NCPA


Policy Issues

NCPA Publications

Both Sides

Editorial Opinions

Audio/Visual


NATIONAL CENTER FOR POLICY ANALYSIS
HOME / DONATE / ONE LEVEL UP / ABOUT NCPA / CONTACT US
State Department Identifies Countries Denying Religious Freedom
Daily Policy Digest

International Issues / Culture & Political Systems

Tuesday, October 08, 2002
Religious freedom suffers in two types of countries, according to a new State Department report. Communist countries designated as "authoritarian" suppress all religion. And predominantly Muslim countries display "state hostility" to unapproved faiths.

These classifications were assigned in the fourth annual "Report on International Religious Freedom."

Here are some highlights:

  • Thirty-two countries violate religious freedom -- but North Korea, Iran, Iraq, Burma and Sudan were singled out as "particularly severe" violators.
  • The International Religious Freedoms Act, passed in 1998, mandates the annual study and requires State Department sanctions against "countries of particular concern."
  • When asked whether Saudi Arabia should appear on the worst-case sanctions list, State Department officials admitted that would be a "tough call."
  • The department has already been criticized for not singling out Sudan and China for inclusion on the list.
Source: Larry Witham, "U.S. Lists Nations Curbing Religion," Washington Times, October 8, 2002.

For State Department report
http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2002/

For more on Culture & Political Systems
http://www.ncpa.org/iss/int
12770 Coit Rd., Suite 800 - Dallas, TX 75251-1339 - 972/386-6272 - Fax 972/386-0924
601 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Suite 900 South Building - Washington, DC 20004 - 202/220-3082 - Fax 202/220-3096
Copyright © 2002 National Center for Policy Analysis - All rights reserved.