VIETNAM PRAISED, UZBEKISTAN FAULTED ON RELIGIOUS FREEDOM
Uzbekistan added to State Department list of rights violators for abuses
against Muslims
Washington -- The U.S. State Department removed Vietnam from its annual list of Countries of Particular Concern (CPC) for severe violations of
religious freedom, but Uzbekistan, new to the list, received sharp criticism for harassment and imprisonment of Muslims. Other countries on
the list are Burma, China, North Korea, Eritrea, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Sudan. All were on the CPC list in 2005.
Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom John V. Hanford III made the announcement at a press conference November 13 at the
release of the State Department's 2006 designations of Countries of Particular Concern.
"Vietnam has made significant improvements toward advancing religious freedom. Though important work remains to be done, Vietnam can no longer
be defined as a severe violator of religious freedom ... under the International Religious Freedom Act," Hanford said, referring to the
1998 act of Congress that provides for promotion of religious freedom worldwide. The law instituted an annual report, the designation of
countries "of particular concern," and provides for assistance to governments seeking to improve protection of religious freedom.
Vietnam was put on the list in 2004 for abuses that include forcing people to renounce their religions, prohibiting practice of certain
religious sects and jailing practitioners. "This marks the first time that a country has made sufficient progress as a result of diplomatic
engagement to be removed from the CPC list, and we view this as a very important milestone," Hanford said. He said enactment of new laws had
helped Vietnam "revise and clarify official policy on religion." (See related article
http://usinfo.state.gov/dhr/Archive/2005/Nov/09-175547.html
.)
Christians and Buddhists are among those harassed and imprisoned in Vietnam. Hundreds of churches of the Evangelical Church of Vietnam
North were forced to close. But many prisoners detained on religious grounds, among them the monk Thich Thien Mien of the United Buddhist
Church of Vietnam, have been released, according to Hanford. Catholics, who had been allowed to practice under tight restrictions, ordained 57
new priests in Hanoi in 2005, he said.
"Now we're pleased to report that many hundreds of churches have been reopened and still more are operating freely and finally getting
registered," Hanford said. Among them are Baha'i, Buddhist and Christian sects that had been driven underground. But, he said, "remaining
problems merit immediate attention."
According to a recent Human Rights Watch report, despite the amnesty of prisoners, many more remain in prisons or under "pagoda arrest," where
Buddhist leaders are confined to their monasteries. Human Rights Watch Asia Division deputy director Sophie Richardson told USINFO that "small
improvements" have been seen, but there are still " serious ongoing abuses" in Vietnam.
Uzbekistan presents another picture. There, religious restrictions amount to persecution in some cases. "Muslims have long
borne the brunt of the government of Uzbekistan's harsh repression," Hanford said, explaining that Muslims are afraid to pray in public or
visit their mosque because the government considers "conservative Islamic practice to be evidence of extremism and terrorism." He added,
"It is clear that many of those harassed, abused, tortured and convicted of membership in extremist organizations are simply observant Muslims."
"We've advocated for the rights of Muslims in many countries around the world, including Burma, India, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, China, France,
Turkey, Turkmenistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Uzbekistan," he said.
While acknowledging that real extremist threats exist in the country from groups such as the banned Islamic Movement of
Uzbekistan, Hanford
said, "[W]e do take issue with the Uzbek authorities' use of religious observance to profile religious believers as extremists without offering
little if any material evidence that these individuals have been involved in or planned any specific acts of violence."
Its "abysmal record on religious freedom and other human rights" prompted Uzbekistan's inclusion on the CPC in the hope that this "will
encourage the government to rethink its policies and undertake the necessary reforms."
Of the other countries, Hanford said, China has made slow and inconsistent progress in safeguarding religious freedom. Saudi Arabia
moved to contain extremism by its "efforts to control the religious police, the Mutawwa'in," which often harasses and beats believers, he
said. The Saudi government also has addressed "the problem of intolerance in educational literature which has been disseminated around
the world by the Saudis."
Arbitrary prohibitions and punishments relating to religious practices earn countries a place on the CPC list. Prevention of religious
activities, discriminatory fines, imprisonment, forced religious conversion or renunciation, torture and murder for religious beliefs are
among the criteria for designation as a Country of Particular Concern.
"[T]he United States is committed to protecting the internationally recognized right of religious freedom for people of all faiths," Hanford
said, adding that harassment, unreasonable restrictions or religious persecution are "unacceptable."
A transcript http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2006/75927.htm
of remarks made at the release of the report is available on the State Department Web site.
For more information, see International Religious Freedom http://usinfo.state.gov/dhr/human_rights/intl_religious_freedom.html
.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site:
http://usinfo.state.gov)
Noor T. Umarov
Information Assistant
U.S. Embassy
109A Ismoili Somoni Ave.
Dushanbe, Tajikistan
cell: (992-93) 570-70-38
phone: (992-37) 229-23-58
email: UmarovNT@state.gov
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