls for Release of Iranian Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani
 

WASHINGTON, DC – Nadine Maenza, Vice Chair of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), today called on Iranian authorities to drop all charges against and to release Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani. One year ago this week, plainclothes Iranian security forces invaded Pastor Nadarkhani’s home, reportedly tasered his son, and took Pastor Nadarkhani to fulfill a ten-year prison sentence for evangelizing and promoting “Zionist Christianity.”

“Iran must release Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani and ensure freedom of religion for all citizens of Iran,” said Vice Chair Maenza, who adopted Pastor Nadarkhani as part of USCIRF’s Religious Prisoners of Conscience Project in 2018. “The Iranian government has vilified and deprived the basic rights of Pastor Nadarkhani and of many other Iranians simply for exercising their freedom of belief. This must stop. I call on the government of Iran to live up to its commitments to its citizens under international law.”

Since 2006, Iranian authorities have consistently harassed and detained Pastor Nadarkhani and his family. In 2010, the authorities sentenced him to death for apostasy before acquitting him in 2012. His current prison sentence stems from his arrest on May 13, 2016, when authorities detained him and his wife before releasing them later that day. On July 6, 2017, Pastor Nadarkhani was ultimately sentenced to 10 years imprisonment.

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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 Kellie Boyle at [email protected] or +1-703-898-6554.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 18, 2019
 

USCIRF Responds to Travel Ban on Burmese Military Officials
 

WASHINGTON, DC – On Tuesday, the State Department designated four Burmese military leaders as responsible for gross human rights violations against Rohingya Muslims, including extrajudicial killings within Burma’s Rakhine State, banning their and their immediate families’ travel to the United States. The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) issued the following statement: 

“This is a welcome step toward holding these individuals accountable,” said USCIRF Chair Tony Perkins.  “However, given the level of government-tolerated abuse, we urge the Departments of State and Treasury to consider using additional targeted tools on the military and other responsible parties, such as economic sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act.”

Said Commissioner Anurima Bhargava, “We urge the Administration and Congress to make a definitive and public declaration that the military’s atrocities towards Rohingya Muslims and other religious and ethnic minorities meet the legal definition of crimes against humanity and/or genocide.  This horrific chapter in Burma’s history must end with justice and the safe and dignified return of Rohingya Muslims and other displaced families to their homeland.” 

The four military officials banned by the State Department are Commander-in-Chief Min Aung Hlaing, Deputy Commander-in-Chief Soe Win, Brigadier General Than Oo and Brigadier General Aung Aung. USCIRF has repeatedly called for targeted sanctions against military units in Burma following its disproportionate and indiscriminate crackdown on Rohingya Muslims in October 2016, and the mass displacement and violence towards Rohingya Muslims in the years since.  USCIRF has recommended that Burma be designated a “country of particular concern” in every year since 2000, including in its most recent annual report.

Commissioner Bhargava, Commissioner Nadine Maenza and Deputy Director for Research and Policy Tina Mufford visited Burma last month and met with government and military officials, civil society and members of the Rohingya community.
 

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The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom 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 Kellie Boyle at [email protected] or +1-703-898-6554.