Source: AFP
WASHINGTON, D.C., October 3, 2002: A US government advisory panel has recommended that the State Department designate 12 nations “countries of particular concern” because of their alleged violations of religious freedom, a move that could trigger sanctions against them. The US Commission on International Religious Freedom said the nations should include Myanmar, North Korea, India, Iran, Iraq, Laos, Pakistan, China, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Turkmenistan and Vietnam. The International Religious Freedom Act adopted in 1998 requires that countries found in particularly severe violations of religious freedom be considered by the US President for diplomatic or economic sanctions. “We hope to see actions commensurate with the severity of these abuses,” said commission chairman Felice Gaer after sending the recommendations to Secretary of State Colin Powell. Last year the commission complained at length in its report that its recommendations were being ignored by the State Department. The commission is mostly concerned with freedom for Christians, and only somewhat with religious freedom for other religions.