Nigeria Revisited: Boko Haram

Nigeria

Basic Info: Of the 177.2 million (July 2014 estimate) population, it is estimated approximately 50 percent is Muslim and 50 percent Christian. A small number adheres solely to indigenous religious beliefs, and many individuals combine indigenous beliefs with Muslim or Christian beliefs and practices. The predominant Islamic group is Sunni, divided among Sufi groups. Growing Shia and Izala (Salafist) minorities exist. There are also a small number of Ahmadi Muslims. Christian groups include evangelicals, Roman Catholics, Anglicans, Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), and Jehovah’s Witnesses. The northern states are predominantly Muslim, but a significant number of Christians also reside in the north, and Christians and Muslims reside in about equal numbers in central Nigeria, the Federal Capital Territory, and the southwestern states. Evangelical denominations are growing rapidly in the central and southern regions. Because of the close links among religion, ethnicity, and political and economic interests, it is difficult to categorize many incidents as based solely on religious identity. The disputes were usually between ethnic groups native to a region (indigenes) and those whose ethnic roots originated in another part of the country (settlers). Often the indigenes and settlers belonged to different religious as well as ethnic groups. The federal government again did not implement any recommendations from numerous government-sponsored panels for resolving these types of disputes or reducing tensions, despite ongoing calls by political and religious leaders to do so.

Mexico Revisited: Saint Death

Mexico/Chiapas

Basic Info: Chiapas is the southern most state of Mexico and borders Guatemala. It has the ruins of five ancient Mayan city states within its borders, and about 25% of the population are either of full or predominately Mayan descent. The area is mostly made up of poor, rural, small farmers and many people in rural areas do not even speak Spanish. The state has the highest rate of malnutrition in Mexico, affecting more than 40% of the population. The Mexican Constitution grants religious freedom with some restrictions, such as only gathering in their own building and church leaders are not allowed to criticize Mexico’s laws or authorities.

Persecution: Persecution in Mexico, especially in Chiapas, Oaxaca and Hildalgo, has been increasing in severity over the last 12 years and includes everything from beatings, to land/home seizures, to murder of Christians who will not abandon Christ.  The Catholic Church loses more priests to persecution by the narcos in Chiapas than anywhere else on earth.  Many victims of persecution are indigenous Mexicans, not those of Spanish descent.  They are poor, uneducated, unaware of their rights, and culturally marginalized (many don’t even speak Spanish).

In Chiapas, due to the Mayan descent of most of the population, Catholicism has been blended with traditionalist pagan practices creating what is known as traditionalist communities. These traditionalists sponsor “festivals” 13 times a year, like the Day of the Dead, and many villages require residents to pay a fee to cover the costs of the event. However, many evangelicals say that these festivals are really just drunken orgies, and refuse to participate or pay for them. This has resulted in believers being jailed, even though there is no law requiring them to pay for the festivals. Reprisals, such as the destruction and burning of church buildings has occurred as well. Traditionalists have even threatened to burn the Christians inside the church, and leaders face death threats. 

According to the Coordination of Christian Organizations of Chiapas, some villages placed signs around the towns banning admittance to Protestants. In one such town in June of last year, a Presbyterian pastor was arbitrarily detained and beaten while vising family in the village. In December of last year, according to a report by a local NGO, villagers in San Juan Chamula municipality were attacked and beaten and their utility services were cut off after they refused to make financial contributions to the village’s Catholic festivals. According to some NGOs and religious leaders, there were instances where local authorities denied access to public cemeteries to non-Catholic community members. In January the village church council in Comachuen, Michoacan said a Protestant man could not be buried in the village cemetery because his family had not participated in local Catholic events. The municipal government negotiated a temporary resolution in which Protestant families would pay a semi-annual contribution that would not be used for Catholic events.

Santa Muerta (Saint Death)

Santa Muerte began as an underground movement with deep roots in the Aztec goddess of the underworld.  She is depicted as a skeleton dressed as a bride carrying a scythe. It is believed that she can grant miracles, like the Catholic saints, but without passing judgement.  She accepts all who prostrate at her feet and makes no preference for those who lead an amoral or virtuous life.  Her devotion is considered unique and astonishing because she does not require her followers to forsake all others and remain faithful to her. Instead, she asks for special offerings.  Her followers erect altars and offer lit candles, fruit, alcohol, and flowers.  However, her extreme devotion regularly requires a blood sacrifice. 

Since Santa Muerte does not judge one’s actions, she has become the favorite goddess of those marginalized by society, such as homosexual and transgender individuals, criminals, and the drug cartels.  Drug cartels have been known to call on her for protection and victory, in some cases dragging their victims before her shrine and spilling their blood.  Some have even taken the heads of their victims and offered them as burnt sacrifices.  As always there is a darker side.  In interviews with the Houston Press, several followers said that you must make a promise if you ask La Santa Muerte for a favor. If you don’t keep that promise, she can take away a loved one.

While Mexico has been fighting for years in their bloody war against the drug cartels, many people have lost faith in the church and see no justice or reprieve from the corruption and bloodshed plaguing their country.  Therefore, many people are flocking to this cult to find salvation and liberation from injustice-injustice from government and even religious officials.  It is estimated by Andrew Chesnut, the author of Devoted To Death: Santa Muerte, The Skeleton Saint, that the folk saint boasts between 10 and 12 million devotees. 

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Persecution in our Backyard: Mexico (2015)


Saint Death offered Marijuana by Mexicans


A Saint for Sinners


Mexican Cult Murders Children (2012)

Turkmenistan Revisited: God or Man?

In a country where the President has absolute control over not only your political life, but your religious life as well, many Christians will find themselves faced with the dilemma of following the law of the land or following God.  Many Christians want to live peaceful lives as obedient productive citizens.  The question then becomes 'how?'  How do I obey my government when I have to register but am then denied registration?  Or I have to request approval for worship and other activities, but rarely if ever obtain permission? For many Christians, they make the choice to fear God more than they fear what man can do to them and they faithfully and boldly share their faith.  We must also stand with them and support them with our prayers, so that they know they do not walk this road alone. 

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Turkmenistan

In a climate of pervasive government information control, particularly severe religious freedom violations persist in Turkmenistan. Police raids and harassment of registered and unregistered religious groups continued. The country’s laws, policies, and practices violate international human rights norms, including those on freedom of religion or belief, and new administrative code provisions increased the penalties for most “illegal” religious activities. Turkmen law does not allow a civilian alternative to military service, and at least one Jehovah’s Witness conscientious objector is known to be detained. In light of these severe violations, USCIRF recommends in 2015 that the U.S. government again designate Turkmenistan as a “country of particular concern,” or CPC, under the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA). In July 2014, the State Department designated Turkmenistan a CPC for the first time. USCIRF has recommended CPC designation for Turkmenistan since 2000.

Background Turkmenistan has an estimated total population of 5.1 million. Official Turkmen data on religious affiliation are not available; the U.S. government estimates that the country is about 85 percent Sunni Muslim, nine percent Russian Orthodox, and a two percent total that includes Jehovah’s Witnesses, Jews, and evangelical Christians. While most Russians and Armenians belong to the Russian Orthodox Church, a significant number attend unregistered religious meetings as do an increasing number of ethnic Turkmen. The small number of Shi’a Muslims is mostly ethnic Iranians, Azeris, or Kurds on the Iranian border or on the Caspian Sea. The Jewish community consists of approximately 400 Jews. Turkmenistan is the most closed country in the former Soviet Union. The country’s first president, Saparmurat Niyazov, who died in late 2006, oversaw one of the world’s most repressive and isolated states. Turkmenistan’s public life was dominated by Niyazov’s quasi-religious personality cult set out in his book, the Ruhnama, which was imposed on the country’s religious and educational systems. After assuming the presidency in early 2007, President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov ordered the release of 11 political prisoners, including the former chief mufti; placed certain limits on Niyazov’s personality cult; set up two new official human rights commissions; and registered 13 minority religious groups. He eased police controls on internal travel and allowed Turkmenistan to become slightly more open to the outside world. Since that early period, President Berdimuhamedov has not reformed the country’s oppressive laws, maintains a state structure of repressive control, and has reinstituted a pervasive presidential personality cult. Turkmenistan’s constitution purports to guarantee religious freedom, the separation of religion from the state, and equality regardless of religion or belief. The 2003 religion law, however, contradicts these provisions. Despite minor reforms in 2007, this law sets intrusive registration criteria and bans any activity by unregistered religious organizations; requires that the government be informed of all foreign financial support; forbids worship in private homes; allows only clerics to wear religious garb in public; and places severe and discriminatory restrictions on religious education. The government-appointed Council on Religious Affairs (CRA) supervises religious matters; it controls the hiring, promoting, and firing of Sunni Muslim and Russian Orthodox clergy; censors religious texts; and oversees the activities of all registered groups. CRA members include only government officials and Sunni Muslim and Russian Orthodox Church representatives. A new demonstrations law enacted in March 2015 potentially allows for limited public rallies, including by registered religious organizations. Rallies must be at least 200 meters from government buildings and cannot be funded by individuals or foreign governments, RFE/RL reported. A new Internet law was published in December 2014; it is now illegal for citizens to insult or slander Turkmenistan’s president in web postings, RFE/RL reported. While the law states there are plans to ensure free access to the worldwide web for Turkmen Internet users, in 2015 the Turkmen government reportedly has engaged in a campaign to dismantle private satellite cables. In 2014 and early 2015, Turkmen border guards reportedly were killed by the Taliban on the Turkmen-Afghan border. This region of Afghanistan also reportedly includes some Turkmen who allegedly are Islamic State sympathizers, giving rise to concern about possible religious radicalism spreading across the border into Turkmenistan.

 Punishments for Religious and Human Rights Activities

In January 2014, new administrative code provisions increased the penalties for most “illegal” religious activities. The government continues to impose harsh penalties, such as imprisonment, forced drug treatment, and fines, for religious and human rights activities. In recent years, Muslims, Protestants, and Jehovah’s Witnesses were detained, fined, imprisoned or internally exiled for their religious beliefs or activities. Most religious prisoners of conscience are held at Seydi Labor Camp in the Lebap Region desert, where they face harsh conditions, including torture. The government of Turkmenistan denies the International Committee of the Red Cross access to the country’s prisons. On a positive note, in October 2014 two known religious prisoners of conscience were released under presidential amnesty from a labor camp in eastern Turkmenistan, Forum 18 reported. In February 2015, Protestant Umid Gojayev, imprisoned at Seydi Labor Camp for “hooliganism,” also was freed under amnesty.

 Government Control over Religious Activities

The secret police, anti-terrorist police units, local government, and local CRA officials continued to raid registered and unregistered religious communities. It is illegal for unregistered groups to rent, purchase, or construct places of worship, and even registered groups must obtain scarce government permits. A decree banned publication of religious texts inside Turkmenistan and only registered groups can legally import such texts. In September 2014 in Dashoguz, Jehovah’s Witness Bibi Rahmanova was detained for a month and physically abused for distributing religious texts; she received a four-year suspended sentence on trumped-up charges of assaulting a police officer, according to Forum 18. Forum 18 also reported that a Protestant outside Ashgabat was fined in September 2014 after a relative was found to have electronic versions of religious texts. The religion law also bans private religious education. The government continues to deny international travel for many citizens, especially those travelling to religious events. For the approximately 110,000 mainly Russian Orthodox who have dual Russian-Turkmen citizenship, it is easier to meet with their coreligionists abroad and for clerical training. Muslims, however, are not allowed to travel abroad for religious education, and the government also restricts hajj participation. In 2014, it requested a quota of 650 Turkmen Muslims to make the pilgrimage to Mecca, according to Forum 18. While this number was an increase over the usual 188, it is still less than a seventh of the country’s quota. Muslims often must wait up to 11 years to reach the top of the hajj waiting list.

Conscientious Objectors

Turkmen law has no civilian alternative to military service for conscientious objectors. Reportedly such a bill was drafted in 2013 but not enacted. Those who refuse to serve in the military can face up to two years of jail. Until 2009 the Turkmen government had given suspended sentences, but since then conscientious objectors have been imprisoned. Jehovah’s Witness conscientious objector Soyunmurat Korov is being involuntarily held in an Ashgabat military hospital. On a positive note, in October 2014, six imprisoned conscientious objectors were amnestied and released by presidential order, and in February 2015, Jehovah’s Witness conscientious objector Ruslan Narkuliyev was released, Forum 18 reported.

Registration of Religious Groups

Since 2005, some small religious groups have been registered, such as the Baha’i, several Pentecostal groups, Seventh-Day Adventists, several Evangelical churches, and the Society for Krishna Consciousness. In 2010, Turkmenistan told the UN Human Rights Committee there were 123 registered religious groups, 100 of which are Sunni and Shi’a Muslim and 13 Russian Orthodox. Some groups have decided not to register due to the onerous and opaque process, while certain Shi’a Muslim groups, the Armenian Apostolic Church, some Protestant groups, and the Jehovah’s Witnesses have faced rejection of numerous registration applications.

Government Interference in Internal Religious Affairs

The Turkmen government interferes in the internal leadership and organizational arrangements of religious communities. In early 2013, the President named a new Grand Mufti. The government also has replaced imams who had formal Islamic theological training from abroad with individuals lacking such education, as it is official policy not to name imams if they have had foreign theological training. Local secret police officers reportedly require Muslim and Orthodox clerics to report regularly on activities.

U.S. Policy
For the past decade, U.S. policy in Central Asia was dominated by the Afghan war. The United States has key security and economic interests in Turkmenistan due to its proximity to and shared populations with Afghanistan and Iran, and its huge natural gas supplies. Although officially neutral and in the Northern Distribution Network for the delivery of supplies to U.S. troops and International Security Assistance Forces (ISAF) in Afghanistan, the country has allowed U.S. flights with non-lethal supplies to refuel at the Ashgabat International Airport. The United States is training Turkmenistan’s fledgling navy, and holding exchange programs on English language and naval administration. During counterterrorism operations, U.S. Special Operations Forces reportedly have been allowed to enter Turkmenistan on a “case-by-case” basis, with the Turkmen government’s permission. The U.S government also has encouraged a joint Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India project, known as “TAPI,” to construct a major gas pipeline, scheduled to begin in 2015. This project could help stabilize the Turkmen gas export market and create economic and political bonds with energy-poor South Asian markets. Initiated five years ago by the State Department, the Annual Bilateral Consultations (ABC’s) are a regular mechanism for the United States and Turkmenistan to discuss a wide range of bilateral issues, including regional security, economic and trade relations; social and cultural ties; and human rights. As part of the ABC process, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Nisha Desai Biswal led an interagency delegation to Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, in January 2014 for the third U.S.-Turkmen ABC. While in Ashgabat, Assistant Secretary Biswal met with senior Turkmenistan officials, but it is not in the public record if she also met with representatives of civil society or religious groups. Religious freedom concerns traditionally have been raised in these forums. The United States funds programs in Turkmenistan that support: civil society organizations; training on legal assistance; Internet access and computer training; capacity building for civil servants, as well as exchange programs. In recent years, however, the Turkmen government has barred many students from participating in U.S.-funded exchange programs and in 2013 it ordered the Peace Corps to stop its 20-year-operations in the country. The U.S. government continues to support three American Corners that provide free educational materials and English language opportunities in Dashoguz, Mary, and Turkmenabat. The American Corners Program is a worldwide Department of State-sponsored initiative that was started over 10 years ago. The State Department announced the designation of Turkmenistan as a “country of particular concern” in late July 2014 when it released its annual report on international religious freedom. The State Department cited “concerns about the detention and imprisonment of religious minorities, the rights of religious groups to register, the lack of public access to registration procedures, and restrictions on importing religious literature.” In September 2014, a waiver of a Presidential action was tied to the designation.

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Turkmenbashi's Reign of Terror

Eritrea Revisited: "The Great Prison"

"All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them." -Galileo Galilei

The media has been full recently of stories and reports covering the plight of the Syrian immigrants.  We have all probably seen the harrowing pictures of refugees crammed into boats to the point of overflowing as they make their way into an Italian harbor.  There has been much concern and debate over what to do for these people as they flee a life of tragedy.  Many have been asking what our response should be and what responsibilities do we in a first world country have to come to the aide of those in great need.  All of these questions are valid and need to be answered, but would you be surprised if I told you that you are not getting the whole picture?  That you are only seeing what the media has decided to shine a spotlight on?  While the mass exodus to Europe continues from Africa and the Middle East, Syrian refugees may be the largest group, but the second largest group of refugees escaping their native homeland are Eritreans. As one ICC writer explains it, "Since their independence in 1993, Eritrea has been ruled by a tyrannical leader who has squandered and stomped on every principle of independence and freedom since he took power. Eritrea is now considered Africa's North Korea as its citizens have no true rights and execution and torture are a daily occurrence. Religious minorities, especially Christians are at the greatest risk as they are confined to shipping containers facing starvation, torture, and ultimately death. Unless massive efforts are executed against Eritrea, her people will continue to risk everything to escape and the Eritrean government will continue to violate religious freedoms and human rights." I don't know about you, but I have never heard of Eritrea in the news.  Not once in the past 20 years can I remember seeing boats full of Eritreans daring to escape an oppressive regime make headlines anywhere.  North Korea I know; Syria I am familiar with; but Eritrea?  This country and these people seem to have been forgotten by the world as they suffer in obscurity.  It's true that people don't know what they don't know.  But it is also true that these realities are real, waiting to be discovered.  I hope that by shining a light on this country, your prayers will strengthen them as they live in darkness.   

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Eritrea

USCIRF | ANNUAL REPORT 2015 39
Key Findings: Systematic, ongoing, and egregious religious freedom violations continue in Eritrea. Violations include torture or other ill-treatment of religious prisoners, arbitrary arrests and detentions without charges, a prolonged ban on public religious activities, and interference in the internal affairs of registered religious groups. The religious freedom situation is particularly grave for Evangelical and Pentecostal Christians and Jehovah’s Witnesses. The government dominates the internal affairs of the Orthodox Church of Eritrea, the country’s largest Christian denomination, and sup - presses Muslim religious activities and those opposed to the government-appointed head of the Muslim community. In light of these violations, USCIRF again recommends in 2015 that Eritrea be designated as a “country of particular concern,” or CPC. Since 2004, USCIRF has recommended, and the State Department has designated, Eritrea as a CPC, most recently in July 2014.

Background: President Isaias Afwerki and the Popular Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ) have ruled Eritrea since the country gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993. President Isaias and his circle maintain absolute authority and suppress all independent activity. Thousands of Eritreans are imprisoned for their real or imagined opposition to the government, and torture and forced labor are extensive. No private newspapers, political opposition parties, or independent non-governmental organizations exist, and independent public gatherings are prohibited. The government requires all physically- and mentally-capable people between the ages of 18 and 70 to perform national service, including military training and/or service, which is full time and indefinite. The national service requirement does not include a provision or alternative for conscientious objectors. Persons who fail to participate in the national service are detained, sentenced to hard labor, abused, and have their legal documents confiscated. In 2002, the government increased its control over religion by imposing a registration requirement on all religious groups other than the four officially-recognized religions: the Coptic Orthodox Church of Eritrea; Sunni Islam; the Roman Catholic Church; and the Evangelical Church of Eritrea, a Lutheran-affiliated denomination. The requirements mandated that the non-preferred religious communities provide detailed information about their finances, membership, activities, and benefit to the country. There are no reliable statistics of religious affiliation in Eritrea. The Pew Charitable Trust estimates that Orthodox Christians comprise approximately 57 percent of the population, Muslims 36 percent, Roman Catholics 4 percent, and Protestants, including Evangelical Lutherans, Baptists, Presbyterians, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Pentecostals, and others, 1 percent.

No religious group has been registered since the registration requirement was imposed in 2002, although the Baha’i community, Presbyterian Church, Methodist Church, and Seventh-day Adventists have all submitted the required applications when the registration law was first enacted. As a result of the registration requirement and the government’s inaction on applications, unregistered religious communities lack a legal basis on which to practice their faiths publicly, including holding services or weddings. The government’s campaign against religious activities by persons belonging to unregistered denominations frequently targets Evangelical and Pentecostal Christians and Jehovah’s Witnesses, the latter of whom are denied citizenship by an October 1994 Presidential Decree. Eritrean security forces routinely arrest followers of these faiths, including at clandestine prayer meetings and religious ceremonies.

Torture and Other Abuses: The government regularly tortures and beats political and religious prisoners, however, religious prisoners are sent to the harshest prisons and receive some of the cruelest punishments. Released religious prisoners have reported to USCIRF and other human rights monitors that they were confined in crowded conditions, such as in 20-foot metal shipping containers or underground barracks, and subjected to extreme temperature fluctuations. Evangelicals and Pentecostals released from prison report being pressured to recant their faith in order to be freed. Persons detained for religious activities, in both short-term and long-term detentions, are not formally charged, permitted access to legal counsel, accorded due process, or allowed family visits. Prisoners are not permitted to pray aloud, sing, or preach, and religious books are banned.

Religious Prisoners: The government continued to arrest and detain followers of unregistered religious communities. While the country’s closed nature makes exact numbers difficult to determine, recent estimates suggest 1,200 to 3,000 persons are imprisoned on religious grounds in Eritrea, the vast majority of whom are Evangelical or Pentecostal Christians. Reports of torture and other abuses of religious prisoners as described above continue. Known religious prisoners include: the government-deposed Eritrean Orthodox Patriarch Abune Antonios, who protested government interference in his church’s affairs and has been under house arrest since 2007; 64 Jehovah’s Witnesses detained without trial, including three who have been imprisoned for more than 20 years; more than 180 Muslims detained for opposing the state’s appointment of the Mufti of the Eritrean Muslim community; and other reformist members of the Orthodox clergy. During the past year, there were reports of deaths of religious prisoners who were denied medical care or subjected to other ill treatment.

Repressive Environment: The government controls the internal affairs of the four recognized religions, including appointing religious leaders and controlling religious activities. The recognized groups are required to submit activity reports to the government every six months. Since December 2010, the Eritrean Department of Religious Affairs has reportedly instructed these groups to not accept funds from co-religionists abroad, an order with which the government’s campaign against religious activities by persons belonging to unregistered denominations frequently targets Evangelical and Pentecostal Christians and Jehovah’s Witnesses, the latter of whom are denied citizenship by an October 1994 Presidential Decree. An Eritrean Orthodox Church reportedly said it would not comply. Despite community protests, the Department of Religious Affairs also appoints the Mufti of the Eritrean Muslim community and hundreds of Muslims who protested this appointment remain imprisoned. In a reversal of policy, in 2010 the Eritrean government began requiring all clergy, including those from registered religious communities, to participate in national military service regardless of their conscientious objections to such service. In this reporting period, USCIRF received reports that Eritrean officials visiting the United States pressured diaspora members only to attend Eritrean government-approved Orthodox churches in this country.

U.S. Policy Relations between the United States and Eritrea remain poor. The U.S. government has long expressed concern about Eritrea’s human rights practices and its activities in the region, including its longstanding conflict with Ethiopia. The government of Eritrea expelled USAID in 2005, and U.S. programs in the country ended in fiscal year 2006. Eritrea receives no U.S. development, humanitarian, or security assistance. Since 2010, the government has refused to accredit a new U.S. ambassador to the country; in response the U.S. government revoked the credentials of the Eritrean ambassador to the United States. U.S. government officials routinely raise religious freedom abuses when speaking about human rights conditions in Eritrea. The United States was a co-sponsor of a 2012 UN Human Rights Council resolution that successfully created the position of Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea. In July 2014, the United States supported the creation of a Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in Eritrea to investigate systematic violations of human rights, recommend how to improve conditions and ensure accountability, and raise awareness of the situation in the country. The Commission has not been allowed into Eritrea to conduct its research, but has been meeting with Eritrean diaspora, refugees, experts, and human rights activists outside of the country. Its final report is due in June 2015. The State Department designated Eritrea a CPC under IRFA in September 2004. When renewing the CPC designation in September 2005 and January 2009, the State Department announced the denial of commercial export to Eritrea of defense articles and services covered by the Arms Export Control Act, with some items exempted. The Eritrean government subsequently intensified its repression of unregistered religious groups with a series of arrests and detentions of clergy and ordinary members of the affected groups. The State Department most recently re-designated Eritrea as a CPC in July 2014, and continued the presidential action of the arms embargo, although since 2011 this has been under the auspices of UN Security Council resolution 1907. U.S. policy toward Eritrea is also concentrated on the country’s activities to destabilize the Horn of Africa. In December 2009, the United States joined a 13-member majority on the UN Security Council in adopting Resolution 1907, sanctioning Eritrea for supporting armed groups in Somalia and failing to withdraw its forces from the Eritrean-Djibouti border following clashes with Djibouti. The sanctions include an arms embargo, travel restrictions, and asset freezes on the Eritrean government’s political and military leaders, as well as other individuals designated by the Security Council’s Committee on Somalia Sanctions. In April 2010, President Obama announced Executive Order 13536 blocking the property and property interests of several individuals for their financing of al-Shabaab in Somalia, including Yemane Ghe - breab, the former head of political affairs and senior advisor on Somali issues for the Eritrean president. In December 2011, the United States voted in favor of UN Security Council Resolution 2023, which calls on UN member states to implement Resolution 1907’s sanctions and ensure that their dealings with Eritrea’s mining industry do not support activities which would destabilize the region. UN resolution 1907 also condemns Eritrea’s two-percent tax on Eritreans living outside of the country, which it noted is used “for purposes such as procuring arms and related materiel for transfer to armed opposition groups.” The Eritrean government relies heavily on this tax to boost its poor economy and fund national defense. U.S. government officials, the UN Somalia and Eritrea Monitoring Group, and Eritrean diaspora in the United States and other coun - tries report that those who refuse to pay are subject to threats, intimidation, and coercion, and their families in Eritrea are also harassed. In 2011, the United Kingdom suspended collection of this tax stating that it may contravene the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. In 2012 the Eritrean consulate in Ottawa, Canada agreed to stop collecting the tax after Canadian threats to remove the Eritrean Ambassador. This move corresponds with Canadian efforts to make it illegal to finance the Eritrean military in compliance with UNSC Resolution 1907. The Netherlands and Germany are also considering ending the collection of the diaspora tax within their territories.
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Why Do Ethiopia and Eritrea Hate Each Other?

Stories of Christian Persecution Eritrea

China Revisited: Near the Cross

NEAR THE CROSS
Jesus, keep me near the cross;
there a precious fountain,
free to all, a healing stream,
flows from Calvary's mountain.
Refrain:
In the cross, in the cross,
be my glory ever,
till my raptured soul shall find
rest beyond the river.
Near the cross, a trembling soul,
love and mercy found me;
there the bright and morning star
sheds its beams around me.
(Refrain) 
Near the cross! O Lamb of God,
bring its scenes before me;
help me walk from day to day
with its shadow o'er me.
(Refrain) 
Near the cross I'll watch and wait,
hoping, trusting ever,
till I reach the golden strand
just beyond the river.
(Refrain) 


This was the song that our brothers and sisters in China sang as their cross was forcibly taken down.  Many exhibited civil disobedience by forming human barriers, sometimes for months, in an effort to keep their cross from being demolished.  Some people might look at this and say that it is foolish to risk your life and freedom for two pieces of wood put together.  The cross is only a symbol, it's not your actual faith...what does it matter if your church has a cross on top or not?  These Christians would say it matters.  Are they still Christians without their cross? Yes.  Can they still worship God without the cross being there? Yes.  But none of those questions are the issue.  All the world over, Christians are recognized by the symbol of the cross.  An instrument of despair, torture, and death became a symbol of hope, comfort, and life.  Now, the government is taking away that symbol.  These Christians could have stood by and done nothing, safe in the knowledge that their faith is not dependent on any physical symbols.  Instead, they chose to show their government and the world how precious the cross is to believers.  Is the cross worth fighting for?  These Christians would say 'Yes'. 
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China

Government Control: In 2014, the Chinese government took steps to consolidate further its authoritarian monopoly of power over all aspects of its citizens’ lives. For religious freedom, this has meant unprecedented violations against Uighur Muslims, Tibetan Buddhists, Catholics, Protestants, and Falun Gong practitioners. People of faith continue to face arrests, fines, denials of justice, lengthy prison sentences, and in some cases, the closing or bulldozing of places of worship. Based on the alarming increase in systematic, egregious, and ongoing abuses, USCIRF again recommends China be designated a “country of particular concern,” or CPC, under the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA). The State Department has designated China as a CPC since 1999, most recently in July 2014.

Religious Freedom: The Chinese Constitution states that it guarantees freedom of religion. However, only so-called “normal religions” – those belonging to one of the five state-sanctioned “patriotic religious associations” associated with the five officially-recognized religions (Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Catholicism, and Protestantism) – can register with the government and legally hold worship services and conduct religious activities. The government and Chinese Communist Party are officially atheist, with more than 700 million persons unaffiliated with any religion or belief. However, religious followers are strong and reportedly on the rise: more than 294 million practice folk religions, more than 240 million Buddhism, 68 million Christianity, and nearly 25 million Islam. The Chinese government strictly monitors religious activities, including by those recognized by the state, but unregistered groups and their members are especially vulnerable. For example, although Christianity is state-sanctioned, the government continues to engage in severe violations of religious freedom against both registered and unregistered Catholics and Protestants. Some have characterized the new wave of persecution against Christians that swept through China in 2014 as the most egregious and persistent since the Cultural Revolution. Nevertheless, the number of religious followers, of Christianity in particular, is considered to be growing.  The Chinese communist regime, which celebrated its 65th anniversary in October 2014, views ideologies that promote freedom of speech, civil society, genuine rule of law, and human rights as directly undermining its control. As a result, all-around repression in China worsened in 2014, including the government’s aggressiveness in controlling Tibet, Xinjiang, and even Hong Kong, as well as stricter controls on the Internet and social media and targeting of human rights defenders, civil society activists, journalists and academics. For example, Pu Zhiqiang, a prominent human-rights lawyer, was charged in June 2014 with creating a disturbance, inciting ethnic hatred, and separatism based on his postings on Sina Weibo, a popular blog service; he was detained just prior to the 25th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square incident. Other human rights defenders also face arbitrary detention, harassment, intimidation, or imprisonment. Another human rights lawyer, Gao Zhisheng, was finally released in August 2014 but remains under constant surveillance and has been denied freedom of movement to seek proper medical care or to be reunited with his family, who fled to the United States.

Religious Freedom Conditions Protestants and Catholics: In a striking development, at least 400 churches were torn down or had crosses forcibly removed and/or demolished in 2014, a notable increase over previous years. Most of these incidents occurred in Zhejiang Province and included both underground and state-sanctioned churches, though incidents were reported in other places as well. In Zhejiang Province, these actions can be attributed to the “Three Rectifications and One Demolition” campaign, the provincial government’s March 2013 plan purportedly aimed at building code violations and illegal structures. Many religious believers in Zhejiang, particularly Christians, regarded the campaign as directly targeting their religion. The city of Wenzhou, home to China’s largest Christian community with 2,000 or so churches, known as “China’s Jerusalem,” saw a particularly high number of demolitions. Registered churches in Wenzhou also faced demolitions, including the Protestant Wuai Church and the Liushi and Longgangshan Catholic Churches. In general, conditions faced by registered and unregistered churches across the country vary widely and are often subject to the inconsistent discretion of local and/or provincial officials. Leaders and members of both registered and unregistered churches have faced increased harassment and arbitrary arrests. Typically leaders of house churches are more vulnerable to these types of charges, but in 2014 pastors of sanctioned churches also faced detention or arrest. The Chinese government generally claimed these actions were to maintain social order, but there were multiple reports that Christians and religious activists were unfairly targeted. In July 2014, Pastor Zhang Shaojie of the Nanle County Christian Church, a registered church in Henan Province, was convicted on trumped-up charges and sentenced to 12 years in prison. The government also began classifying house church leaders as alleged “cult” leaders. Pope Francis has opened the door for improved relations with China, reportedly inviting President Xi Jinping to the Vatican. Additionally, the Chinese government granted the Pope permission to fly through Chinese airspace following his January 2015 trip to the Philippines. (In the past, China has refused to allow papal aircraft to fly through its airspace; it is common practice for sitting popes to send messages to the countries over which they fly.) However, shortly thereafter, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson reiterated calls for the Vatican to cut ties with Taiwan and to stop interfering in China’s internal affairs in the name of religion. Moreover, according to a 2015 working plan of the State Administration of Religious Affairs, China still insists on electing and ordaining bishops completely independent of the Holy See.  While China in 2014 reportedly ended its deplorable system of “re-education through labor", other forms of extralegal detention remain, including secretive “black jails.” Targeting of “Cults” Under Article 300 of China’s Criminal Law, those who participate in so-called “superstitious sects or secret societies or weird religious organizations” or other similar activity are subject to imprisonment. In 2014, the Chinese government took its broadest steps yet to designate and criminalize some groups as ‘‘cult organizations.” On June 3, 2014, the government published a list of 20 “cults” and began a sweeping crackdown against these organizations. House churches were targeted because they lack any official protection. In September 2014, more than 100 Christians were arrested during a raid on a house church in Foshan City, Guangdong Province, with eyewitnesses claiming that more than 200 officials took part in the raid. As part of the “anti-cult” effort, China’s government issued a directive to “eradicate” unregistered churches over the course of the next decade, resulting in unregistered church members facing an increased number of arrests, fines, and church closures in 2014.

2015: The campaign to remove crosses has continued into 2015, with all rooftop crosses being banned this past summer.  Surprisingly, China's semi-official Christian associations which are supposed to ensure the Communist Party's control have denounced the campaign as unconstitutional and humiliating. It is believed that President Xi Jinping is behind this campaign as a kind of experiment to test the authorities' power and control. The removals have been met with resistance as parishoners kept vigils and tried to block church entrances with trucks. Many churches have re-erected crosses in defiance. About two dozen Catholic officials and priests signed a strongly worded letter calling the new rules unlawful. "The more (authorities) suppress the call for justice, the more it shows they are faced with severe social crisis, that they have little confidence in their ability to rule, and that they are incompetent in dealing with issues."

 U.S. Policy: There are several strategic bilateral and multilateral issues that influence the U.S.-China relationship. For example, the ongoing maritime territorial disputes in the East China and South China Seas impact how the two countries relate to one another as well as with other regional stakeholders in East and Southeast Asia. The relationship is also influenced by the Obama Administration’s Asia “pivot” or “rebalance”, particularly on issues such as trade, the economy, military, and commerce. Mistrust exists on both sides: China is skeptical of U.S. intentions on Taiwan, the Dalai Lama, and the Trans-Pacific Partnership; and the United States is wary of Chinese cyber-espionage, military modernization, and troubling human rights record. As the United States seeks to integrate China more fully into a rules-based global economy, China continues to tightly control its domestic and foreign markets, and tension between the two countries remains in their trade relationship. In a noteworthy example of cooperation between the two powers on a global issue, the United States and China in November 2014 announced a joint agreement to reduce carbon and other emissions in an unprecedented climate change and clean energy plan. The United States approaches foreign assistance to China as a means to support programs that protect U.S. interests, such as promoting human rights and the rule of law, supporting environmental protection, addressing pandemic diseases, and assisting Tibetan communities. These programs are primarily administered through the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development through its regional mission in Bangkok, as well as other U.S. agencies. The Chinese government remains suspicious of any foreign funding, particularly support to local non-governmental organizations. The United States has raised a number of human rights issues with China both publicly and privately, including individual cases. However, human rights advocates urge the United States to do more, and to do so publicly. The United States has publicly expressed concern on several key issues, including: government censorship and crackdowns on press freedoms and free speech, including on the Internet and social media, and often under the rubric of fighting terrorism; the denial of rights to ethnic and religious minorities; excessive detentions and arrests; and Beijing’s proposed counterterrorism law and its potential impact on U.S. technology companies. In return, the Chinese government has criticized human rights in the United States in light of racial tensions and the release of the U.S. Senate report on torture. China regularly condemns U.S. reports critical of its religious freedom and human rights record, including the CPC designation assigned by the State Department since 1999. Secretary Kerry re-designated China as a CPC in July 2014, thereby also extended the existing sanctions under section 423 of IRFA relating to exports of certain items.

Info compiled from USCIRF China.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lWsMze7m9k  Gao Zhinsheng Update

https://youtu.be/UVV0Zn1rXR8  Cross being taken down


   

Laos Revisited: Perceptions of Reality

"How many legs does a dog have if you call the tail a leg? Four. Calling a tail a leg doesn't make it a leg." ~Abraham Lincoln

Saying something is free doesn't necessarily make it so.  Rights can be promised on paper in Constitutions, but that does not guarantee them in real life.  This is the case for many Christians in Laos.  While there is supposed to be freedom to worship, in many rural areas that are governed by the whims of whoever is in charge, these rights are often denied.  Your experience as a Christian depends on many things; city vs rural, majority vs minority ethnicity, evangelical vs non-evangelical.  One thing that is consistent though is the need for discipleship and leadership training, and a cultural shift to encourage studying the Word of God.  As we pray for the Christians in Laos this month, remember to pray that they would treasure the Word of God and place their allegiance in Jesus Christ, and not in the rituals of the Christian faith.

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Laos

U.S. Relations: Laos is among the few remaining communist countries in the world and takes many of its cues from neighboring Vietnam, a fellow communist country and close ally. There are multiple channels of cooperation between the two countries, religion among them. Cooperation on religious issues began in 2002 with the signing of a cooperative agreement on religious affairs, and in 2014, Laos and Vietnam re-committed to this arrangement through the year 2020. Unlike Vietnam and Cambodia, Lao relations with the United States were never completely severed during the Vietnam War, though relations were downgraded and notably strained during this period, particularly after the communist takeover in 1975. The relationship has since improved, but the Lao government’s ongoing mistreatment of ethnic Hmong is a source of enduring tensions. Both the Administration and Congress regularly have raised concerns. The Lao government’s lasting wariness of the Hmong stems, in part, from their connection to the United States: thousands of ethnic Hmong were trained and armed by the United States and fought to prevent a communist takeover during the Vietnam War. Many since have fled to Thailand where they live in camps and/or face forced repatriation back to Laos. The United States has resettled approximately 250,000 Hmong refugees and continues to encourage Laos to improve transparency about the conditions of those forcibly returned from Thailand and to implement policies and practices to ensure the Hmong community no longer fears mistreatment. Since restoring full diplomatic relations with Laos in 1992, the United States gradually has expanded its engagement with the country. Bilateral relations are conducted through several mechanisms, including the U.S.-Laos Comprehensive Bilateral Dialogue and others focusing on specific sectors, such as trade or investment. This engagement has broadened further in recent years through U.S. support of the Lower Mekong Initiative (LMI), a partnership agreement between the United States, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, and Burma to cooperate in areas such as environment, health, education, and infrastructure development, as well as women’s and gender issues. The United States provides foreign assistance to Laos in a number of key sectors: public health, the environment and climate change, economic growth and trade, and peace and security, including the removal of unexploded ordnance (from the Vietnam War period). For fiscal year 2016, the Department of State, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and related agencies are requesting funds through the following accounts: Development Assistance ($11.1 million); International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement ($1 million); International Military Education and Training ($450,000); and Foreign Military Financing ($200,000). The requests also include funds for environment-related capacity-building in the LMI countries. In 2014, the United States officially opened its new Embassy in the capital of Vientiane. The previous Embassy site is being outfitted to house a new American Center. In 2016, Laos is scheduled to chair the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN); the United States is a participant of the ASEAN Regional Forum and the East Asia Summit. Leading up to and during this period of amplified regional and international attention on Laos, the United States is in a position to leverage its influential position to encourage Laos to improve conditions for religious freedom and related human rights.

Religious Freedom: Serious religious freedom abuses continue, particularly in ethnic minority areas, and restrictive laws remain in place. The Lao government seems either unable or unwilling to fully curtail religious freedom abuses in provincial areas, where officials and police are suspicious of Protestant growth. Over the past five years,however, religious freedom conditions have improved for the majority Buddhist groups and for other religious groups living in urban areas. The government of the ruling Lao People’s Revolutionary Party (LPRP) continued to allow ongoing abuses against religious minority groups, abuses that are most prominent in remote, rural areas. Moreover, the government’s suspicion of Protestant Christianity as a “Western” or “American” construct continued to result in discrimination, harassment, and arrests of Christians throughout the country, particularly in Savannakhet Province, where there were several reports of local officials ordering Christians to renounce their faith. The majority Buddhist community experiences religious freedom conditions that are generally free, as do some minority religious communities, such as animists, Baha’is, and Catholics. However, ethnic minorities tend to experience greater incidences of discrimination and harassment on many levels, including religious freedom.  However, the government agency tasked with monitoring religious activity and carrying out government religious policy has engaged with religious groups and with international NGOs to better understand religious freedom and occasionally has intervened in cases of detention or property confiscation. Nevertheless, based on ongoing concerns, in 2015 USCIRF again places Laos on Tier 2, where it has been since 2009.

Although the Lao constitution protects freedom of religion or belief, conflicting government decrees and policies routinely result in religious freedoms limitations. More than two-thirds of the population are Buddhists, while Christians are believed to comprise less than two percent. Animism, ancestor worship, and other traditional beliefs are common among ethnic minorities, and there are several other religious minority groups in the country. The Lao government’s toleration of religious activity continues to vary by region, ethnicity, and religious group. Buddhism, which is deeply embedded in Lao culture and state functions and is practiced by the majority of the population, is now generally free from restrictive oversight. Lao Catholics have been allowed to build churches and, in the past several years, to ordain priests and the first new bishop since 1975. Lao Protestants in urban areas also have reported an increased ability to worship and to re-open, build, and expand some religious venues. The small Baha’i community also reports better working relations with government officials and an expansion of its facilities. Animism is practiced by most rural ethnic minority groups and, while not officially recognized, is often tolerated by provincial officials. Still, there are reports that the government discourages some animist practice viewed as dangerous or “superstitious” and actively promotes Buddhism as an alternative to traditional beliefs. The Lao Constitution provides for freedom of religion, but the Prime Minister’s 2002 Decree on Religious Practice (Decree 92) contains language allowing government control of, and interference in, religious activities. Religious leaders have reported that legally-permitted religious activities, such as proselytizing and producing religious materials, are restricted in practice. The Decree also includes cumbersome approval requirements for any religious activity. Some religious groups are unable to legally register under the Decree and have faced serious problems in the past. The Decree also contains vague prohibitions on activities that create “social division” or “chaos” and reiterates parts of the Lao criminal code arbitrarily used in the past to arrest and detain dissidents. Provincial officials routinely cite the social and familial divisions caused by the spread of Protestantism as justification for serious religious freedom abuses.

Conditions 2013–2015:During the reporting period, provincial officials violated the freedom of religion or belief of ethnic minority Protestants through detentions, surveillance, harassment, property confiscations, forced relocations, and forced renunciations of faith—though there were fewer reports of these abuses this year than last. Local officials in Phin and Atsaphagthong districts, Savannakhet province, attempted to force Protestants to renounce their faith by requiring them to partake in animist ceremonies. In Borikan district, Borikhamsai province, ethnic minority converts to Christianity were ordered to recant their faith or lose their property. In Sanamsai district, Attapeu province, officials forcibly relocated a couple for converting to Christianity. Also in the past year, Lao authorities released Khamsone Baccam, a Protestant leader who was arrested in 2007 for religious reasons, and Protestant pastors Yohan and Vanna, arrested in January 2011 in for holding Christmas celebrations. Lao Front for National Construction (LFNC) authorities also reportedly held a series of meetings with registered religious groups seeking input for possible revisions to Decree 92. In 2014, one of the most high-profile acts of discrimination against Lao Christians occurred in the remote village of Saisomboon in Savannakhet Province. A recent convert to Christianity was ill, and when she died in June 2014, her family obtained approval from the village chief to hold a Christian funeral. This approval was later revoked, and the family was forced to hold a Buddhist memorial and burial ceremony. More over, police arrested the family’s pastor and four other Christians for allegedly contributing to the woman’s death. In August 2014, the five Christians were found not guilty of murder. Despite their acquittal, all five remained in custody and faced new charges in February 2015, when a provincial court convicted them of practicing medicine without a license in connection with her death. Contrary to the charges, the five Christians deny administering medicine to the woman, stating instead that they prayed by her side. All five subsequently have been imprisoned and fined. Additionally, in late September 2014, also in Savannakhet Province, a Christian pastor and six parishioners were arrested following a worship service in the pastor’s home. Reportedly, local officials in Boukham Village had banned Christian worship gatherings and used the ban to justify arresting the seven Christians. The Christians spent a week in custody before being released.  Also in 2014, the central government banned all celebrations and observances of the Christmas holiday. The move was considered by some to be pointedly directed at ethnic minority Hmong Christians, who have been the target of government harassment for decades. There also were reports throughout 2014 of Christian families being forced from their homes for refusing to renounce Christianity. Six Christian families left their homes in Savannakhet Province following pressure in their village to convert to Buddhism, and another six Hmong Christian families in Bolikhamxay Province were forcibly evicted for refusing to renounce Christianity and convert to animism.

Civilian Freedom: Moreover, limitations on freedom of religion or belief take place in a climate where political space is largely limited. Civil society operates in a highly limited environment, and civil society and independent media face continued harassment and arbitrary arrest for exercising their rights to freedom of expression, association, or assembly. The suspicious disappearance of civil society leader Sombath Somphone is emblematic. Sombath, a well-known human rights defender, has not been seen since he disappeared in December 2012 after being stopped and detained by police, and the government has produced no meaningful information about his whereabouts. The government also tightly controls the print and broadcast media and recently increased restrictions on expression on the Internet, with new legislation that criminalizes criticizing the government or ruling party or circulating false information online.

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Vietnam Revisited: Subtle Deception

“People trust their eyes above all else - but most people see what they wish to see, or what they believe they should see; not what is really there.” ― Zoë Marriott


Are we willing to face the truth? Many people are not.  Many bury their heads in the sand and deny what is occurring, whether in their own life or in the lives of others.  They are not strong enough to bear the burden of that truth.  But perhaps just as important as facing the truth, is being willing to search for the truth.  Life is complicated, and not painted in simple black and white terms.  Is it true that Vietnam has made improvements in human rights?  Yes.  Is it also true that the level of violence against Christians in 2014 has increased? Yes.  Is it true that Vietnam has released many prisoners of conscious? Yes.  Is it also true that many more prisoners of conscious remain in custody, some for 20 years or more? Yes.  Is it true that Vietnam has allowed many more congregations to 'register'?  Yes.  Is it also true that many thousands of congregations are still denied registration or do not attempt to register at all, which means they are operating 'illegally'? Yes. Is it true that the State Department has achieved different successes in their bilateral agreement with Vietnam?  Yes.  Is it also true that those successes are inconsistent and that persecution has worsened in some areas? Yes.  Is it true that Vietnam serves on the UN Human Rights Council? Yes.  Is it also true that Vietnam has a special religious police that is responsible for monitoring, manipulating, harassing, terrorizing, persecuting, abusing, and even killing religious followers? Yes. 

In order to know the truth, we can not be deceived by what is seen on the surface or by certain select statistics.  Vietnam is still listed as a country of particular concern by the USCIRF, and the World Watch List puts Vietnam as 16 out of 50 of the top countries for religious persecution.  Christians in Vietnam need our prayers.  We serve a God who sees us and hears us; who not only takes an interest in our lives, but truly cares for us as Sons and Daughters.  Now, as Brothers and Sisters to the Christians in Vietnam, we must lift up their concerns and needs, as if they were our own.  May we not be silent. 

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Vietnam

Overview: Vietnam is an authoritarian state ruled by the Communist Party. Its overall human rights record remains poor. Over the past few years, the government has moved decisively to repress any perceived challenges to its authority.

Religion: Accurate numbers of religious adherents in the country are difficult to ascertain, but the majority of Vietnam’s 90 million citizens are Buddhist. More than six million are Catholic, Vietnam’s second largest religious group, and roughly one million or more are Protestant. Other minority religious groups include the Cao Dai, Hoa Hao, Khmer Krom Buddhists, ethnic Cham Muslims, Baha’is, Hindus and followers of other folk religions and beliefs.

Religious Persecution: The Vietnamese government continues to control all religious activities through law and administrative oversight, severely restrict independent religious practice, and repress individuals and religious groups it views as challenging its authority, including independent Buddhists, Hoa Hao, Cao Dai, Catholics, and Protestants. This occurs despite some improvements in the area of religious freedom, such as generally wider space for some religious communities to practice their faiths. Notably, the government requires religious organizations and congregations to register with a state-sanctioned entity in order to be considered legal. Individuals remain imprisoned for religious activity or religious freedom advocacy. Based on these severe violations, USCIRF again recommends in 2015 that Vietnam be designated as a “country of particular concern,” or CPC, under the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA). USCIRF has recommended that Vietnam be named a CPC every year since 2001.

The Communist government has moved decisively in recent years to repress perceived challenges to its regime, tightening controls on freedom of expression, association, religion, and assembly. Although the 2013 Constitution goes much further than its predecessor in protecting the right to freedom of religion or belief, other provisions create exceptions to those rights. In addition, other laws, decrees, and ordinances collectively restrict religious practices and create latitude for local officials to interpret and implement their own policies without federal influence. This inconsistency leads individuals to fear that the open practice of their faiths will result in harassment, attacks, or arrest. In 2013, the government implemented a new decree on religion (Decree 92) that provides clearer timetables for registration, but expands oversight of religious affairs and makes it more difficult for new religious groups to ever achieve legal status. Moreover, broadly-worded Penal Code provisions, such as Articles 88 and 258, ensnare countless human rights defenders, bloggers, journalists, religious leaders, and other activists whom the government accuses of acting against the state. At least 100-200 prisoners of conscience are detained in Vietnam, some for their religious activity or religious freedom advocacy. In 2015, Vietnam is expected to produce a new law on religion that, as rumored, will supersede the 2004 Ordinance on Beliefs and Religions and Decree 92.

The UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief Heiner Bielefeldt visited Vietnam in July 2014, but had to curtail his visit due to state interference that violated the terms of reference agreed upon in advance with the Vietnamese government. His findings, released in January 2015, noted that the “. . . autonomy and activities of independent religious or belief communities, that is, unrecognized communities, remain restricted and unsafe, with the rights to freedom of religion or belief of such communities grossly violated in the face of constant surveillance, intimidation, harassment and persecution.”

Catholics: Father Phan Van Loi testified before the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission on March 26, 2014, via video conference because government surveillance and restrictions on his movement prevented him from traveling to give testimony in person. He described the difficulties, obstacles, harassment, and sometimes imprisonment priests and laypeople face when they speak out about their beliefs. He also referenced the limitations and outright prohibitions on the Catholic Church imposed by current laws and government decrees on religion. Local governments refuse to recognize Catholicism as a religion in the three northern provinces of Dien Bien, Son La, and Lai Chau, making it especially challenging for priests and their parishioners to practice their faith in these areas. Catholics continue to experience land confiscations, including parishioners from the Thai Ha Redemp-torist Church in Dong Da District, who protested in Hanoi to object to the government filling in an existing lake on church property. Similarly, Con Dau parishioners near Da Nang City were forced to move their parish cemetery and in some cases have been evicted from their homes, disrupting the entire parish community. While some land rights disputes may be, in part, the result of local-level corruption or development projects, the religious identity of the targeted community and its status as a minority are also often factors. On a positive note, in September, representatives of the Joint Vatican-Vietnam Working Group held another meeting in Hanoi as part of the group’s efforts to restore diplomatic relations.

Hmong Protestants: During 2014, countless Hmong Protestant house churches continued to be denied registration, effectively consigning them to illegal status. In an ongoing effort to limit the freedom of Hmong Christians to practice their faith, local authorities continued to interfere with the way in which Hmong villagers honor and grieve their dead. In addition to destroying storage facilities which house supplies for Hmong funerals, authorities harassed and attacked villagers attempting to carry out funerals in accordance with their beliefs. In March 2014, Hoang Van Sang received an 18-month jail sentence for constructing a new funeral storage facility. Hmong villagers who marched in protest of Sang’s sentence were stopped by police.

Montagnards (Degar): Ethnic minority Montagnards, primarily from Vietnam’s Central Highlands region, continued to face severe ethnic- and religious-based discrimination and violence, prompting some to flee Vietnam. During the year, Montagnards reported the police carrying out beatings, arrests, and forced renunciations of faith. In November, 13 Christian Montagnards fled persecution in Vietnam to seek refugee status in Cambodia, only to suffer harsh conditions while hiding in the Cambodian jungles. A UN team was able to meet with the group weeks later after first being blocked by local officials. Since then, dozens more have fled to Cambodia, and some forcibly returned to Vietnam by Cambodian officials, including small children. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights both have urged the Cambodian government to abide by their international obligations and allow the Vietnamese Montagnards to pursue refugee claims.

Mennonites: A Mennonite Christian center in Binh Duong Province was the site of repeated attacks throughout the year. In June 2014, 76 Mennonite Christians were attacked by more than 300 (some estimate closer to 500) police and security forces; the church itself was vandalized. In November, nine Mennonites, including two pastors, were arrested and the church vandalized once again. Three church employees were arrested, interrogated and beaten in early December. One of those arrested, a pastor, was ordered to end his role as pastor or face criminal charges. The three were eventually released but suffered additional harassment just outside the police station, and attacks on the church continued.

Prisoners: The ill-treatment and imprisonment of prisoners of conscience in Vietnam remains a key human rights concern, despite several releases during the year. Among them are countless individuals who have been harassed, beaten, detained, arrested, and imprisoned for their religious beliefs. Those still imprisoned include: Father Thaddeus Nguyen Van Ly, Mennonite Pastor Nguyen Cong Chinh, and Catholic Intellectual and activist Francis Jang Xuan Dieu, for example. Several prisoners of conscience were released in 2014, including prominent dissident Nguyen Van Hai, also known as Dieu Cay. He was released in October 2014, coinciding with the visit of U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Tom Malinowski to Vietnam. Upon his release, Hai, like Cu Huy Ha Vu in April, was forced to leave the country and was immediately escorted onto a plane bound for the United States before he could inform his family of his release. Three others, Bui Thi Minh Hang, Nguyen Van Minh and Nguyen Thi Thuy Quynh, all well-known human rights defenders, received multi-year prison sentences in August.

U.S. Policy: The year 2015 marks the 20th anniversary of the normalization of ties between the United States and Vietnam. In 2013, the two countries entered into the U.S.-Vietnam Comprehensive Partnership, a framework for bilateral cooperation on a number of strategic issues, including trade and the economy, science and technology, defense and security, and human rights, among others. As part of their regular engagement on human rights, the two countries will conduct a session of the U.S.-Vietnam Human Rights Dialogue in Hanoi in May 2015. On January 1, 2014, Vietnam began its three-year term on the UN Human Rights Council. The United States and Vietnam have a strong bilateral trade relationship, with Vietnam serving as a major source of clothing, footwear, furniture, and electrical machinery for the United States. The two are also part of the 12-nation negotiations of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a regional free trade agreement. While the TPP talks are ongoing, the Obama Administration and some in Congress are concurrently pursuing the renewal of Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) that could grant the president greater flexibility when negotiating and approving trade agreements such as the TPP. Some members of Congress have raised concerns with a number of key components in the TPP, including agriculture, automotive markets, worker rights, environmental protections, and human rights, among others, that are likely to be heavily debated during consideration of TPA. In October 2014, the United States announced the partial easing of the arms ban with Vietnam with respect to maritime security. The State Department cited specific human rights improvements in Vietnam, including the release of prisoners of conscience and the registration of new church congregations. However, critics noted that Vietnam is still detaining numerous prisoners of conscience, including individuals imprisoned for their religious beliefs, and that registration figures pale in comparison to the thousands of congregations that either choose to remain independent or are denied registration, leaving them no choice but to operate illegally. Notably, Assistant Secretary Malinowski visited Vietnam shortly after the announcement and stressed the importance of Vietnam continuing to make progress on human rights. The State Department designated Vietnam as a CPC in 2004 and 2005, but removed the designation in 2006 because of progress toward fulfilling a bilateral agreement to release prisoners, ban forced renunciations of faith, and expand legal protections for religious groups. USCIRF, however, has found that, the progress achieved through the bilateral agreement has been inconsistent and not fully realized, and that religious freedom violations in Vietnam have continued, and in some cases worsened. These ongoing violations in Vietnam serve as a cautionary tale of the potential for backsliding in religious freedoms when vigilance in monitoring such abuses ceases. Accordingly, USCIRF has continued to recommend CPC designation for the country.

Information compiled from the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom 2015 Report 
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Vietnam: Hmong Christians 2012 


 Cults and the Pesecuted Church in Southeast Asia


 Hearing on the Persecution of Religious and Indigenous Communities in Vietnam (April 2014) (Interviews start at 8 mins in; Hmong report starts at an hour and a half)