[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 129 (Thursday, September 24, 1998)]
[House]
[Pages H8537-H8538]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            IN SUPPORT OF RELIGIOUS LIBERTY IN THE MALDIVES

  (Mr. PITTS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak on behalf of the 
persecuted Christians in the Republic of Maldives. Reports indicate 
that on June 18, 1998, police searched foreign workers' homes and 
confiscated passports, correspondence, books and other possessions.
  Approximately 19 foreign Christians were forced to sign statements 
and were expelled for life from the Maldives. In addition, Christian 
Maldivian citizens have been arrested and put in prison. Authorities 
have denied these individuals visits from their

[[Page H8538]]

families and have subjected some of them to torture.
  Despite government statements that, ``The Maldives respects all 
religion'', reports suggest the contrary.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge the government of Maldives to protect the 
religious liberty of all of its citizens and release the individuals 
who have been arrested for their religious beliefs. Religious liberty 
should be a fundamental human right of all peoples of the world.

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