Gender: Female

Perpetrator: Pakistan

Religion or Belief: Hindu

Health Concerns: Psychological problems, poor vision

Reports of Torture: No

Reports of Medical Neglect: No

Date of Detainment: August//2020

Current Status: Forced Renunciation of Faith

Religious Leader: No

Most Recent Type of Abuse: Forced Renunciation of Faith

Reason for Persecution: Children’s Rights Religious Activity Religious Belief

Nature of Charges: Not Applicable

Simran Kumari

Extra Bio Info:

Simran Kumari was forced to renounce her faith.

In August 2020, Kumari, a Hindu girl who was 17-year old at the time, disappeared from her aunt's home in Gotki district, Sindh province. Her family was later informed that she was being held at a seminary for religious converts. Her family alleges that Kumari was abducted and forced to convert. 

Immediately after meeting Kumari at an unspecified date at the seminary, her family was informed that she had converted to Islam, adopted a new name, and married a Muslim man. The document confirming her conversion listed her as 21 years old and reportedly marked her conversion as the same day as her disappearance.

In January 2021, an additional sessions judge issued a court order prohibiting Kumari's family from getting her back.  Police also reportedly refused to investigate her case.

Reporting from April 2021 indicated that Kumari was pregnant.

Kumari suffers from psychological problems and poor vision.

Sources:

Additional Name(s): 刘丽杰

Gender: Female

Perpetrator: China

Religion or Belief: Falun Gong

Health Concerns: High blood pressure

Reports of Torture: No

Reports of Medical Neglect: No

Appeal: Rejected

Sentence: 3 Years, 6 Months' Imprisonment

Date of Detainment: September/6/2021

Date of Sentencing: November/17/2021

Current Status: Not Released

Religious Leader: No

Most Recent Type of Abuse: Imprisonment

Reason for Persecution: Religious Activity

Nature of Charges: Cult

Liu Lijie

Extra Bio Info:

Liu Lijie is imprisoned for her religious belief and activity.

On October 14, 2020, public security officers from Jiamusi Municipality, Heilongjiang Province, detained Liu while she was at a colleague's home and charged her with "organizing or using a cult to undermine implementation of the law" (Art. 300 CCL).

On October 16, 2020, Liu was released on bail.

On September 6, 2021, Liu was placed under "residential surveillance."

On November 17, 2021, the Xiangyang District Court sentenced Liu to three years and six months in prison for "organizing or using a cult to undermine implementation of the law" (Art. 300 CCL). Liu was reportedly subjected to several due process violations. 

On January 12, 2022, Liu was reportedly taken into custody to begin serving her sentence immediately after the Jiamusi City Intermediate Court rejected her appeal.

Liu reportedly suffers from high blood pressure.

Sources:

Feb 18, 2022

USCIRF Commissioner Tony Perkins Calls for Leah Sharibu’s Freedom on Abduction Anniversary  

Washington, D.C. – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today marked the fourth anniversary of Leah Sharibu’s abduction at the hands of the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP). On February 19, 2018, 14-year-old Sharibu was kidnapped from her school in Northern Nigeria alongside 110 other girls. Despite ISWAP releasing most of the girls, Leah has remained in captivity for refusing to abandon her Christian faith and convert to Islam. 

“Four years ago, Leah Sharibu was forcibly taken from her family and loved ones,” said USCIRF Commissioner Tony Perkins who advocates for Sharibu as part of USCIRF’s Religious Prisoner of Conscience Project. “ISWAP must free Leah Sharibu so she can reunite with her family, resume her education, and live a life of dignity of which she is most deserving. Her resolve in the face of the unimaginable should motivate us to do all that we can to help her and all other young women facing similar, dire circumstances.” 

According to recent estimates, ISWAP is likely the largest militant Islamist group operating in northern Nigeria. It routinely violates Nigerian citizens’ rights to freedom of religion and belief, compels people to attend prayer, and implements harsh punishments justified on its singular interpretation of Islam. USCIRF has recommended that the U.S. Department of State redesignate ISWAP as an “entity of particular concern,” or EPC for engaging in systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom. 

“The United States should pressure the Nigerian government to secure the release of Leah Sharibu and other kidnapped girls and take proactive measures to make sure that no other generation is subjected to the same fate,” USCIRF Commissioner Perkins added. 

In its 2021 Annual Report, USCIRF recommended that the State Department redesignate Nigeria as a “country of particular concern,” or CPC. USCIRF was appalled when the State Department removed Nigeria from its designation as a CPC in November 2021 after doing so in December 2020. Additionally, USCIRF published a recent factsheet on religious freedom in Nigeria’s Kano State and an episode of the USCIRF Spotlight podcast on why redesignating Nigeria as a CPC is warranted.  

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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]. 

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