U.S. Commission On International Religious Freedom Report:
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), an independent bi-partisan commission, has released its 2021 annual report.
Highlights of the report:
- The report designated 14 countries as “countries of particular concern (CPCs)” as “their governments are engaged in or tolerate “systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom.” This includes India.
- This year, USCIRF said that religious freedom conditions in India “continued their negative trajectory”.
- The government promoted Hindu nationalist policies resulting in systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom.
- It particularly noted the passage of the “religiously discriminatory” Citizenship Amendment Act.
- The report indicated that there was seeming police complicity in the Delhi riots.
- Further, the report alleged that “government action including the acquittal of all individuals accused of demolishing the Babri Masjid mosque—as well as government inaction to address religious violence contributed to a culture of impunity for those promulgating hate and violence toward religious minorities.
USCIRF :
- It is an independent, bipartisan, U.S. federal government commission created by the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) that monitors the universal right to freedom of religion or belief abroad.
- USCIRF uses international standards to monitor religious freedom violations globally and makes policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State, and Congress.
