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October 28, 2015
USCIRF Chairman Robert P. George testified on October 27, 2015 before Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations Subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee at a hearing titled "The Global Crisis of Religious Freedom,"Read Testimony before the Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations Subcommittee Of the House Foreign Affairs Committee On The Global Crisis of Religious Freedom & Its Challenge to U.S. Foreign Policy
Subcommittee Hearing: The Global Crisis of Religious Freedom (EventID=104112)
July 14, 2016
USCIRF Chair Thomas J. Reese, S.J. testified on July 15, 2016 before the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission at a hearing titled "Blasphemy Laws and Censorship by States and Non-State Actors: Examining Global Threats to Freedom of Expression."
From the testimony:
“Blasphemy laws lie at the intersection of two crucially important freedoms – the freedoms of religion and expression, both of which are being challenged today. In addition, blasphemy laws often lead to instability and violence in countries around the world, with negative consequences for individuals, communities, and nations.”
Click here to read Chair Reese's full testimony.
Click here to watch the hearing.
July 09, 2019
On June 27, 2019, Vice Chair Nadine Maenza testified at a Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission hearing on violations of the right to freedom of religion of Christian communities around the world.Written Testimony
Hearing Webpage
July 24, 2014
USCIRF Vice Chair Dr. Zuhdi Jasser testified on July 23 before the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations of the House Foreign Affairs Committee at a hearing entitled “The Troubling Case of Meriam Ibrahim.”From the testimony:
“Meriam’s conviction, sentencing, detention and re-detention, and inability to leave Sudan all are travesties of religious freedom and human rights in Sudan. The laws which she was accused of breaking violated Sudan’s own constitutional and international commitments to religious freedom and human rights. USCIRF calls on the Sudanese government to immediately allow Meriam and her family to leave Sudan and all charges against her be dropped.”
Click here to view the full written testimony.
**Please note that shortly after the hearing, it was announced that Meriam Ibrahim and her family arrived safely in Italy. As USCIRF previously stated, “Meriam’s conviction, sentencing, detention and arrest are a travesty for religious freedom and human rights in Sudan. The laws which she was accused of breaking violate Sudan’s own constitutional and international commitments to religious freedom and human rights.”
For more information on religious freedom condition in Sudan see USCIRF’s 2014 Annual Report.
To interview a USCIRF Commissioner, please contact USCIRF at media@uscirf.gov or 202-786-0613.
June 22, 2017
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom sent the following letter to Secretary Tillerson on May 30, 2017. Click here to read a PDF version of the letter.
The Honorable Rex Tillerson
Secretary of State
2201 C Street, NW
Washington, DC 20520
Dear Secretary Tillerson:
On behalf of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), I urge you to maintain existing sanctions on the Sudanese government due to its continued religious freedom violations. Since 1999, USCIRF has recommended, and the State Department has designated, Sudan as a country of particular concern (CPC) for its systematic, ongoing, and egregious religious freedom violations.
The U.S. government imposed sanctions on Sudan in 1997 and 2006, in part, due to the Sudanese government’s gross human rights violations, including “the denial of religious freedom,” which remain in place today. However, on January 13, 2017, then President Barack Obama signed Executive Order (EO) 13761 indicating progress by the Sudanese government in lessening military hostilities, increasing access to humanitarian assistance, and cooperating with the United States on regional conflicts and counterterrorism. EO 13761 directs lifting the existing investment and trade sanctions by July 12, 2017 if the Secretary of State determines, in consultation with other relevant agencies, that the Sudanese government “has sustained the positive actions” described above. This determination does not require an evaluation of progress, or lack thereof, on human rights or religious freedom.
Since South Sudan’s secession in 2011, USCIRF has documented a deterioration of religious freedom conditions year after year. During this period, the Sudanese government has arrested nearly 200 Christians, including 14 religious leaders. Of these detentions, three pastors were prosecuted on spurious capital charges, including waging war against the state and espionage. Sudanese authorities also have demolished or partially demolished approximately 20 churches and church buildings; expropriated or threatened to expropriate at least 10 others; and have stated that they would no longer issue permits for new church construction. USCIRF also has documented the Sudanese government’s strict enforcement of Shari’ah law on Muslims and non-Muslims alike. The 1991 Criminal Code permits death sentences for apostasy; death or lashing for adultery; cross-amputations for theft; prison sentences, lashings or fines for blasphemy; and lashings for undefined “offences of honor, reputation and public morality.” For more information, USCIRF’s recently released 2017 annual report chapter on Sudan can be found here: http://www.uscirf.gov/sites/default/files/Sudan.2017.pdf.
While U.S. policy toward Sudan certainly should recognize positive developments on a range of issues, it also should take steps to address severe violations of religious freedom and other human rights.
We respectfully urge you to consider these concerns as part of your determination in lifting the current sanctions imposed on Sudan by the U.S. government.
Sincerely,
Rev. Thomas J. Reese, S.J.
Chair
August 12, 2014
July 17, 2013
February 05, 2008
Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2226
November 27, 2001
Commission members (left to right): Richard D. Land, Nina Shea, The Hon. Charles R. Stith, Executive Director Steven T. McFarland, Chairman Michael K. Young, Felice D. Gaer, Firuz Kazemzadeh, The Hon. Shirin Tahir-Kheli, and Bishop William Francis Murphy.
Opening Remarks - Chair Michael Young
Panel 1: The World After 9/11: A Strategic Shift in U.S. Foreign Policy?
- The Hon. Morton Halperin, Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations -
- The Hon. Paula Dobriansky, Under Secretary of State for Global Affairs Oral Testimony - Prepared Testimony - Written Answers to Follow-up Questions
- Question and Answer
- Introduction
- Tamara Sonn, Professor, College of William and Mary -
- Mamoun Fandy, Professor, National Defense University
- Amy Hawthorne, Soref Research Fellow, Washington Institute for Near East Policy --
- Question and Answer
- Introduction
- Martha Brill Olcott, Senior Associate, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace --
- Sidney Jones, Executive Director, Asia Division, Human Rights Watch -
- The Hon. Susan Rice, Managing Director and Principal, Intellibridge International -
- Question and Answer
- Introduction
- The Hon. Robert Seiple, President and founder, Institute for Global Engagement Oral Testimony - Prepared Testimony
- R. Richard Newcomb, Director, Office of Foreign Assets Control, Treasury Dept.
- Georges Fauriol, Senior VP for Strategic Planning, International Republican Instititue (read by Zlatko Kovach, Senior Manager, Strategic Planning, International Republican Institute) --
- Patrick Merloe, Senior Associate, National Democratic Institute -
- Judith Siegel, Deputy Coordinator of Int'l Information Programs, State Department --
- Question and Answer
October 25, 2019