ECLJ Reports on Religious Freedom
In our ongoing committment to working to defend religious freedom in this country and abroad, there's some important news to report to you about the work of our international affiliate, the European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ).
The ECLJ is participating in a new program of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) called the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). This program, operating out of the UN headquarters in Geneva, periodically reviews the human rights practices of 192 U.N. Member States - once every four years. Each review is documented in an outcome report, with which the State under Review (SuR) is given specific recommendations. The SuR then has the opportunity to accept the recommendations and makes voluntary pledges and commitments to implement those changes.
Non-governmental organizations (NGO's) with consultative status, such as the ECLJ, can participate in the review process. To that end, the ECLJ has just submitted reports on five countries to the UNHRC concerning the issue of religious freedom: The Republic of Belarus, Turkey, Kyrgyzstan, Lao Peoples Democratic Republic (Laos), and Kuwait.
The ECLJ's participation in this program underscores our desire and determination to work to protect religious freedom and human rights in countries where those rights are either being badly trampled or simply do not exist at all.
For example, the Republic of Belarus resembles a dictatorship despite constitutional provisions supporting a democracy. The government of Belarus continually abuses the religious freedom of members of several religious groups. Although citizens are not expressly prohibited from proselytizing, in practice, authorities often interfere with or punish individuals who proselytize or speak freely about their beliefs. You can read our report on Belarus here.
In Turkey, the situation is grim. Prejudice against religious organizations and prohibitions against proselytism by Christians is endemic in Turkish media and government. Converts from Islam - including those who convert to Christianity - experience hostility and violence. One example: undercover security personnel attacked one couple who converted to Christianity in 2008. They were beaten and tortured, their heads shaved, and the wife (who was pregnant) was sexually assaulted and raped. You can read the ECLJ report on Turkey here.
Christians and other religious minorities in Kyrgyzstan are being persecuted with increased violence and oppression. Kyrgyzstans new legislation and specific instances of persecution make it abundantly clear that protection for religious freedom written into the Constitution and protection of human rights assured by treaty do not translate into reality. Since gaining its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, the countrys Islamic population has steadily grown, as have Islam-influenced laws. Muslims often physically assault and evict Christians from their communities, demand the closure of church buildings, and Christian worship meetings are often raided by Islamic mobs. Christians have been subjected to beatings and rape. You can read the report here.
Despite constitutional protection for religious freedom in the Lao Peoples Democratic Republic (Laos), local and provincial governments often construe those provisions strictly in order to avoid division among religions. The result is persecution against Christians. Not only were many house churches raided in the past year, but many Christians were arrested without charges being filed and forced to renounce their faith. In 2008 alone, there were over 500 reports of Christians being forced to renounce their faith. That report is located here.
Finally, Kuwait establishes Islam as the State religion and mandates that Islamic Sharia be a main source of legislation. The Kuwaiti government places limitations on how religious beliefs are practiced, prohibiting blasphemy, apostasy, and proselytizing of Muslims by non-Muslims. Past converts to Christianity have faced harassment and abuse from police. The report on Kuwait is posted here.
The ECLJ remains dedicated to working to protect religious and human rights in all countries. We will keep you posted as our work unfolds at the United Nations Human Rights Commission.