FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 26, 2001

Contact:
Lawrence J. Goodrich, Communications Director, (202) 523-3240, ext. 27

The delegation of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) completed its visit to Egypt on Saturday, March 24 and travels to Saudi Arabia and then to Israel and the Occupied Territories. Three members of the Commission visited Egypt: Elliott Abrams, chairman of the Commission, Dr. Firuz Kazemzadeh, Commission vice-chairman, and Commissioner Dr. Laila Al-Marayati. They will report to the rest of the nine-member Commission about the visit. No findings or conclusions can or will be made by the Commission until all Commission members have been informed about the trip.

"The Commission wishes to thank the Government of Egypt and the officials with whom we met: Sheikh Tantawi, Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, His Holiness Pope Shenouda III, as well as other clergy who spoke with us; and the academics, journalists, and experts who helped us better understand the state of religious freedom in this important country," commented Elliott Abrams, head of the delegation and chairman of the Commission. "We had been planning for this trip since last summer and it was most informative." The Commission set its travel agenda for the year 2001 shortly after the release of its first report on May 1, 2000.

"The goal of our trip here was to learn firsthand from the Egyptian government, Muslim and Christian clergy and laity, intellectuals, academics, and other experts," Abrams explained. "Under U.S. Law the Commission advises the President, Secretary of State, and the U.S. Congress, not the Egyptian or any other foreign government. Our job is to think about the effects of U.S. foreign policy on religious freedom in various countries. This visit has been very useful to us in performing that job, and we are very grateful to Ambassador Kurtzer and the staff of the U.S. Embassy for helping us achieve it."

The USCIRF is mandated to advise the U.S. government on how to promote religious freedom for persons of all faiths. Its Web site (www.uscirf.gov) reflects the Commission's efforts on behalf of religious liberty around the world, including India, China, Nigeria, and Vietnam.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 21, 2001

Contact:
Lawrence J. Goodrich, Communications Director, (202) 523-3240, ext. 27

Repeating its view that Sudan is "the world's most violent abuser of the right to freedom of religion and belief," the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom today called on the Bush administration and Congress to step up efforts to help end that country's 18-year civil war. The fighting has killed some 2 million people and displaced 4 million others.

In a series of recommendations, the Commission called for the appointment of a prominent special envoy to work for an end to the war but urged the President not to name an ambassador to Sudan at this time. It also recommended increasing the amount of food aid to be delivered outside channels that the Khartoum government can veto and stepping up assistance to southern Sudan and the opposition National Democratic Alliance. Other recommendations include diplomacy to pressure Sudan's government into stopping its slave raids and its air raids on civilian and humanitarian targets; strengthened economic sanctions; and a new requirement for foreign companies doing business in Sudan to disclose those activities to American investors when raising funds in U.S. capital markets.

The recommendations follow up on those the Commission made in its first Annual Report delivered May 1, 2000. "The government of Sudan continues to commit egregious human rights abuses - including widespread bombing of civilian and humanitarian targets, abduction and enslavement by government-sponsored militias, manipulation of humanitarian assistance as a weapon of war, and severe restrictions on religious freedom," the Commission found. "While the Clinton Administration did take some steps to address the situation ... its actions fell well short of the comprehensive, sustained campaign that the Commission believes is commensurate with the Sudanese government's abuses. The Commission urges the Bush administration to mount such a campaign."

Commissioner David Saperstein, speaking for the Commission at a press conference, urged the following:

1. The U.S. government should appoint a nationally prominent individual who enjoys the trust and confidence of President Bush and Secretary of State Colin Powell and who has appropriate authority and access whose sole responsibility is directed to bringing about a peaceful and just settlement of the war in Sudan and an end to the religious freedom abuses and humanitarian atrocities committed by the Sudanese government. The U.S. should not appoint an ambassador to Sudan at this time.

2. The U.S. government should continue to increase the amount of its humanitarian assistance that passes outside of both Operation Lifeline Sudan (OLS) and should press OLS to deliver aid wherever it is needed, especially the Nuba Mountains, with or without the approval of the Sudanese government.

3. The U.S. government should increase its assistance to southern Sudan and the opposition National Democratic Alliance.

4. The U.S. government should launch a major diplomatic initiative aimed at enlisting international pressure, to stop the Sudanese government's bombing of civilian and humanitarian targets; ground attacks on civilian villages, feeding centers, and hospitals; slave raids; and instigation of tribal warfare.

5. The U.S. government should strengthen economic sanctions against Sudan and should urge other countries to adopt similar policies. The U.S. should prohibit any foreign company from raising capital or listing its securities in U.S. markets as long as it is engaged in the development of oil and gas fields in Sudan. The U.S. government should not issue licenses permitting the import of gum arabic from Sudan to the United States.

6. Companies that are doing business in Sudan should be required to disclose the nature and extent of that business in connection with their access to U.S. capital markets.

7. The U.S. government should intensify its support for the peace process and for the Declaration of Principles, and make a just and lasting peace a top priority of this administration's global agenda.

8. The U.S. government should work to increase human rights and media reporting on abuses in Sudan, including supporting, diplomatically and financially, the placement of human rights monitors in southern Sudan and in surrounding countries where refugee populations are present.

Commissioner Laila Al-Marayati issued separate concurring opinions regarding Recommendations 3 and 5.

The complete text of the Commission's latest report on Sudan can be obtained on its Web site at www.uscirf.gov, or from the communications office at (202) 523-3240, ext. 27.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom was created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 to monitor the status of freedom of thought, conscience, and religion or belief abroad, as defined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and related international instruments, and to give independent policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State and the Congress." src="https://www.uscirf.org/images/layout/subbottomtext1.gif" />

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 16, 2001

Contact:
Lawrence J. Goodrich, Communications Director, (202) 523-3240, ext. 27

Three members of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) will visit Egypt from March 20-24 as part of a regional tour that also includes visits to Saudi Arabia and Israel and the Occupied Territories. During their visit to Egypt, the Commission members will meet with government and religious officials in Cairo to consult with them on issues of religious freedom as defined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom is an independent, bipartisan body that advises the government of the United States on issues related to religious freedom around the world. Its members are not administration officials, but private citizens appointed to advise the President, Secretary of State, and Congress. As part of its mandate to recommend policies to promote religious freedom, the Commission prepares its own annual report, the first of which was issued in May 2000. This report provided extensive recommendations for U.S. policymakers. It also contained a thorough review of the State Department's first Annual Report on International Religious Freedom, including a series of recommendations on how it might be improved. Commission members travel abroad to gather information on religious freedom. They have held public hearings and testified before the U.S. Congress on many occasions. Commission recommendations are communicated publicly or privately to the Administration, the Secretary of State, and Congress.

The members of the Commission visiting Cairo are USCIRF Chairman Elliott Abrams, President of the Ethics and Public Policy Center; Vice Chairman Firuz Kazemzadeh, Senior Advisor for the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States; and Commissioner Laila Al-Marayati, M.D., founder and past president of the Muslim Women's League. Two Commission staffers will accompany the delegation.