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October 31, 2013 | By USCIRF

USCIRF Letter to President Obama on Upcoming Meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) sent the following letter to President Obama on October 30, 2013:

The President
The White House
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

On behalf of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), we respectfully urge you to use your upcoming meeting to press Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to do more to protect the human rights of every Iraqi, including the right to religious freedom regardless of religion or sect.

As you know, over the past year Iraq has experienced the worst sectarian violence since 2008, with the frequency and scope of such violence increasing. This violence is undermining Iraq's progress and threatening its people's safety, particularly the majority Shi'a Muslim population, as well as its smallest religious minority communities, including Christians and Yezidis. The violence also appears to be spreading into areas of northern Iraq that had been previously safer and had become places of refuge for religious minorities. Regrettably, the government of Iraq has been unable to stop sectarian attacks from occurring and often lacks the will to investigate attacks and bring perpetrators to justice. This has created a climate of impunity and a perpetual sense of fear for all religious communities, particularly the smallest ones. The actions of Prime Minister al-Maliki's government have also exacerbated the feelings of exclusion and discontent among the country's Sunni population through political marginalization and prosecutions of Sunni leaders. In addition, the dispute between the central government and Kurdish parties over territory in the north has led to human rights abuses, particularly against the smallest minorities in those areas.

U.S.-Iraqi cooperation under the Strategic Framework Agreement includes cooperation "to promote Iraq's efforts in the field of... human rights." If Iraq is to become a stable democracy, its government must make greater efforts to ensure that the human rights and religious freedoms of all Iraqis are guaranteed and enforced equally in law and practice, without regard to religion or sect. In your meeting with Prime Minister al-Maliki, we hope that you will stress to him the vital importance of reducing sectarian tensions in Iraq and protecting freedom of religion. We also hope that you will press him, and offer U.S. assistance as appropriate, to increase efforts toprovide security to likely targets of religiously-motivated violence and investigate and prosecute perpetrators consistent with due process of law. Finally, we hope that you will discuss the need for the protection of minority rights and freedoms in the disputed territories.

We hope you agree that discussing the problems of sectarian tensions, violence, and human rights abuses in Iraq with Prime Minister al-Maliki is essential. Without addressing these concerns, religious freedom in Iraq will continue to erode and the country will not have the peaceful, democratic future that its people deserve and the United States seeks to encourage

Thank you for considering our request.

Sincerely,

Robert P. George
Chairman

To interview a USCIRF Commissioner, please contact Kalinda Stephenson at 202-786-0613 or [email protected].

FOR YOUR INFORMATION

October 30, 2013 | By Robert P. George

The following op-ed appeared in The Hill on October 30, 2013.

This past Sunday, the United States commemorated International Religious Freedom Day, marking the 15th anniversary of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (IRFA).

IRFA created an international religious freedom office in the U.S. State Department, headed by an ambassador-at-large, and the independent, bipartisan U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), which I chair. Since its inception, USCIRF has monitored religious freedom worldwide and made policy recommendations to the president, secretary of state, and Congress in response to governments that violate this fundamental right.

The law also advocates strong and consistent U.S. participation in multilateral organizations such as the United Nations as a vital way to advance religious freedom and shine the spotlight on violators.

How can the United States use the UN as a platform to support this bedrock liberty?

One way is through its participation in the UN Human Rights Council (HRC), including the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process through which the human rights performance of every UN member state is assessed. USCIRF urges the United States to hold members accountable to internationally-recognized religious freedom standards. Such a stance is particularly important regarding nations that USCIRF has recommended under IRFA as "countries of particular concern,” or CPCs, marking them as the world's worst religious freedom abusers. The U.S. government also should seek to highlight religious freedom concerns through country-specific resolutions in both the HRC and the General Assembly.

The United States should continue its firm, unequivocal support for the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief. The Special Rapporteur-currently Professor Heiner Bielefeldt of Germany-monitors freedom of religion or belief worldwide, communicates with governments about alleged violations, conducts country visits, and brings religious freedom concerns to the UN and public attention through reports and statements. Further, the United States should seek the appointment or continuation of country-specific Special Rapporteurs for religious freedom violators, particularly CPC nations.

Finally, the United States should continue its vigorous opposition to efforts at the UN to restrict speech deemed religiously offensive or controversial. For more than a decade, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), with its annual resolutions focusing on "combating defamation of religions,” had made the HRC and General Assembly centers of activity to establish a global blasphemy law violating freedom of religion and expression. Along with members of Congress, the State Department, and key nongovernmental organizations, USCIRF helped bring about a marked decrease between 2008 and 2010 in support for these flawed resolutions. As a result, in 2011 and 2012 both UN bodies adopted consensus resolutions which rightly focus on protecting individuals from discrimination or violence rather than shielding religions from criticism; protect the adherents of all religions or beliefs, instead of favoring one over others; and call for positive measures like education and outreach instead of legal restrictions on peaceful expression. The new resolutions support criminalization only in the case of incitement to imminent violence.

USCIRF welcomes this new approach but remains concerned that OIC members have not abandoned their global anti-blasphemy efforts. OIC member states continue to enforce repressive domestic blasphemy laws, and their leaders still refer publicly to the defamation-of-religions concept and call for laws against defamation.

The United States and other UN member states must remain vigilant against any efforts to erode the language of the new resolutions or to use other means to move toward global anti-blasphemy laws.

In enacting IRFA fifteen years ago, Congress and the President recognized that religious freedom matters. It is an integral part of our history and identity as a free nation, a key human right recognized by international law and treaty, a core component of our commitment to defend democracy globally, and a necessary element of our national security and our determination to ensure a more peaceful, prosperous, and stable world. In the aftermath of International Religious Freedom Day, let us rededicate our efforts, at the UN and elsewhere, on behalf of this pivotal liberty.

George is chairman of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF).

To interview a USCIRF Commissioner, please contact Kalinda Stephenson at 202-786-0613 or [email protected].

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 18, 2013| USCIRF

During his October 23 White House meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, USCIRF urges President Obama to raise concerns about the dire religious freedom situation in Pakistan, with both Muslims and religious minorities consistently confronting violence or jail.

"Based on USCIRF findings, Pakistan represents one of the worst situations in the world for religious freedom,” said USCIRF Chairman Robert George. "The September attack on All Saints Church that killed close to 100 worshippers underscores Pakistan's exceedingly poor religious freedom situation. The violence extremists perpetuate threatens all Pakistanis, including Shi'as, Christians, Ahmadis, and Hindus, as well as those members of the Sunni majority who dare to challenge extremists.”

"Given that President Obama and Prime Minister Sharif reportedly will be discussing how best to counter violent extremism, we urge the U.S. to incorporate concern about freedom of religion into these conversations,” said Chairman George. "To successfully counter violent extremism, Pakistan must have a holistic approach that both ensures that perpetrators of violence are jailed and addresses laws that foster vigilante violence, such as the blasphemy law and anti-Ahmadi laws. For the sake of his country, the Prime Minister should be pressed to take concrete action.”

USCIRF's 2013 Annual Report highlighted the dire state of religious freedom in Pakistan and that growing religious extremism threatens Pakistan's security and stability, as well as the freedoms of religion and expression and other human rights. Notwithstanding this alarming situation, the U.S. government has not designated Pakistan as a "country of particular concern.” USCIRF's Religious Violence Project found that religious freedom violations in Pakistan have risen to unprecedented levels, and the government continues to fail to protect Christians, Shi'a, Ahmadis, and Hindus. In addition, approximately 40 individuals are on death row or serving life sentences for allegedly blasphemous conduct, a statistic unmatched anywhere else in the world.

To interview a USCIRF Commissioner, please contact Kalinda Stephenson at 202-786-0613 or [email protected].