Working to promote freedom of conscience for every person, no matter who they are or where they live.

February 2006

Dear IRLA Board Members and Experts:

Weeks and months are passing on so fast that we have just time to jump from one event to another. Thank you again for your cooperation and your support. Our entire team wishes you a great and happy New Year! I will try to briefly share with you our activities for the last six months.

  1. September 12-13: Religious Liberty in the Romanian and European Context in Bucharest-A successful congress was organized by the Ministry of Culture and Religious Affairs and our good friend, Viorel Dima, Secretary General of the Romanian Religious Liberty Association. The opening speeches were given by Minister of Culture Adrian Iorgulescu and Patriarch Toectist. Other speakers included Metropolitan Daniel, experts from Paris and Germany, and IRLA experts like Cole Durham, Dora Bognandi, and Rik Torfs. Patriarch Toectist said that religious liberty is one of the most important gifts that God gave man. I spoke about inter-religious dialogue. This conference made an important contribution as Romania finalizes its draft of the Law of Religion that is to be submitted to Parliament.
  2. September 21: Cambodian Ambassador visit-I had the honor of welcoming His Excellency, Sereywath Ek, Cambodian Ambassador to the USA, and his wife. After my visit to Cambodia, it was interesting to talk with the ambassador about religious freedom in his country.
  3. October 10: IRLA Board Meeting-I asked Jonathan Gallagher to develop our IRLA web site as one of our priorities for the next five years. As more and more events occur around the world, we need a good and useful web site.
  4. October 13: The Deputy Secretary General visited Peru-Dr Jonathan Gallagher brought the support of the IRLA to the Peruvian Religious Liberty Association when he met with officials in Lima as a proposed law on Religious Freedom and Equality was being submitted to the government. The bill's 28 Articles include a robust defense of religious freedom.
  5. October 13: The 2005 issue of Fides et libertas includes the Honorable Patrick Manning, Prime Minister of Trinidad, as one of the authors.
  6. October 16-22: Conference of Secretaries of the Christian World Communions-This is not a meeting focused on religious freedom, but religious freedom is always a concern for these leaders of almost two billion Christians. My task as Secretary is to organize the conference. Jonathan Gallagher assisted by writing the minutes. Also attending were IRLA Vice President, Dr Eugene Hsu, and IRLA President, Denton Lotz, who is one of the strongest voices for religious freedom among the Christian leaders. The next conference will be in Rome. Dr John Graz with Dr. Samuel Kobia, Secretary General of the World Council of Churches, who made a presentation to the Conference of Secretaries of the Christian World Communions.
  7. October 21-25: Official launching of the Georgian Religious Liberty Association-On October 23, in Tbilisi, Georgia, the new Georgian Religious Liberty Association was born. A special meeting with NGO representatives and religious leaders supported the new association. The event was covered by national TV and there was participation by the representatives from the Patriarchate of Georgia and government ombudsmen. The participants elected Dr Vladimir Gokabridze, Director of the Center of Religious Issues as President, and
    Grigol G Tsamalashvih was elected as Secretary General. Orthodox, Catholic, Protestant, and Muslim leaders were among the 21 board members. We welcome the GRLA to the IRLA network. During my visit I met religious and NGO leaders and was interviewed by national TV.
  8. October 24: Dr Jonathan Gallagher met UN Expert on Religious Intolerance, Asma Jahangir, in New York-She appealed for greater support in the fight against religious intolerance.
  9. October 27: The Washington Coalition on Religious Freedom hosted former US State Department official Tom Farr-This was the 8th meeting of the Washington Coalition for International Religious Freedom organize by the IRLA and chaired by former Ambassador-at-large Robert Seiple. More than 20 representatives of NGOs and religious organizations attended. North American Religious Liberty Association Secretary General, Attorney James Standish, and Specialist Viola Hughes organized this excellent meeting.
  10. November 12-16: 7th IRLA Meeting of Experts in Siguenza, Spain-This was an excellent meeting, and we thank Professor Alberto de la Hera and Professor Rosa Maria Martinez de Codes for hosting us again in cooperation with the University of Alcala. We had a great group which included Ambassador Robert Seiple, Professor David Little, Professor Derek Davis, and Professor Vaughn James as new participants. The group produced a document entitled Guiding Principles Regarding Students' Rights to Wear or Display Religious Symbols. The next meeting will be held at the University of Aix-en-Provence, September 10-14, 2006. Please mark these dates on your calendar.
  11. November 18-19: United Nations Group of Experts on Islamophobia met in Seville, Spain-It was small group of experts and I represented the IRLA. Professor Rosa Maria Martinez de Codes was also part of the group. The meeting was chaired by Dr Doudou Diene, United Nations Special Rapporteur on Racism and anti-Semitism. A report of our discussions will be published. The event was hosted by the Institute of the Three Cultures, a state-sponsored institution where Jews, Muslims, and Christians work together to promote peaceful relations.
  12. November 28-29: Visit to Andrews University and preparation of a symposium-This was a short visit which included a lecture. We studied the opportunities for cooperation between the IRLA and the International Institute for Religious Freedom. We also worked with Dr Jacques Doukhan on a symposium.
  13. December 8-22: European tour from Rome to Kiev to Moscow-It is difficult to describe this trip briefly, but I will try. It was an excellent trip which included meetings with officials, lectures, and conferences.
    • Rome, Italy, December 8-14-In Rome I met the main officials in charge of religious freedom. I also met the M.P. and former government Minister Valdo Spini. Our colleague, Dora Bognandi is doing a great work in promoting religious freedom. Italy has become very supportive of religious freedom for all.
    • Kiev, Ukraine, December 15-18-I was invited to give a lecture at the National Pedagogical University at a conference organized by the State Department of Religious Affairs. We spent some time with religious leaders and with the Director of Religious Affairs. The Ukrainian Religious Liberty Association is very active in organizing conferences at the national and regional level.
    • Moscow, Russia, December 19-22-The Euro-Asia Religious Liberty Association organized the conference which was attended by 80 religious leaders, experts, and officials. Among them was the Catholic Archbishop who is a member of the association board. Religious freedom experts perceive an increasing control of the state on religious minorities. Some of them expressed concerns about church-state relations. Articles will be published soon. In Kiev, as in Moscow, the Secretary General of both associations, Peter Hanulich and Victor Vitko, did a great work in keeping their association on the front line of defending religious freedom.
  14. January 4: Indian Ambassador visit-Indian Ambassador Ronen Sen, and Deputy Chief of Mission, Ambassador Raminder Singh Jassal, visited our office. Both of the ambassadors are very committed to promoting an environment in India where all religious beliefs are treated with respect.
  15. January 6-27: Visit and Lectures in Tahiti-Believe me, this is a nice place to spend time in the winter. I was invited to give lectures and to meet the new President of the country. During our 45-minute visit we talked about religious freedom. I met the Archbishop, the Protestant leaders, and the Jewish community, and I preached in the Adventist church and other Protestant churches. I also gave several radio interviews. It was a great trip. The Polynesian Religious Liberty Association has done a good work.
  16. Upcoming Events

That is all for this time. Please visit our web site at www.IRLA.org. I want to thank all my team, Jonathan, James, Carol, and Viola.

Please, we need your support. Stay in touch and may God bless you.

Sincerely yours,

John Graz
Secretary-General

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