[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 37 (Thursday, February 29, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1087-S1088]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

                                 ______
                                 

 SENATE RESOLUTION 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

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

                              S. Res. 569

       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--
          (A) imprisoning more than 1,000,000 Uyghurs in ``re-
     education camps'';
          (B) subjecting Uyghur women to forced sterilizations and 
     abortions;
          (C) deliberately separating Uyghur families;
          (D) instituting government surveillance through 
     intrusive homestay programs; and
          (E) eliminating the Uyghur language from educational 
     materials;

[[Page S1088]]

       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.

                          ____________________