Nov 4, 2022
USCIRF Releases New Report on Law and Religion in Algeria
Washington, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today released the following new report on religious freedom conditions in Algeria:
Law and Religion in Algeria – This factsheet highlights Algerian laws that pose risks to freedom of religion or belief. This report summarizes the intersection of law, religion, and politics in recent Algerian history. It highlights aspects of Algerian law that are inconsistent with international legal protections for the freedom of religion or belief, including laws against blasphemy and proselytization, as well as recent instances of enforcement and bias. The report lays out several policy options the United States government can pursue to help reduce legal repression by the Algerian government based on these laws.
In its 2022 Annual Report, USCIRF recommended that the U.S. State Department include Algeria in its Special Watch List for engaging in severe violations of international religious freedom. In 2021, USCIRF published a country update highlighting relevant religious freedom developments in Algeria and hosted a virtual event on deteriorating religious freedom conditions in Algeria.
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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].
Nov 4, 2022
Since 2014, when ISIS launched its genocidal campaign against the Yazidis—a minority ethno-religious group within the Kurdish-majority areas of Iraq, Syria, Iran and Turkey, as well as in Armenia–hundreds of thousands of Yazidis have been displaced from their native home in the Sinjar region of Iraq.
The U.S. government remains deeply invested in helping stabilize the Sinjar region and making it a viable home again for the displaced Yazidis. As USCIRF has consistently reported, Sinjar is not yet a hospitable environment for the Yazidi people. The United States and wider international community have a role to play in encouraging all stakeholders—including Yazidis and authorities in both the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Iraqi federal government—to help this vulnerable religious minority to safely return to Sinjar.
Co-Founder and Managing Director of The Zovighian Partnership, Lynn Zovighian, joins us today to discuss the challenges the Yazidi community and the Sinjar region continue to face as new stages of the genocide unfold.
Nov 15
Nov 15th 2:00pm
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Nov 15th 3:30pm
U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom Hearing
Crackdown on Religious Freedom in Nicaragua
Tuesday, November 15, 2022
2:00 PM to 3:30 PM ET
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) held a virtual hearing that examined deteriorating conditions for freedom of religion or belief in Nicaragua. The hearing also highlighted opportunities for U.S. policy to support religious actors and communities who are under siege from the government of President Daniel Ortega.
This year, the Nicaraguan government has deepened its pattern of harassment against the Catholic Church, such as subjecting Catholic clergy to direct detention and imprisonment—with some priests facing multiple years in prison on spurious charges. In March, the government expelled the papal nuncio, the Vatican’s chief diplomat in the country, for unexplained reasons. In August, authorities surrounded the home of Bishop Rolando Alvarez—an outspoken critic of the regime—and arrested him and several of his companions. Additionally, the government has turned its wrath on Catholic-affiliated organizations by arbitrarily shutting down charities and expelling their workers, stripping universities of funding and legal status, shutting down news media, and eliminating non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
Witnesses documented religious freedom conditions across Nicaragua under the Ortega regime, discussed current U.S. policy and the enforcement of the RENACER ACT to deter the Ortega regime’s abuses against religious communities, and shared recommendations for the U.S. government to support religious freedom in Nicaragua.
- Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL)
Recorded Remarks - Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL)
Recorded Remarks - Nury Turkel, Chair, USCIRF
Prepared Remarks - Frederick A. Davie, Commissioner, USCIRF
Prepared Remarks
- Patrick Ventrell, Director of the Office for Central American Affairs, U.S. Department of State
Panel II
- Manuel Orozco, Director, Migration, Remittances and Development Program, Inter-American Dialogue
Written Testimony - Irela Guevara, Program Director, Outreach Aid to the Americas
Written Testimony - Christopher Ljungquist, Adviser for Latin America, Office of International Justice and Peace, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
Written Testimony - Ryan Berg, Director, Americas Program, Center for Strategic and International Studies
Written Testimony
This hearing is open to Members of Congress, congressional staff, the public, and the media. Members of the media should register online and can email [email protected] for any questions or to schedule an interview. The video recording of the hearing will be posted on the Commission website. For any additional questions, please contact Danielle Ashbahian at [email protected] or (202) 702-2778.