Displaying results 1 - 13 of 13

Religious Freedom Priorities for the Biden Administration
Feb 4, 2021   As the Biden administration begins to formulate its broader human rights policy, USCIRF highlights several priority countries when it comes to international religious freedom. Condemning and preventing…
Repercussions of the Burma Coup for Rohingya Muslims
Feb 25, 2021 On February 1, 2021, the Burmese military declared the results of the November 2020 democratic elections to be invalid, enacted a one-year state of emergency, and detained State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and…
Refugee Resettlement and Religious Freedom
Apr 30, 2021 The program to resettle refugees to the United States has existed since 1980, with strong bipartisan support. Earlier this month, President Biden signed an emergency declaration to speed up refugee admissions into…
Fourth Anniversary of the Rohingya Genocide
Aug 25, 2021 On August 25, 2017, the Burmese military, known as the Tatmadaw, launched a genocidal campaign in Rakhine State against the largely Muslim Rohingya community. The United Nations Independent Investigative Mechanism…
Rohingya Genocide Determination and Accountability
Apr 1, 2022 The Rohingya community in Burma have been targeted by the Burmese military (known as the Tatmadaw) with mass killings and rape since 2017, forcing hundreds of thousands to flee the country. Since the military coup…
The 5th Anniversary of the Rohingya Genocide
Aug 25, 2022 August 25 marks the fifth anniversary of the start of the Burmese military’s genocidal campaign against the Rohingya people. The violence resulted in thousands of Rohingya dead, hundreds of thousands internally…
The Legacy of Blasphemy Laws in Southeast Asia
Oct 21, 2022 Seven out of ten members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) nations have blasphemy laws currently enshrined in their legal codes. USCIRF’s recent issue update reviews these blasphemy laws and their enforcement within this…
Reflecting on USCIRF’s Visit to Cox’s Bazar
Dec 9, 2022 In November 2022, USCIRF visited Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh, to assess the current conditions and issues that Burmese Rohingya refugees are facing. The Rohingya community, a predominantly Muslim ethnic minority from Burma, have long fled…
Differences Between Religious Tolerance and Religious Freedom
Jan 5, 2023 Authoritarian states promote religious tolerance without necessarily ensuring freedom of religion or belief. Last month, USCIRF released a report distinguishing between these two concepts and explains the origins of religious tolerance…
Reflections on USCIRF's 2025 Trip to Azerbaijan
May 16, 2025   The religious freedom situation in Azerbaijan remains highly restricted. The government subjects virtually all religious practices to intrusive state oversight. Shi'a Muslims who do not operate within the government's preferred…
Advancing FoRB Through Targeted Programming
Apr 24, 2026  Alongside advocacy efforts, targeted programming is a tool certain governments and intergovernmental agencies use to strengthen religious freedom. There have been several key programs that have advanced international religious freedom in…
International Accountability for Burma's Atrocities Against Religious Minorities
May 5, 2026  Despite sanctions and repeated condemnation against the Burmese military, the ruling junta continues to unleash brutal attacks against its own people, including religious minorities such as Muslim-majority Rohingya and Christian-majority…
Universal Jurisdiction as a Tool for Accountability in Burma
May 5, 2026  The Burmese military maintains its grip over Burma through arson, arbitrary detentions, airstrikes, killings, and other forms of intimidation and violence to instill fear in its people, including ethnoreligious minorities such as Rohingya…