June 2011

Evangelism Ban Proposed in Nepal

Proposed legislation in Nepal's national parliament would prohibit religious conversion. Above, Adventist youth in Banepa, Nepal, hand out religious literature to passers-by last month. [ANN file photo]

Evangelism ban would undermine Nepal’s fledgling democratic society, religious liberty experts say

Elizabeth Lechleitner/ANN

A proposed civil code forbidding evangelism and missionary work in Nepal belies the country’s attempts to build a society based on respect for human rights, religious liberty advocates say.

The code would make illegal efforts to “convert a person or abet him to change his religion” in the southern Asian nation. Specifically, it seeks to prohibit conversion with or without “inducements” and bans preaching “a different religion or faith.” If passed, the code promises steep fines and imprisonment for offenders.

Following ten years of civil war, Nepal in 2006 abolished its longstanding monarchy -- with Hinduism as the state religion -- in favor of establishing a federal democratic republic.

Currently, the Nepalese government is embroiled in a protracted process of drafting a new constitution expected to guarantee religious freedom, reports indicate. The country’s interim constitution prohibits proselytizing, according to the U.S. State Department’s 2010 International Religious Freedom Report.

The wording and intent of the newly proposed code, however, echo Nepal’s constitution during its Hindu monarchy. Then, the country protected citizens’ right to practice religion handed down “from ancient times,” but banned not only proselytism, but also religious conversion, the Religious Freedom World Report said. The report is a publication of the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s department of Public Affairs and Religious Liberty. 

Having failed to meet their initial May 28 deadline, Nepal’s government is now expected to submit a draft of its new constitution in three months, news reports indicate.

“Nepal has a responsibility to protect the freedom of its citizens, including the freedom to have a religion, to have no religion, to change religions and to share and teach religion. This is a basic human right and Nepal cannot build a democratic society while ignoring human rights,” said John Graz, secretary-general of the International Religious Liberty Association.

Religious freedom proponents should express their opposition to the code while it’s still a proposal, Graz added.

Nepal’s small Christian community, which is not represented in the Hindu majority country’s parliament, was unaware of the proposed code until questioned about it, the Christian Post reported.

IRLA Leader: “Religious freedom deserves higher profile in US foreign policy”

IRLA deputy secretary general, Dwayne Leslie, says the widespread restriction and denial of relgious freedom around the globe is a reality that must be reflected more in the work and policies of the US State Department.  [IRLA file photo]

Diplomacy and foreign policy must acknowledge reality of widespread restrictions on faith

The International Religious Liberty Association, together with a coalition of religious and human rights groups, is supporting proposed legislation that would require the US State Department to place more emphasis on promoting religious freedom around the world.

Dwayne Leslie, IRLA deputy secretary general, says the legislation would give religious freedom concerns greater weight and prominence in the diplomacy and foreign policy of the United States.

“Religious freedom is the most basic of human rights,” he says. “What we believe about God and how we express our belief is intensely personal—it goes to the heart of who we are and how we choose to live our lives. Yet, for more than two thirds of the world’s population, the right to worship according to conscience is either restricted or denied. The IRLA believes this reality must be reflected more clearly in the day-to-day work of the US State Department.”

The proposed law, known as HR 1856, was introduced by Representative Frank Wolf, who has a long track record of championing human rights legislation. It would allow a seven-year continuation of the US-funded, bipartisan Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)—a body created by Congress in 1998 to advise the State Department, the President, and Congress about current religious freedom issues. One of the key functions of the commission is to produce a yearly Religious Freedom report, which identifies countries of particular concern and which the State Department must, by law, consider as it develops policy positions.

Besides reauthorizing the USCIRF, the new law, if passed, would also strengthen the role and “diplomatic clout” of the US ambassador-at-large for religious freedom, in part, by placing the office more directly under the authority of the Secretary of State.  The proposed legislation would also ramp up religious freedom education within the State Department; every foreign service officer would be obliged to undergo special training in religious freedom issues.

Mr. Leslie says the IRLA will continue to work with other concerned organizations to generate grassroots support for the new law, and to encourage other congressmen and women to sign on as co-sponsors of the bill. “Right now, there are only nine co-sponsors and we would like that number to be closer to 150,” he says. United States citizens can help move the legislation forward by calling the office of their congressional representative and asking them to become a cosponsor of HR 1856. [Bettina Krause/IRLA]

News Note: White House Welcome for German leader

In the words of German Chancellor Angela Merkel: "Freedom does not come about of itself. It must be struggled for..." The German leader was welcomed to the White House June 6 for a one-day visit to the United States. [Photo credit: Dwayne Leslie]

Chancellor honored with Presidential Medal of Freedom

IRLA deputy secretary general, Dwayne Leslie, was a guest at the White House June 6 as President Barak Obama welcomed German Chancellor Angela Merkel for a one-day official visit to the United States. Later that evening, Mr. Obama presented Dr. Merkel with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in recognition of what he called her tremendous commitment to promoting and protecting individual freedoms in Germany and around the world. In his presentation, President Obama quoted the words of Chancellor Merkel, who as a child grew up under the social and legal constraints of East Germany’s communist regime. In describing her experience, she has said: “Freedom does not come about of itself.  It must be struggled for, and then defended anew, every day of our lives.”     [Bettina Krause/IRLA]

Concern for freedom in Hungary as lawmakers consider new restrictions

Hungary's parliament buildings in the captial, Budapest, where legislation will soon be considered that would force some minority religions to forfiet their legal standing.

Proposed law sends "worrying signal," says expert

Strict registration requirements for minority religious groups are part of a proposed new law in Hungary that will soon come before the nation’s lawmakers for consideration. Some experts are calling the draft legislation the “most oppressive religion law and the most burdensome registration system” in Europe.

Under its provisions, a number of smaller religious groups—which have already obtained legal recognition under Hungary’s 1990 Religion Law—would be “de-registered.” The new law would also make re-registration of these groups significantly more challenging. The legal definition of “religious activities” would be narrowed, and religious groups would have to meet stringent conditions in order to legally refer to themselves as a “church.” They would be required to prove, in part, to have been organized in Hungary for at least 20 years and to have more than 1,000 members.

Mr. Raafat Kamal, IRLA Secretary General for Europe, says the draft law under discussion is a “highly worrying signal from the Hungarian government.”

“This exclusionary approach enshrined in the Hungarian national constitution, with the potential to discriminate against new and minority faiths, is inconsistent with the European values of a pluralistic and democratic society,” he says.

According to Dr. John Graz, IRLA Secretary General, laws which restrict registration of religious groups based on their numerical size, or historical presence within a country, are open to abuse. “Smaller or newer faiths groups, which don’t belong to the dominant religious tradition, can find themselves without legal standing and without a ‘voice’ to protest their treatment,” he explains. “It has been demonstrated, time and again, in many other places that attempts to regulate religion in this way almost invariably leads to discrimination.”     

Mr. Dwayne Leslie, Deputy Secretary General of the IRLA, says that, regardless of government’s intent in pursuing this legislation, its actual consequences could be serious. “If passed, this law could degrade Hungary’s standing as a country that respects and protects basic human rights,” he says. “No matter what the stated purpose of this law, its provisions open up the potential for discrimination against minority faiths. This attempt to ‘regulate’ religion is simply incompatible with a free, democratic society.

According to Hungarian government officials, while the new law would affect the definition of what constitutes “religious activity,” it would not establish any state organization to control or supervise churches.

The central European country of Hungary was under Communist rule until 1989. Interest in religion has grown in the post-communist years, with some 55 percent of the population now identifying themselves as Roman Catholic. Although the constitution of Hungary formally protects religious expression, some observers believe this new law is aimed at providing the government with a practical means of controlling and discriminating against some religious groups.

IRLA Secretary General Praises Focus of South American Activists

Dr. John Graz honored by Brazil's largest Bar Association

A major religious freedom symposium, held June 9 in Brazil’s National Assembly building in São Paulo, has drawn national attention to the cause of protecting and promoting freedom of faith. The event, organized by the Brazilian Association of Religious Freedom and Citizenship (ABLIRC), was attended by more than 200 lawyers, public officials, religious leaders, and activists, and took place in the national Chamber of Deputies.  The symposium was one of the highlights of an intensive eight-day series of public meetings and events currently underway across Brazil.

 “The IRLA’s sister organization in South America is strong and focused,” said Dr. John Graz, Secretary General of the IRLA. “The success of this symposium, and the broad range of speakers and participants it attracted, demonstrates the dedication and professionalism of ABLIRC, and high level of support their efforts are generating for the cause of freedom.”

Earlier in his South American itinerary, Dr. Graz met with Attorney Luiz Borges D'Urso, president of the Bar Association of the State of São Paulo, an organization which represents some 300,000 lawyers. The president presented Dr. Graz with a Diploma of Honor in recognition of his long and distinguished record of promoting religious freedom around the world. During the June 17 meeting, the President D'Urso also requested that Dr. Graz and the IRLA become advisors to the association’s Committee for Religious Freedom.

On Saturday, June 18, Dr. Graz gave three presentations at the largest Seventh-day Adventist Church in South America, a 4,000-member congregation which meets on the campus of the São Paulo Adventist University, (UNASP) near the city of Campinas, Brazil.  Dr. Graz’s visit in South America continues this week with meetings with religious freedom experts and advocates in Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, and São José do Rio Preto. [Bettina Krause/IRLA]