FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 28, 2004

Contact:
Anne Johnson, Director of Communications, (202) 523-3240, ext. 27

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) will hold a public, on-the-record hearing on Friday, April 30 at the City University of New York (CUNY) School of Law at Queens College in Flushing, NY on "Bangladesh: Protecting the Human Rights of Thought, Conscience, and Religion." The hearing is scheduled from 6:30-8:00 p.m. in the auditorium of the CUNY School of Law, 65-21 Main Street, Flushing, NY. Congressman Joseph Crowley, representing New York's 7th Congressional District, will participate in this event.

The USCIRF hearing will examine recent trends regarding religious freedom for both Muslims and non-Muslims in Bangladesh and the implications of those trends for U.S. policy. There is concern that the growth of religious extremism could have a negative impact on the rights of all Bangladeshis.

Congressman Crowley, a member of the House Committee on International Relations, is Chair and founder of the Congressional Caucus on Bangladesh. He represents the second largest South Asian community in the United States, based in Jackson Heights, Queens.

WHAT:"Bangladesh: Protecting the Human Rights of Thought, Conscience, and Religion"

WHEN:Friday, April 30, 2004, 6:30-8:00 p.m.

WHERE:CUNY School of Law at Queens College auditorium 65-21 Main Street, Flushing, NY

SIGNS AND PLACARDS ARE PROHIBITED INSIDE THE HEARING ROOM

Attendees will have the opportunity to submit written questions - 3x5 cards will be available. There will be no microphone for audience participation.

Confirmed witnesses are as follows:

Latifur Rahman, former Chief Justice of Bangladesh

U. A. B. Razia Akter Banu, Professor of Political Science, University of Dhaka

Abbas Faiz, Amnesty International

Rosaline Costa, human rights monitor and Coordinator, Hotline Bangladesh

Aroma Dutta, civil society activist and Executive Director, PRIP Trust

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."

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 27, 2004

Contact:
Anne Johnson, Director of Communications, (202) 523-3240, ext. 27

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) welcomes the designation of North Korea Freedom Day on April 28, 2004, as an opportunity to extend hope to those who work for the advancement of human rights in North Korea and raise awareness among American lawmakers of the intolerable oppression of the North Korean people. Since 2001, North Korea has been designated a "country of particular concern" (CPC) for systematic and egregious violations of religious freedom.

USCIRF Vice Chair Nina Shea will speak at a rally on Capitol Hill on North Korea Freedom Day. Several Commissioners will also meet privately with defectors who have come to Washington for the occasion. "North Korea Freedom Day represents an opportunity for policy makers to listen to the voices of North Korean defectors and ensure that U.S. policy towards North Korea in every way supports their cause of bringing freedom to North Korea," said Commissioner Shea.

"Humanitarian organizations have reported that the government-manipulated famine has left over two million North Koreans dead or fleeing their country. The Gulags currently hold over 200,000 political prisoners and untold thousands of others have perished in these chambers of horrors," said Shea. "When will the leaders of the world confront the human rights disaster in North Korea? We want the long-persecuted people of North Korea to know that we have not forgotten them."

On North Korea Freedom Day, activists will also show their support of the legislation currently pending in both the Senate and the House of Representatives that, if passed, would increase funding to organizations that promote democracy and human rights in North Korea and would allow for North Korean citizens to apply for asylum in the United States. This legislation reflects several of the Commission's past recommendations and is designed to ensure that U.S. policy towards North Korea reflects American values of promoting human rights and religious freedom.

While participants at North Korea Freedom Day will raise awareness on crisis in North Korea, it is also important to discuss what the United States can do about the situation. The ongoing Six Party Talks present an opportunity for the United States and other nations to confront the threat of the North Korean government - not only to the outside world but also to the North Korean people themselves. The Commission has called for the expansion of the Six Party Talks to include issues of human rights, religious freedom, and refugees.

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.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 23, 2004

Contact:
Anne Johnson, Director of Communications, (202) 523-3240, ext. 27

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) Vice Chair Felice D. Gaer has been invited by U.S. Ambassador Stephan M. Minikes to join the U.S. delegation at the meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) on anti-Semitism in Berlin on April 28-29, 2004. The Commission has urged states to take concrete action, create a mandate to monitor and report regularly on anti-Semitic incidents, and review compliance on a regular basis. This is the fifth OSCE meeting in which the USCIRF has participated.

The Commission has emphasized that acts of anti-Semitism should be vigorously combated by states. "It's not hooliganism, it's human rights abuse," said Commissioner Gaer. "The Commission has recommended that the OSCE pay separate attention to monitoring and combating the rise of anti-Semitism in the region." Calling the recognition by the OSCE of a resurgence of anti-Semitism throughout the region a good first step, the Commission has recommended that the U.S. government urge that:

• concrete action be taken within the OSCE to ensure that all participating states are living up to their commitments to combat discrimination and intolerance, in particular to combat anti-Semitism;

• a mandate be created within the OSCE, with the responsibility to monitor and report regularly on anti-Semitic incidents and the implementation by member states of their Copenhagen commitments to eradicate anti-Semitism and other discrimination;

• countries review compliance within the OSCE of commitments of member states on anti-Semitism on a regular basis.

The Commission has made recommendations relating to the work of the OSCE in both the general area of protecting the right to freedom of religion or belief and also specifically on combating anti-Semitism in OSCE member states. Commission participation increased in the last year, as the OSCE held special meetings devoted to both religious freedom and anti-Semitism. Commissioner Gaer made public statements on behalf of the Commission at each of these meetings.

The USCIRF has addressed anti-Semitism and related issues in the course of its work on several countries both inside and outside of Europe, including Belarus, Belgium, Egypt, France, Iran, Pakistan, Russia, and Saudi Arabia. The Commission has also consulted with representatives of Jewish communities in several countries, other religious leaders, and NGOs. The Commission worked with the U.S. OSCE delegation to successfully urge member states to agree to hold the OSCE's first-ever special meeting on anti-Semitism in July 2003.

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.