    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2008, Book II)]
    [July 14, 2008]
    [Pages 1012-1014]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks on the 10th Anniversary of the International Religious Freedom
    Act
    July 14, 2008

        Thank you all. Please be seated. Welcome. I want to welcome
    Congressman Wolf, Congressman Smith, Congressman Franks,
    former Senator Nickles. Thank you all for
    coming. I'm so honored that you've come to celebrate the 10th
    anniversary of the International Religious Freedom Act.
        This legislation that we commemorate today builds on a tradition
    that defined our Nation. After all, when the Founding Fathers adopted
    the Bill of Rights, the very first liberty they enshrined was the
    freedom of religion. They recognized that the most basic freedom a man
    can have is the right to worship his own God as he sees fit. Today, we
    are blessed to live in a country where that freedom is respected.
        In too many countries, expressions of freedom were silenced by
    tyranny, intolerance, and oppression. So a decade ago, Members of
    Congress--I suspect some of the Members here--and religious leaders and
    human rights activists came together to advance religious freedom around
    the globe. The result of their work was the International Religious
    Freedom Act. The bill created vital diplomatic tools to help our
    Government to promote religious liberty abroad. The act established an
    Ambassador at Large position to ensure that religious liberty remains a
    priority of every administration. And I want to thank our current
    Ambassador, John Hanford, for joining
    us today. And thank you for taking on this important job.
        The act established the U.S. Commission on International Religious
    Freedom to monitor the state of religious liberty worldwide. The act
    requires annual reporting on the state of religious freedom in every
    nation to help identify the most egregious offenders. The act authorizes
    sanctions against regimes. In all these ways, the act has placed
    religious liberty where it belongs, at the center of U.S. foreign
    policy.
        We've seen some hopeful progress during the last couple of years.
    We've seen it in Turkmenistan, where the nation's chief mufti had been ousted and imprisoned for refusing to
    teach state propaganda as a sacred religious text. Through efforts
    authorized by the International Religious Freedom Act, the United States
    pressed for the mufti's release. In 2007, Mufti Ibadullah was pardoned
    and freed. He has since become an adviser to Turkmenistan's Council on
    Religious Affairs.
        We've seen some progress in Vietnam. The United States used the
    tools of this act to press for the release of dozens of religious
    prisoners, all of whom had been freed. Vietnam's Government has reopened
    many of the churches it had shut down. And most religious groups report
    a decrease in the Government's oppression of believers. This act has
    encouraged Vietnam

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    to take some promising first steps toward religious liberty, and we're
    going to continue to work toward the day when all Vietnamese are free to
    worship as they so desire.
        The 10-year anniversary of the International Religious Freedom Act
    is also an occasion to remember the many people who have yet to secure
    this precious liberty. Our thoughts turn especially to those living in
    the countries where religious freedom is of particular concern. Some of
    these nations have taken steps toward reform; others haven't. Today we
    urge the leaders of all these countries to immediately end their abuses
    of religious freedom. We urge these leaders to respect the rights of
    those who seek only to worship their God as they see fit.
        Today we remember those seeking religious freedom in Iran, where the
    regime's anti-Semitism has provoked global outrage. We remember those
    seeking religious freedom in Eritrea, where approximately 3,000
    religious prisoners languish in the nation's jails. We remember those
    seeking religious freedom in Sudan, where police have used tear gas to
    attack a Christian church, and where Christian leaders who met with a
    Muslim woman wanting to convert were beaten and detained.
        We remember those seeking religious freedom in North Korea, where
    those caught practicing faiths other than the state ideology are
    imprisoned and people found with Bibles can be executed. We remember
    those seeking religious freedom in Burma, especially the nation's
    Buddhist monks who have endured brutal raids on their monasteries and
    suffered tear gas attacks and gunfire during peaceful protests.
        We remember those seeking religious freedom in Uzbekistan, where, in
    the past, members of religious minorities have been beaten and jailed,
    yet where recent agreements give us hope that these abuses will not be
    repeated in the future.
        We remember those seeking religious freedom in Saudi Arabia, where
    the religious police continue to harass non-Muslims, yet where we also
    believe reforms pledged by King Abdallah can bring real change. We remember those seeking
    religious freedom in China, where we honor those who press for their
    liberties, people like Uighur Muslims. I had the honor of meeting Rebiya
    Kadeer. I've also had the honor of meeting
    those who attend underground churches in China. And we also honor the
    courage of the Dalai Lama and the
    Buddhists in Tibet.
        And you know, last month here at the White House, I met with a
    Chinese dissident named Li Baiguang. He's a
    lawyer who worked on human rights cases; he's a house church Protestant.
    For his work, he's been repeatedly jailed and attacked. A few months
    ago, he was scheduled to meet with Members of Congress. State
    authorities blocked the meeting and detained Li on the outskirts of
    Beijing. This determined man has pledged: ``I'll continue to seek
    justice for victims of rights abuses and promote the rule of law in
    China.'' And my message to President Hu Jintao,
    when I last met him, was this: So long as there are those who want to
    fight for their liberty, the United States stands with them.
        Whenever and wherever I meet leaders, I'm going to constantly remind
    them that they ought to welcome religion in their society, not fear it.
    I'll remind them, someone pledged to love a neighbor like they'd like to
    be loved themselves is someone who will add to their society in
    constructive and peaceful ways.
        I'm met by men and women who are working for religious freedom
    around the globe, people like Li. And when I do,
    I'm always impressed by their courage. I've attended worship services
    from Hanoi to Beijing. And when I speak to world leaders, I remind
    them--the leaders in those countries--that the worship services are a
    necessary part of developing a society for which they can be proud.
        And so as we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the International
    Religious Freedom

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    Act, we pray that all those who seek their God will be able to do so
    free of oppression and fear.
        I want to thank you all for your good work, and I ask for the good
    Lord to continue to bless our country. Thank you for your time.

    Note: The President spoke at 11:51 a.m. in the Roosevelt Room at the
    White House. In his remarks, he referred to former Sen. Donald L.
    Nickles; Nasrullah ibn Ibadullah, adviser, Turkmenistan's Council on
    Religious Affairs; Chinese Uighur dissident Rebiya Kadeer; and Tenzin
    Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama. The Office of the Press Secretary also
    released a Spanish language transcript of these remarks.