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January 22, 2015 | USCIRF

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) strongly condemns the package of race and religion bills that Burma’s parliament is considering.  These bills would further restrict religious freedom and discriminate against all non-Buddhists, particularly male Muslims, in religious conversions and marriages.  USCIRF criticized a May draft of one of these bills, the religious conversion law, as “irreparably flawed” and in contravention of “Burma’s international commitments to protect freedom of religion or belief.”

“Discrimination against non-Buddhists through law, regulation and practice already is pervasive in Burma.  Instead of countering prejudices, these bills would further entrench and legalize discrimination,” said Katrina Lantos Swett, USCIRF Chair.  “The bills risk fanning the flames of intolerance and violence against Muslims and other religious minorities.  If they become law, Burma will be taking a major step backward.” 

During USCIRF’s August trip to Burma (read the report), Commissioners M. Zuhdi Jasser and Eric P. Schwartz raised concerns about these bills in meetings with Burmese parliamentarians and representatives of the Union government.   

“Rather than protecting individuals’ rights to peacefully practice their faiths, the government of Burma is promoting restrictive, discriminatory measures that violate religious freedoms,” said Lantos Swett.  “The right to change your beliefs and marry a partner of your own choosing are personal decisions not in the scope of government.”

Specific concerns include:

• The Religious Conversion Bill would force those seeking to convert to give to the newly created Registration Boards an extensive list of personal information, answer intrusive questions, and wait 90 days for approval. 
• The Interfaith Marriage Bill imposes restrictions on marriages between non-Buddhist men and Buddhist women, including a 14-day waiting period during which time anyone can object to the marriage, and the court reviewing the objections has the power to deny the marriage.  Non-Buddhist men are denied numerous rights in the case of divorce and face criminal penalties if they ask their Buddhist wife to convert.  Under the bill, non-Buddhist men also bear most of the financial and/or criminal penalties, including prison sentences.  

USCIRF concluded in its 2014 Annual Report chapter on Burma (Burmese translation) that political reforms have not improved legal protections for religious freedom and have done little to curtail anti-Muslim violence, incitement, and discrimination, particularly targeting the Rohingya Muslim minority.  For more than a decade, USCIRF has recommended that Burma be designated as a “country of particular concern” (CPC) for its systematic, egregious and ongoing religious freedom violations.  The U.S. Department of State has designated Burma as a CPC repeatedly since 1999, most recently in July 2014.

 To interview a USCIRF Commissioner, please contact USCIRF at [email protected] or 202-786-0613.

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January 20, 2015 | USCIRF

WASHINGTON, D.C. – This January marks the eighth anniversary of the illegal removal of Eritrean Orthodox Patriarch Abune Antonios from his position as head of the Eritrean Orthodox Church, the country’s largest religious community. 

“The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) vehemently condemns the illegal removal from office and continued house arrest of Patriarch Antonios.  The Patriarch also suffers from severe diabetes and deteriorating health and has been denied medical assistance. We call on the Eritrean government immediately to release Patriarch Antonios and the more than 2,000 people imprisoned for their religious beliefs. Religious freedom is a fundamental, universal human right. Unfortunately, this anniversary reminds us that these rights, as well as other human rights, have been denied to the people of Eritrea for more than two decades,” said USCIRF Chair Lantos Swett. 

Eritrean authorities on January 13, 2006 removed Patriarch Antonios from his church position for his refusal to comply with government orders to excommunicate 3,000 parishioners who had opposed the government and for his call to release political prisoners.  One year later, on January 20, 2007, authorities confiscated Patriarch Antonios’ personal pontifical insignia.  On May 27, 2007, the government illegally replaced Patriarch Antonios with Bishop Dioscoros of Mendefera, and then forcibly removed him from his home and placed him under house arrest at another residence. 

President Isaias Afweki has ruled Eritrea since 1993 and his regime is among the most repressive in the world.  Religious prisoners are subject to torture and beatings and are pressured to renounce their faith.  Released religious prisoners report having been confined in 20-foot metal shipping containers or underground barracks and having endured extreme temperature fluctuations.  Since 2002, the Eritrean government has registered only four religious communities, the (Coptic) Orthodox Church of Eritrea, Sunni Islam, the Roman Catholic Church, and the Evangelical Church of Eritrea, and maintains tight controls over their internal operations and activities.  No other religious group has been approved and without such approval no group legally can hold public religious activities. 

USCIRF since 2004 has recommended, and the State Department has designated, Eritrea as a “country of particular concerns” (CPC), for its “systematic, ongoing and egregious” violations of religious freedom.

For more information about USCIRF’s work on Eritrea, please view the 2014 Annual Report here.

To interview a USCIRF Commissioner, please contact USCIRF at [email protected] or 202-786-0613.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is deeply disturbed by the news that a Saudi blogger, Raif Badawi, was publicly flogged 50 times today in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia as part of a punishment for a blasphemy conviction.  USCIRF has long followed Mr. Badawi’s case, expressed its grave concern, and called for his release.

“Today, Raif Badawi was the victim of a cruel and barbaric act carried out by the Saudi justice system – unfortunately, business as usual in the Kingdom.  And for nothing more than creating an online forum for diverse views to be expressed freely,” said USCIRF Chair Katrina Lantos-Swett.

In May 2014, a Saudi appeals court sentenced Mr. Badawi to 10 years in prison, 1,000 lashes, and fined him $1 million SR ($266,000 USD) for, among other charges, insulting Islam and religious authorities.  In July 2013, the court sentenced Badawi to 600 lashes and seven years in prison and his website was shut down.  An appeals court overturned that verdict, and the retrial resulted in the harsher sentence.  The current sentence calls for Mr. Badawi to be lashed 50 times a week for 20 consecutive weeks.

“The Commission welcomed a statement yesterday by the U.S. Department of State urging the Saudi government to cancel the flogging and to review Mr. Badawi’s case,” said Chair Lantos-Swett.  “Based on the facts of the case, the Commission joins the State Department in urging the Saudi government to cease any further lashings, and we also reiterate our call for the immediate and unconditional release of Mr. Badawi.  Mr. Badawi is a prisoner of conscience who simply exercised his internationally-guaranteed rights of freedom of religion and expression,” said Lantos-Swett. 

Mr. Badawi, the founder and editor of the Free Saudi Liberals website, was arrested in June 2012 in Jeddah and charged with crimes including apostasy and “insulting Islam” through electronic channels.  In January 2013, a Saudi court chose not to pursue the apostasy charge, which carries the death penalty.  Last year Mr. Badawi's lawyer, Waleed Abu al-Khair, was sentenced by the newly created anti-terror court to 15 years in jail after being found guilty of various trumped-up charges related to his work as a human rights defender.

The U.S. has designated Saudi Arabia for 10 years as a “country of particular concern,” or CPC, for systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom under the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act.  Although Saudi Arabia has been designated a CPC since 2004, an indefinite waiver on taking any action in consequence of the CPC designation (which is an option under the International Religious Freedom Act) has been in place since 2006.  

In its 2014 Annual Report, the Commission recommended that Saudi Arabia continue to be named a CPC.

To interview a USCIRF Commissioner, please contact USCIRF at [email protected] or 202-786-0613.