USCIRF Commends Administration’s Efforts Negotiating Release of Religious Prisoners, Including a U.S. Citizen, Held in China

Washington, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) welcomes the U.S. government’s recent successful efforts to secure the freedom of those imprisoned or otherwise trapped in China on the basis of their religion, religious activity, or ethnoreligious identity, including Ayshem Mamut, the mother of former USCIRF Commissioner Nury Turkel. In November, the U.S. government reportedly negotiated the resettlement of three Uyghurs, including Mamut, from China to the United States as part of a broader prisoner swap between the two countries. Additionally, in September, the administration secured the release of American pastor David Lin, who spent nearly two decades in Chinese prison for his religious activities.

“We celebrate the reunion of Ayshem Mamut with former USCIRF Commissioner Nury Turkel and the rest of their family here in the United States,” said Chair Stephen Schneck. “USCIRF commends the Biden administration for its work to advocate for and secure the release and freedom of those persecuted in China on the basis of religion.”

“Despite this good news, millions of other religious minorities in China face horrible conditions both in and out of state custody,” said Vice Chair Eric Ueland. “The United States must pursue additional efforts to free more people as it did with these three Uyghur individuals.”

China today remains one of the world's worst violators of religious freedom. Authorities subject persecuted religious group members to a range of invasive and egregious treatment, including surveillance, harassment, travel bans, imprisonment, torture, medical neglect, forced labor, and forced assimilation. In its 2024 Annual Report, USCIRF recommended that the U.S. Department of State redesignate China as a “Country of Particular Concern,” or CPC, for engaging in 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 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].

USCIRF Releases Report on Persecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses 

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

Religious Freedom Challenges for Jehovah’s Witnesses – Four years after USCIRF’s 2020 publication on the global persecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses, countries continue to prosecute and impose harsh penalties on the community for their religious beliefs and peaceful religious activities. Hundreds of Jehovah’s Witnesses have been imprisoned under laws punishing so-called “extremism” and conscientious objection. Other countries prevent Jehovah’s Witnesses from gaining legal recognition, deprive them of rights afforded to others, or impose prejudicial policies. States have a duty to protect freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for Jehovah’s Witnesses.  

USCIRF has documented the persecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses in its Frank R. Wolf Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) Victims List and calls on the State Department to work with relevant governments and like-minded partners to secure their release.  

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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].