[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1998, Book I)]
[June 18, 1998]
[Pages 984-986]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks Following Discussions With Religious Leaders
June 18, 1998

    Thank you very much, Madam Secretary, to the Members of Congress who are here, and the religious 
leaders, especially to Rabbi Schneier, 
Archbishop McCarrick, Reverend 
Argue. I thank all of you for your devotion to 
religious liberty and to the proposition that America's advocacy of 
freedom should, indeed must, include our advocacy of religious liberty.
    I'd like to say a special word of thanks to John Shattuck, our Assistant Secretary of State, who has worked so hard 
to promote human rights around the world and whom, I hope, will soon be 
moving on to other important responsibilities for the United States. 
John, thank you very, very much for doing a great job. Sandy 
Berger and Madeleine and I rely on you a lot, and we hope you'll have another 
good run soon.
    I'd also like to say a special word of appreciation to 
Reverend Argue, Archbishop McCarrick, and Rabbi Schneier 
for leading a delegation to China on a mission that grew out of my 
meeting with President Jiang last fall. In their 
discussions with Chinese Government leaders and religious groups of all 
kinds, they were our forceful advocates for religious liberty. Their 
visit helped to make the Chinese people aware of the fundamental 
importance of this issue, not simply to the American Government but to 
the American people.
    We have just met to discuss their trip, and I have received from 
them a very impressive report of their activities, replete with their 
specific recommendations about where we go from here. And their insights 
will certainly have a big influence on my activities and conversations 
as I prepare to embark for China.
    I also want to thank all the religious leaders who have joined us 
here today who have been part of our advisory process. We welcome the 
recent release from prison of two key Chinese religious leaders, Gao 
Feng and Bishop Zeng Jingmu, 
as well as China's announcement that it intends to sign the 
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, with its 
guarantees of freedom of thought and religion. But Chinese Christians, 
Muslims, and Buddhists remain imprisoned for their religious activities, 
including in Tibet, and other believers face harassment.
    Therefore, when in China, I will speak as clearly as I can about 
human rights and religious freedom. Our message is clear: We in the 
United States believe that all governments everywhere should ensure 
fundamental rights, including the right of people to worship when and 
where they choose. We believe that China should resume talks with the 
Dalai Lama. We believe that prisoners of 
conscience should be released.
    I am convinced that dealing directly with the Chinese on these 
issues is the best way to make a difference, and making a difference is 
in the end what matters. I am also convinced, as I told President 
Jiang here both privately and in our press 
conference, that China will be more stable, will grow stronger, will 
acquire more influence in the world in direct proportion to the extent 
to which it recognizes liberties of all kinds and especially religious 
liberty.
    Of course, we all know that the freedom to follow one's personal 
beliefs, to worship as one chooses, is at the core of what it means to

[[Page 985]]

be an American. It is in the very first amendment to the Constitution. 
It is at the forefront of the Bill of Rights. Men and women fleeing 
religious persecutions helped to found our country. They still arrive 
every year, of every conceivable faith, from every point in the world to 
seek this freedom.
    Our churches, synagogues, mosques, temples, and other houses of 
worship are centers of vibrant community life and vital community 
service. We have always been vigilant in protecting our own religious 
freedoms, for we know that an attack on any group imperils all. Dr. 
Martin Luther King once said that ``injustice anywhere is a threat to 
justice everywhere.'' It clearly applies to the principle of religious 
liberty.
    And we know now that if we want the kind of world for our children 
that we are laboring so hard to build for the 21st century*--for this 
one in particular--[laughter]--exhibit A--[laughter]--our struggle for 
liberty cannot end at our borders. There are many countries, far too 
many, where religious believers still suffer in darkness, where 
governments ban religious practices or force an officially sanctioned 
creed on nonbelievers; people are harassed, imprisoned, tortured, 
sometimes even executed for daring to live by their beliefs.
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    *At this point, a baby cried.
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    On the other hand, we know that when religious diversity is 
respected, it fosters a sense of community and solidarity. Religious 
hatred fuels violence, as we have seen too often. So we promote both 
religious freedom and religious tolerance. They are two sides of the 
same coin, each necessary for the other's success.
    Secretary Albright and I, as she 
said so eloquently, have made promotion of religious freedom around the 
world a top priority. I have had extensive discussions on the subject 
with President Yeltsin, as all of you know, 
and with other world leaders. State Department officials here and 
overseas now give greater attention to religious persecution and other 
religious liberty issues then ever before. We have a high-level advisory 
committee on which many of you serve, and I thank you for the work you 
have done.
    Now Secretary Albright is creating 
a new position, a Senior Adviser for International Religious Freedom, to 
make sure that religious liberty concerns get high and close attention 
in our foreign policy. And I am pleased to announce the appointment 
today of the gentleman to my right, Dr. Robert Seiple, to the job. As President of World Vision United States, he 
has applied skill and determination to World Vision's faith-based 
struggle against poverty in more than 100 countries. To this position he 
brings a genuinely unusual combination of deep personal faith, sweeping 
global perspective, the toughness and determination of a Marine Vietnam 
veteran, and an extraordinary proven capacity for leadership. He is here 
with his family, and in a moment I want to ask him to say a few words. 
But we thank you for your willingness to serve.
    Let me just say one word about how we should continue to pursue this 
cause. I have been deeply touched that, as the presence of these Members 
of Congress shows, there is a universal determination I think in our 
country among all our decisionmakers to advance the cause of religious 
liberty. It crosses party; it crosses region; it crosses philosophy; it 
crosses different religious faiths. There is some difference of opinion 
about how we can best proceed.
    My belief is that we have to be both principled and resourceful. We 
need to be doing what works. We need to be dedicated to achieving 
results. And therefore I hope that Congress will not only express its 
strong support and give us the tools to do the job but leave us as much 
flexibility as possible to advance the cause of religious freedom 
consistent with what can be done and how it can best be done, nation by 
nation. America is not strengthened in fighting for religious liberty or 
in fighting against religious persecution by laws that are so rigid a 
President's hands are tied.
    As we intensify our efforts to promote religious liberty, I know we 
can count on the support of people of faith all over this country.
    Abraham Lincoln, whose determination to defend our liberty cost him 
his life, once said, ``The fight must go on. The cause of liberty must 
not be surrendered at the end of one, or even 100, defeats.'' Many of 
you in this room have been part of those defeats. But at the end of all 
of them there lies ultimate victory. That is what we must believe; that 
is the reality we must create.
    Again, let me thank you all and now ask Dr. Seiple to come forward to make a few remarks.
    Thank you very much.

[[Page 986]]

Note: The President spoke at 3:08 p.m. in the Roosevelt Room at the 
White House. In his remarks, he referred to Rabbi Arthur Schneier, 
president, Appeal of Conscience Foundation; Archbishop Theodore E. 
McCarrick, Archbishop of Newark; Rev. Don Argue, former president, 
National Association of Evangelicals; President Jiang Zemin of China; 
and President Boris Yeltsin of Russia.