[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 569 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 569

   Recognizing religious freedom as a fundamental right, expressing 
support for international religious freedom as a cornerstone of United 
States foreign policy, and expressing concern over increased threats to 
           and attacks on religious freedom around the world.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 29, 2024

   Mr. Coons (for himself, Mr. Lankford, Mr. Kaine, and Mr. Tillis) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
                          on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
   Recognizing religious freedom as a fundamental right, expressing 
support for international religious freedom as a cornerstone of United 
States foreign policy, and expressing concern over increased threats to 
           and attacks on religious freedom around the world.

Whereas freedom of religion is a fundamental right;
Whereas the First Amendment of the Constitution stipulates that ``Congress shall 
        make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the 
        free exercise thereof'';
Whereas, in pushing for religious freedom in the Commonwealth of Virginia, James 
        Madison argued that the right to freedom of religion ``is precedent, 
        both in order of time and in degree of obligation, to the claims of 
        Civil Society'';
Whereas freedom of religion is a foundational element of democracy, human 
        rights, and the rule of law in the United States and abroad, as well as 
        a guiding principle for United States foreign policy;
Whereas Article 18 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights 
        states ``Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and 
        religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, 
        and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or 
        private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, 
        worship, and observance'';
Whereas the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom 
        (referred to in this preamble as ``USCIRF'') stipulates that ``freedom 
        of religion or belief is an expansive right that includes the freedoms 
        of thought, conscience, expression, association, and assembly'';
Whereas the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6401 et seq.) 
        recognizes religious freedom as a ``universal human right'';
Whereas the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6401 et seq.) 
        requires the President to annually designate as a ``country of 
        particular concern'' each country the government of which has engaged in 
        or tolerated ``particularly severe'' religious freedom violations, 
        including--

    (1) systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations such as torture;

    (2) cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment;

    (3) prolonged detention without charges; and

    (4) forced disappearances;

Whereas, on December 29, 2023, the Biden administration designated Burma, the 
        People's Republic of China, Cuba, Eritrea, Iran, the Democratic People's 
        Republic of Korea, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, 
        Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan as countries of particular concern;
Whereas the Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act (Public Law 114-
        281; 130 Stat. 1426) requires the President to annually designate 
        countries with severe religious freedom violations that do not reach the 
        threshold of ``systematic, ongoing, and egregious'' violations to a 
        ``Special Watch List'';
Whereas, on December 29, 2023, the Biden administration designated Algeria, 
        Azerbaijan, the Central African Republic, Comoros, and Vietnam as 
        Special Watch List countries;
Whereas to enhance accountability for global human rights violations, including 
        violations of religious freedom, President Joseph R. Biden signed the 
        permanent authorization of the Global Magnitsky Human Rights 
        Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 2656 note) into law on April 8, 2022;
Whereas the Senate passed a resolution calling for the global repeal of 
        blasphemy, heresy, and apostasy laws in 2020 (Senate Resolution 458, 
        116th Congress, agreed to December 19, 2020);
Whereas, in 2023, threats to religious freedom worsened around the world, 
        including incidents targeting the exercise of religion in public or 
        private, participation in religious advocacy, conversion from one 
        religion to another, engagement in religious practices broadly, and 
        those choosing to have no faith at all;
Whereas, according to USCIRF, there were thousands of incidents wherein 
        religious freedom was violated in 2023, including--

    (1) the targeting of 2,228 individuals by 27 countries and entities;

    (2) the imprisonment of 1,491 individuals;

    (3) the ongoing imprisonment of 1,311 individuals; and

    (4) the death of 9 individuals while in custody;

Whereas USCIRF has identified 95 countries with legislation criminalizing 
        blasphemy used to enforce arbitrary limitations on religious freedom of 
        expression;
Whereas the Department of State has determined that religious minorities 
        continue to be victims of genocides that relate to matters of religious 
        freedom, including in--

    (1) Burma, where security forces have committed crimes against humanity 
and genocide against Rohingya Muslims since 2017, including the systematic 
killing, torture, and confinement of Rohingyas to small, overcrowded camps 
without freedom of movement or access to adequate food, health care, and 
education; and

    (2) China, where since 2017 the Chinese government has committed crimes 
against humanity and genocide against Uyghurs, including by--

    G    (A) imprisoning more than 1,000,000 Uyghurs in ``re-education 
camps'';

    G    (B) subjecting Uyghur women to forced sterilizations and 
abortions;

    G    (C) deliberately separating Uyghur families;

    G    (D) instituting government surveillance through intrusive homestay 
programs; and

    G    (E) eliminating the Uyghur language from educational materials;

Whereas religious minorities face harassment, intimidation, violence, and 
        imprisonment from state and non-state actors around the world, including 
        in--

    (1) Afghanistan, where the Taliban has rigorously enforced its harsh 
interpretation of Shari'a law that violates the freedom of religion or 
belief of religious minorities, including Christians, Ahmadiyya Muslims, 
Baha'is, and nonbelievers who face imprisonment or death if discovered;

    (2) Burma, where in addition to violence targeted at religious 
minorities, strict laws in favor of the Buddhist majority regulate 
religious conversion, marriages, and births of non-Buddhists such as 
Muslims and Christians;

    (3) China, where the government utilizes targeted surveillance to 
monitor, harass, and detain Christians, Tibetan Buddhists, Falun Gong 
practitioners, Uyghur Muslims, and other religious minorities for 
exercising their beliefs;

    (4) Cuba, where the government subjects religious leaders and groups 
that are unregistered through its Office of Religious Affairs to detention, 
interrogation, imprisonment, and confiscation of property;

    (5) India, where laws promoting religiously discriminatory policies, 
including laws that target religious conversion, interfaith relationships, 
the wearing of hijabs, and cow slaughter, have been implemented at the 
national, state, and local levels and negatively impact the livelihoods of 
Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Dalits, and Adivasis;

    (6) Iran, where the government disproportionately subjects members of 
religious minorities such as Baha'is, Christians, Gonabadi Dervishes, and 
Sunni Muslims to amputations, floggings, detention, harassment, 
surveillance, executions, and exile;

    (7) Nicaragua, where the government arbitrarily detains and exiles 
religious clerics and leaders who advocate for the rights of religious 
minorities and criticize the government's persecution of the Roman Catholic 
Church;

    (8) Nigeria, where the government's enforcement of blasphemy laws 
embedded in Nigeria's criminal and Shari'a codes results in the arbitrary 
detainment and imprisonment of those who express their religious identity;

    (9) North Korea, where any religion contrary to the ruling ideology 
known as Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism is deemed an existential threat to the 
state;

    (10) Pakistan, where religious minorities face killings, lynchings, mob 
violence, forced conversions, and sexual violence for their religious 
identities;

    (11) Russia, where laws on terrorism and extremism are used to target 
religious minorities such as Jehovah's Witnesses, Muslims, and members of 
the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church for their beliefs;

    (12) Tajikistan, where the government represses the display of public 
religiosity by individuals of all faiths and institutes strict restrictions 
against Muslims, including a ban on beards and hijabs;

    (13) Turkmenistan, where the government controls all aspects of 
religious life and expression, monitors religious practice, and punishes 
nonconformity through administrative harassment, imprisonment, and torture; 
and

    (14) Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine, where the Russian military has 
reportedly perpetrated 43 cases of targeted persecution of the clergy and 
more than 109 acts pressuring churches and religious figures representing 
Orthodox Christians, Ukrainian Greek-Catholics, Roman Catholics, 
Protestants, Muslims, and Jehovah's Witnesses since the launch of its full-
scale invasion in February 2022;

Whereas violent extremists and non-state actors continue to capitalize upon 
        violence and instability in countries to perpetrate serious human rights 
        violations against religious minorities, including in--

    (1) Latin America, where criminal gangs and paramilitary groups 
threaten and displace indigenous communities, destroy places of worship, 
and forcibly require conversion or renunciation of ancestral practices;

    (2) Nigeria, where violent, non-state militant groups such as Boko 
Haram target Christians, as well as persons engaged in ``un-Islamic'' 
activities, including Muslim critics and elders;

    (3) the Sahel region of Africa, where violent extremist organizations 
threaten violence against Christians who do not convert to Islam;

    (4) Syria, where violent extremist organizations restrict the religious 
freedom of non-confirming Sunni Muslims and threaten the property, safety, 
and existence of religious minority groups such as Alawites, Christians, 
and Druze; and

    (5) Yemen, where the Houthi rebels harass, defame, and incite hatred 
against vulnerable faith communities including the Christians, Baha'is, 
Jews, and non-religious persons who continue to be forced to flee to the 
south of the country or leave Yemen entirely; and

Whereas religious sites continue to be damaged or destroyed, especially in areas 
        of conflict, including in--

    (1) Burma, where the military junta has destroyed approximately 200 
houses of worship and religious sites such as Buddhist monasteries, 
churches, and mosques, and has occupied religious compounds for use as 
military bases;

    (2) China, where the government has destroyed mosques, shrines, 
gravesites, and other religious and cultural sites throughout Xinjiang and 
the country;

    (3) Ethiopia, where ongoing violence between the government and non-
state actors has led to drone strikes and attacks on church compounds such 
as the Full Gospel Church in the Oromiya region in which 8 people were 
killed;

    (4) India, where places of worship such as Christian churches and 
Muslim madrasas continue to be destroyed, especially those in predominantly 
Christian and Muslim neighborhoods;

    (5) Nigeria, where violent, non-state groups, such as Boko Haram, 
attack population centers and religious targets, including churches and 
mosques;

    (6) Sudan, where members of the Rapid Support Forces attacked a Coptic 
Christian monastery and raided the Sudanese Episcopal Church in Khartoum, 
using both as bases for military operations; and

    (7) Ukraine, where approximately 500 houses of worship have been 
damaged or destroyed since Russia's full-scale invasion of the country 
began in February 2022: Now, therefore, be it

    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) recognizes religious freedom as a fundamental human 
        right;
            (2) recognizes the critical importance of religious freedom 
        in--
                    (A) supporting democracy, good governance, and the 
                rule of law;
                    (B) encouraging pluralism and robust political 
                participation; and
                    (C) fostering global stability and peace;
            (3) expresses grave concern over threats to religious 
        freedom around the world, such as through harassment, violence, 
        and imprisonment;
            (4) condemns all efforts to suppress religious freedom, 
        including through the criminalization of--
                    (A) religious exercise in public or private;
                    (B) the choice to have no faith;
                    (C) conversion from one religion to another;
                    (D) advocacy for religious freedom;
                    (E) sharing and spreading religious messages and 
                educational materials; and
                    (F) construction and maintenance of religious holy 
                sites;
            (5) supports the invaluable work of religious freedom 
        advocates in fighting for greater religious freedom around the 
        world; and
            (6) urges the Department of State to--
                    (A) continue robust bilateral and multilateral 
                engagement with allies and partners on religious 
                freedom;
                    (B) maintain and expand support for human rights 
                activists, journalists, and civil society leaders 
                working to protect religious freedom in countries of 
                particular concern and Special Watch List countries;
                    (C) leverage all diplomatic and sanctions tools 
                available to the United States Government to hold 
                religious freedom violators accountable for their 
                actions, including those authorized by the 
                International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 
                6401 et seq.);
                    (D) continue to impose sanctions on those 
                responsible for violations of religious freedom 
                pursuant to the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Act (22 
                U.S.C. 2656 note);
                    (E) consider human rights abuses and religious 
                freedom violations in prioritizing partners for free 
                trade agreements; and
                    (F) promote religious freedom as an utmost priority 
                for the United States in implementation of United 
                States foreign policy.
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