By Muslim Mirror News,
New Delhi, May 3: The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), in its annual report for 2013, has expressed serious concern on violations of religious freedom in about two dozen countries including Iran, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia among Muslim countries and India, China and Myanmar among others.
The report puts the countries where religious freedom is in danger in two categories – Tier I and Tier 2. The Tier 1 countries are those that USCIRF recommends the United States designate as “countries of particular concern” (CPCs) for their governments’ engagement in or toleration of particularly severe violations of religious freedom. Tier 1 countries include countries already officially designated as CPCs by the U.S. government and additional countries USCIRF has concluded meet the CPC threshold and should be so designated.
The Tier 2 category replaces the Watch List designation used by USCIRF in previous years. The USCIRF created this category to highlight situations where religious persecution and other violations of religious freedom engaged in or tolerated by the governments are increasing, and the country is on the threshold of CPC status—that the violations engaged in or tolerated by the government are particularly severe.
The USCIRF, in the Annual Report 2013, has recommended the US government to re-designate the following eight countries as CPCs or Tier 1. They are Burma (Myanmar), China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Uzbekistan. The USCIRF has found that seven other countries meet the CPC threshold and should be so designated and put in Tier 1. They are Egypt, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Vietnam.
In the Tier 2 category, USCIRF has concluded that the following eight countries meet the Tier 2 standard in this reporting period January 31, 2012 – January 31, 2013. These countries are Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Cuba, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Laos, and Russia.
The Tier 2 has countries who are on the threshold of CPC status, meaning that the violations engaged in or tolerated by the government are particularly severe and that at least one, but not all three, of the elements of the “systematic, ongoing, egregious” standard is met. The Tier 2 designation provides advance warning of negative trends that could develop into severe violations of religious freedom, thereby giving policymakers an opportunity to engage early and increasing the likelihood of preventing or diminishing the violations.
USCIRF findings
Burma (Myanmar): Ongoing and important political reforms in Burma have yet to significantly improve the situation for freedom of religion and belief. During the reporting period, most religious freedom violations occurred against ethnic minority Christian and Muslim communities, with serious abuses against mainly Christian civilians during military interventions in Kachin State and sectarian violence by societal actors targeting Muslims in Rakhine (Arakan) State. In addition, Buddhist monks suspected of anti-government activities were detained or removed from their pagodas, and at least eight monks remain imprisoned for participating in peaceful demonstrations. In addition to sometimes severe restrictions on worship, education, and other religious activities and ceremonies, religious groups continue to face a range of problems, including: pervasive surveillance, imprisonment, discrimination, societal violence, destruction or desecration of property, and censorship of religious materials.
Egypt: During the reporting period, the Egyptian transitional and newly elected governments have made some improvements related to freedom of religion or belief and there was positive societal progress between religious communities. Nevertheless, during a February 2013 visit to Egypt, USCIRF found that the Egyptian government continued to engage in and tolerate systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of freedom of thought, conscience and religion or belief. Despite a significant decrease in the number of fatalities and injuries from sectarian violence during the reporting period, Coptic Orthodox Christians, and their property, continued to experience sustained attacks. In many cases, the government failed or was slow to protect religious minorities from violence. This violence and the failure to convict those responsible continued to foster a climate of impunity. Egyptian courts continued to prosecute, convict, and imprison Egyptian citizens charged with “contempt” or “defamation” of religion. In some instances, disfavored Muslims faced harassment, detention, and imprisonment by government authorities. Egypt’s newly adopted constitution, which has been widely criticized, includes several problematic provisions related to freedom of religion or belief and related rights. Implementation of previous court rulings—related to granting official identity documents to Baha’is and changing religious affiliation on identity documents for converts to Christianity—has seen some progress but continues to lag, particularly for Baha’is. In addition, the government has not responded adequately to combat widespread and virulent anti-Semitism in the government-controlled media.
Iran: The government of Iran continues to engage in systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom, including prolonged detention, torture, and executions based primarily or entirely upon the religion of the accused. Iran is a constitutional, theocratic republic that discriminates against its citizens on the basis of religion or belief. During the past year, the already poor religious freedom conditions continued to deteriorate, especially for religious minorities, in particular for Baha’is as well as Christians and Sufi Muslims. Physical attacks, harassment, detention, arrests, and imprisonment intensified. Even some of the recognized non-Muslim religious minorities protected under Iran’s constitution—Jews, Armenian and Assyrian Christians, and Zoroastrians—face harassment, intimidation, discrimination, arrests, and imprisonment. Majority Shi’i and minority Sunni Muslims, including clerics who dissent, were intimidated, harassed, and detained. Dissidents and human rights defenders were increasingly subject to abuse and several were sentenced to death and even executed for the capital crime of “waging war against God.” Heightened anti-Semitism and repeated Holocaust denials by senior
government officials and clerics continue to foster a climate of fear among Iran’s Jewish community. Since the 1979 revolution, members of minority religious communities have fled Iran in significant numbers for fear of persecution.
Pakistan: The government of Pakistan continues to engage in and tolerate systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of freedom of religion or belief. Sectarian and religiously-motivated violence is chronic, especially against Shi’i Muslims, and the government has failed to protect members of religious minority communities, as well as the majority faith. Pakistan’s repressive blasphemy laws and other religiously discriminatory legislation, such as the anti-Ahmadi laws, have fostered an atmosphere of violent extremism and vigilantism. Pakistani authorities have not consistently brought perpetrators to justice or taken action against societal actors who incite violence. Growing religious extremism threatens Pakistan’s security and stability, as well as the freedoms of religion and expression, and other human rights, for everyone in Pakistan.
Saudi Arabia: During the reporting period, the Saudi government made improvements in policies and practices related to freedom of religion or belief, but remains a “country of particular concern,” or CPC, for violations of freedom of religion or belief. The Saudi government continues to ban most forms of public religious expression other than that of the government’s own interpretation of one school of Sunni Islam; prohibits any public non-Muslim places of worship; and periodically interferes with the private religious practice of non-Muslim expatriate workers in the country. There continued to be sporadic arrests and detentions of Shi’i Muslim dissidents, partly as a result of more frequent protests and demonstrations since early 2011. Saudi officials often cite national security concerns as a pretext for cracking down on religious minorities and Muslim dissidents. In addition, the Saudi government continued to prosecute, convict, and imprison individuals charged with apostasy, blasphemy, and sorcery.
India: There has been no large-scale communal violence against religious minorities in India since 2008, and in recent years the Indian government has created special investigative and judicial structures in an effort to address previous such attacks. Nevertheless, in the past year, progress in achieving justice through these structures for the victims of past incidents continued to be slow and ineffective. In addition, members of religious minority communities, including Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, and Jehovah’s Witnesses, reported an increase during the reporting period of intimidation, harassment, and violence, particularly in states with anti-conversion laws.
About USCIRF
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (IRFA) as an entity separate and distinct from the State Department, is an independent, bipartisan U.S. government advisory body that monitors religious freedom worldwide and makes policy recommendations to the President, Secretary of State, and Congress. USCIRF bases these recommendations on the standards found in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international documents. The 2013 Annual Report represents the culmination of a year’s work by Commissioners and staff to document abuses on the ground and make independent policy recommendations to the U.S. government.
Full Report of USCIRF 2013
http://www.uscirf.gov/images/2013%20USCIRF%20Annual%20Report(1).pdf