Latest News
Subcommittee Hearing Announcement: “Examining the Fiscal Year 24 State and Foreign Operations Budget Request for Europe”
By State Newswire | May 17, 2023
News Release: Washington, D.C. - The House Foreign Affairs Committee announced the Subcommittee on Europe will convene a hearing entitled, “Examining the Fiscal Year 24 State and Foreign Operations Budget Request for Europe" on Tuesday, May 23rd.
DOS-DRL offers new grant application process starting May 17
By State Newswire | May 17, 2023
Justice for Underserved Disabled Youth Initiative (JUDY Initiative) grant opened on May 17.
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Bangladesh
By State Newswire | May 17, 2023
Release: The constitution designates Islam as the state religion but upholds the principle of secularism. It prohibits religious discrimination and provides for equality for all religions. Family law, enforced in secular courts, contains separate provisions for different religious groups. On the one-year anniversary...
Chairman McCaul Statement at Today’s Committee Markup of H.R. 3205
By State Newswire | May 17, 2023
News Release: Washington, D.C. - Today, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul gave the following remarks at a full committee markup of H.R. 3205.
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Sudan
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: In October 2021, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan led a military takeover that ousted Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and his government. Hamdok was briefly reinstated in November 2021 but resigned in January 2022. Burhan served as de facto head of state and government since October 2021 while a cabinet...
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Vietnam
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: The constitution states that all individuals have the right to freedom of belief and religion. The law provides for significant government control over religious practices and includes vague provisions that permit restrictions on religious freedom in the stated interest of national security and social unity. For example, the Law on Belief and Religion (LBR) maintains a multistage registration and recognition process for religious groups.
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Barbados
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: The constitution and other laws provide for freedom of religion, including the freedom to change one’s religion, and it prohibits discrimination based on religious belief. By law, the government does not require religious groups to register and grants religious groups the right to establish and maintain private schools and provide religious instruction.
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Seychelles
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: The constitution prohibits discrimination on any grounds and forbids any laws establishing any religion or imposing any religious observance. It provides for freedom of religion, including the right of individuals to change, manifest, and propagate their religion.
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Democratic Republic of the Congo
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: The constitution states that the country is secular, prohibits religious discrimination, provides for freedom of religion or belief, bans the use of religion for political ends, and stipulates that impositions on freedom of conscience stemming from “religious fanaticism" shall be punishable by law.
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Kenya
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: The constitution stipulates there shall be no state religion and prohibits religious discrimination. The constitution provides for freedom of religion and belief individually or in communities, including the freedom to manifest any religion through worship, practice, teaching, or observance and to debate religious questions. The constitution further provides for special qadi courts to adjudicate certain types of civil cases based on Islamic law.
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Cambodia
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: The constitution states Buddhism is the state religion. The law provides for freedom of belief and religious worship, provided such freedom neither interferes with others’ beliefs and religions nor violates public order and security. The law does not allow non-Buddhist denominations to proselytize publicly. A government directive restricts monks from participating in political protests and requires them to be politically neutral.
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Burma
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: Note. In 2021, the military overthrew the democratically elected civilian government, declaring a state of emergency and creating a State Administration Council, a military-run administrative organization led by armed forces Commander in Chief (CINC) Min Aung Hlaing that assumed executive, legislative,...
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Grenada
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: The constitution protects freedom of conscience, including freedom of thought and religion. The criminal code prohibits the publication and sale of blasphemous language; however, the code is not enforced.
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Chile
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: The constitution provides for freedom of conscience and worship. Religion and state are separate. The law prohibits religious discrimination and provides civil remedies to victims of discrimination. The National Office of Religious Affairs (ONAR) is charged with facilitating communication between faith communities and the government and ensuring the protection of the rights of members of minority religious groups.
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Laos
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: The constitution provides citizens with “the right and freedom to believe or not to believe in religion." The government officially recognizes four religions: Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, and the Baha’i Faith, with Buddhism paramount. Decree 315, rather than law, sets forth rules for religious practice and minimum land requirements for building houses of worship and defines the government as the final arbiter of permissible religious activities.
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Tonga
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: The constitution grants freedom to practice, worship, and assemble for religious services. The constitution requires the Sabbath, which the government defines as Sunday, be “kept holy" and prohibits most commercial transactions and many recreational activities on Sunday, except as permitted by law. The...
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Iceland
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: The constitution provides for freedom of religious belief and practice, as long as it is not prejudicial to good morals or public order. The constitution also protects the right to form religious associations. It names the Evangelical Lutheran Church (ELC) as the state church, to which the government...
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Madagascar
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: The constitution provides for freedom of religious thought and expression and prohibits religious discrimination in the workplace. Other laws protect individual religious beliefs against abuses by government or private actors.
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Guinea-Bissau
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: The constitution establishes the separation of religion and state and the responsibility of the state to respect and protect legally recognized religious groups. It states that all citizens are equal under the law, with the same rights and obligations irrespective of their religion, and it recognizes the freedom of religious groups to teach their faith.
2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Brazil
By State Newswire | May 16, 2023
Release: The constitution states freedom of conscience and belief is inviolable, provides for the free exercise of religious beliefs, and prohibits federal, state, and local governments from either supporting or hindering any religion. The law contains penalties for acts of religious intolerance and discrimination.