Rice required to act on Eritrea, Saudi Arabia, and Vietnam
WASHINGTON, February 8, 2005 EDnews – The U.S. Commission on
International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has written to Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice with specific recommendations for the policy actions she is
required by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (IRFA) to take by
March 15 in response to the designation by the United States, for the first
time, of Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, and Eritrea as “countries of particular
concern” (CPCs) for their egregious and systematic religious freedom
violations. Following is full text of the letter:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Anne Johnson, Director of
February 7, 2005 Communications,
(202) 523-3240, ext. 27
Rice
required to act on Saudi Arabia, Vietnam and Eritrea by March 15
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)
has written to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice with specific
recommendations for the policy actions she is required by the International
Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (IRFA) to take by March 15 in response to the
designation by the United States, for the first time, of Saudi Arabia, Vietnam,
and Eritrea as “countries of particular concern” (CPCs) for their egregious and
systematic religious freedom violations.
“As world events of the past several years have confirmed, ensuring that
governments respect freedom of thought, conscience, and religion or belief both
advances our strategic interests and is a vital component of securing broader
freedoms. Toward that end, IRFA provides us with a flexible policy tool,” said
USCIRF Chair Preeta D. Bansal. “IRFA calls upon the U.S. government to take
specific policy actions in response to designation of countries as CPCs. The
designation of Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, and Eritrea provides the United States
with an opportunity to act decisively. We call upon Secretary Rice to take bold
steps in response to the designation of these three countries and chart a new
foreign policy course that promotes freedom through both positive actions and,
at the same time, demonstrates serious U.S. concern to those governments that
fail to uphold their international commitments to human rights and fundamental
freedoms.”
The full text of the letter and recommendations for specific policy
recommendations follow. An expanded text and explanation for each of these
recommendations may be found attached to the
press release of the letter on the USCIRF Web site at www.uscirf.gov.
Dear Secretary Rice:
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom congratulates you on
your recent confirmation as Secretary of State. As in the past, the Commission
looks forward to working together with you on our mutual goal of making the
promotion of religious freedom and other human rights an integral part of our
country’s foreign policy. Perhaps now more than ever, the promotion of
religious freedom and related human rights is vital to our strategic, as well
as humanitarian, interests. In a world in which religious identity has become a
profound determinant for certain actors within our international system, it is
essential that the United States seek to foster conditions for freedom of
thought, conscience, and religion or belief as a critical component of securing
freedom and counteracting the roots of terrorism worldwide.
Madame Secretary, we write to you at this critical juncture at which the
U.S. government is required to take responsive actions for countries designated
as “countries of particular concern,” or CPCs, under the International
Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (IRFA). In particular, we offer several specific
recommendations with respect to Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, and Eritrea, each of
which was designated a CPC for the first time in 2004.
As you know, IRFA provides for many positive tools for advancing the
internationally guaranteed right to freedom of thought, conscience, and
religion or belief. At the same time, IRFA also contains a number of very
specific provisions aimed at demonstrating serious U.S. concern to those
governments that persistently perpetrate severe violations of religious
freedom.
The Commission welcomed Secretary Powell’s redesignation last year of Burma,
China, Iran, North Korea, and Sudan as CPCs, and applauded the new designation
of Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, and Eritrea. The Commission believes that the process
of CPC designation—and the implementation of meaningful policies in response to
such designations—are among the most serious actions taken by the U.S.
government in its human rights policy. The Department of State should use the
full range of available policy tools to take action as outlined in IRFA with
respect to all the countries the Secretary names as CPCs.
Regrettably, the only official action taken by our government with respect
to countries that to date have been designated CPCs has been to invoke already
existing sanctions, rather than to take additional measures pursuant to IRFA.
Reliance on pre-existing sanctions provides little incentive for CPC
governments to reduce or end egregious violations of religious freedom. The
failure to take additional action under IRFA suggests that nothing further can,
or will, be done by the U.S. government with respect to those countries that
commit severe violations of freedom of religion or belief. The Commission has
regularly drawn attention to, and expressed strong concern about, this failure
in U.S. foreign policy.
The recent designation of Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, and Eritrea as CPCs, none
of which is subject to pre-existing sanctions, provides our government with an
opportunity decisively to respond to severe religious freedom violators.
According to the statutory requirements of IRFA, for these three countries the
U.S. government must: (1) request consultations with the government on the violations
that gave rise to the designation, and consult with humanitarian and other U.S.
organizations on the potential impact of actions that could be taken; (2)
either (a) conclude a binding agreement to cease the particularly severe
violations, or (b) take an action from one of several options specified in the
statute (or a “commensurate” action); and (3) report to Congress on the action
taken.
We understand that the consultation process is currently underway and that
the deadline for taking action with respect to the three countries is March 15,
2005. The Commission respectfully, and in accordance with its statutory
obligations, recommends the following actions by the U.S. government in
response to the designations of Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, and Eritrea as CPCs. In
doing so, we emphasize that these actions are initial steps that should be
taken, in concert with diplomatic efforts at all levels, to urge the
governments of these countries to abide by their international human rights
commitments and cease severe violations of freedom of religion or belief. We
also recognize that IRFA authorizes more stringent actions that could be taken
should severe violations continue.
With regard to the three new CPC designations, the Commission recommends
that the U.S. government should:
Saudi Arabia
1) identify those Saudi agencies and officials thereof who are responsible
for particularly severe violations of religious freedom and vigorously enforce
section 604 of IRFA with respect to Saudi Arabia, rendering inadmissible for
entry into the United States any Saudi government official who was responsible
for or directly carried out such violations;
2) issue a proclamation, under the President’s authority pursuant to section
212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 USC 1182(f)), to bar those
Saudi government officials from entering the United States who have been
responsible for propagating globally an ideology that explicitly promotes hate,
intolerance, and human rights violations;
3) issue a demarche urging the government of Saudi Arabia to cease funding
or other support for written materials or other activities that explicitly
promote hate, intolerance, and human rights violations, including the
distribution of such materials in the United States and elsewhere outside of
Saudi Arabia; and
4) order the heads of appropriate U.S. agencies, pursuant to section
405(a)(13) of IRFA, not to issue any specific licenses and not to grant any
other specific authority for the export of any item on the U.S. Commerce Control
List of dual-use items [Export Administration Regulations under part 774 of
title 15] to any agency or instrumentality of the government of Saudi Arabia
that is responsible for committing particularly severe violations of religious
freedom. In FY 2004, the Commerce Department approved approximately $67 million
worth of articles for Saudi Arabia, including, for example, such items as
thumbcuffs, leg irons, shackles, and other items that could be used to
perpetrate human rights violations.
Vietnam
1) identify those Vietnamese agencies and officials who are responsible for
particularly severe violations of religious freedom and vigorously enforce
section 604 of IRFA with respect to Vietnam, rendering inadmissible for entry
into the United States any Vietnamese government official who was responsible
for or directly carried out such violations; and
2) dedicate no less than $1 million for FY 2005 and FY 2006, if
discretionary funds are allocated to Vietnam above its annual earmark, to
programs that will directly promote freedom of religion and belief and related
human rights in Vietnam.
Eritrea
1) engage in vigorous advocacy on religious freedom and other universal
human rights at all levels of involvement with the government of Eritrea and
draw international attention to religious freedom abuses in Eritrea, including
in multilateral fora such as the United Nations Commission on Human Rights; and
2) conduct a review of U.S. development assistance to Eritrea with the aim
of redirecting such assistance to programs that contribute directly to
democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. Increases in other forms of
development assistance should depend on measurable improvements in religious
freedom.
With regard to Eritrea, the Commission notes its disappointment that the
government of Eritrea has not yet registered any of the religious groups whose
places of worship were closed and public religious activities prohibited in
2002 pending compliance with registration requirements. The Commission also
notes with concern continued reports of the arrest and detention without charge
of clergy and others engaged in the practice of their faith.
Please find attached to this letter an expanded description of and
explanation for each of these recommendations.
Madame Secretary, although it is the case that the IRFA legislation allows
the President to waive the taking of any action in response to the CPC
designations, the Commission firmly believes that to do so would effectively
render meaningless the IRFA process and undermine our nation’s commitment to
the promotion of freedom of religion or belief throughout the world. To
maintain the integrity of the process and the principle, a stronger response,
as outlined in IRFA, is essential.
The Commission looks forward to being of assistance to you and your staff in
formulating actions by the U.S. government to advance freedom of religion or
belief in Eritrea, Saudi Arabia, and Vietnam, as well as the other countries
designated as CPCs.
Respectfully,
Preeta D. Bansal
Chair
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.
Preeta D. Bansal, Chair *
Felice D. Gaer, Vice Chair * Nina Shea, Vice Chair *
Archbishop Charles J. Chaput * Michael Cromartie *
Khaled Abou El Fadl * Elizabeth H. Prodromou * Bishop
Ricardo Ramirez * Michael K. Young * Ambassador John V.
Hanford III, Ex-Officio * Joseph R. Crapa, Executive
Director
