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1 1 (July 20, 2021)

handle is hein.crs/goveect0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Updated July 20, 2021 Global Human Rights: International Religious Freedom Policy introduction For decades, U.S. policymakers have sought to promote religious freedomabroad, reflecting both support forhunmn rights in U.S. foreign policy as well as the particular emphasis on freedomofreligion in U.S. domestic law and political culture. Protection ofreligious freedomis also affirmed in international law through the United Nations Univers al Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and other instruments. Congress has been an advocatefor internationalreligious freedomissues andhas soughtto ensure continued support forreligious freedomas a focus of U.S. foreign policy, most prominently through passage of the International Religious FreedomAct of 1998 (IRFA). Legislative Background The International Religious FreedomAct of 1998 (P.L. 105-292) is the foundational legislation for U.S. international religious freedom(IRF) policy. Recognizing religious freedomas a universallhumanright, IRFA created various government mechanisms aimed at cementing IRF as a foreign policy priority of the United States. Most significantly, the law created an Office on International Religious Freedom within the State Department headed by an Ambassador at Large (AAL) for IRF; required that the Secretary of State issue an annual report on the status ofreligious freedomaround the world; mandated that the President identify countries of particular concern (CPCs) and prescribed punitive actions in responseto violations of religious freedom, subject to presidential waiver authority; created the independent U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom(USCIRF); and amended the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to make inadmissible into theUnited States foreign government officials who have committed particularly severe religious freedomviolations. Congress has subsequently strengthened IRFA via amendment, notably through the FrankR. Wolf International Religious FreedomAct (Wolf IRFA; P.L. 114-281), which became lawin December2016. The major provisions of the law called for the AALfor IRF to have a greater role within interagency policy processes and to report directly to the Secretary of State; mandated designation of a special watch list of countries with severe violations ofreligious freedombut that did not meet CPC criteria; and mandated designation of nonstate entities of particular concern (EPCs). The State Department's Role The State Department leads the federal government's efforts to promote internationalreligious freedom. The AALfor IRF heads the Office on International Religious Freedom(IRF Office). Per IRFA, the AALintegrates IRF policies into U.S. foreign policy efforts and is to participate in any interagency processes in which the promotion of IRF can advance United States national security interests. The AALand the IRF Office lead the drafting of the annual international religious freedomreport and advise the Secretary of State on U.S. policy actions in response to religious freedomviolations. The AALforIRF position is currently vacant (in July 2021, the Biden Administration indicated that a nomination for the position wouldbe made in the coming weeks). A related seniorposition is the congressionally mandated Special Envoy for Monitoring and Combating anti-Semitism(currently vacant), which was upgraded to a presidentially appointed position with the rankof ambassadorby P.L.116-326, enacted in January 2021. During the tenure of former Secretary of State Michael Pompeo, the IRF Office and the Office of the Special Envoy for Monitoring and Combating anti-Semitis mwere positioned to report directly to the Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights, after previously being situated within the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. Pursuant to IRFA, the AALfor IRF is to continue to report to the Secretary of State. international Religious Freedom Report The IRF report, which is statutorily required by May 1 each year, covers developments in each foreign country during the prior calendar year and includes information on the status ofreligious freedom, violations ofreligious freedom, and relevant U.S. policies. The IRF report is the official U.S. government account ofreligious freedomconditions abroad, and is aprimary information source for the Secretary of State's country of particular concern designations. The report covering calendar year 2020 was submitted to Congress on May 12, 2021, and is available on the Department of State website. Countries (and Entities) of Particular Concern IRFA mandates that the President, using information from the IRF report and other sources, designate particularly severe religious freedomviolators as countries of particular concern (CPCs) (see Figure 1). The law defines particularly severe violations as thosethat are systematic, ongoing, and egregious. The Wolf IRFA mandated an additional specialwatch list ofcountries with severe religious freedomviolations but that do not reach the threshold of systematic, ongoing, and egregious. In recognition ofreligious freedomabuses carried out by the Islamic State and other nonstate actors, Wolf IRFA also https :/c rs reps

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