Position Papers, Letters and Petitions Signed By The Church of Scientology National Affairs Office

[ISNOINews]

The Church of Scientology National Affairs Office joins letter urging Canada and the United Kingdom to join global Magnitsky sanctions against officials of the People's Republic of China responsible for violating the rights of Uyghurs.


Human Rights First Urges Canada, U.K., to Join Global Magnitsky Sanctions Against Chinese Officials Responsible for Violating the Rights of Uyghurs


ETA: Also at:

Joint Statement on Magnitsky Sanctions Against China for Egregious Human Rights Abuses in Xinjiang

PEN America urges the U.S., U.K., and Canadian governments to collaborate on targeted sanctions against China for human rights abuses in Xinjiang.

pen.org

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

August 18, 2020

Dear Minister Champagne, Secretary Mnuchin, Secretary Pompeo, and Foreign Secretary Raab,

We, the 71 undersigned organizations dedicated to the promotion of universal

human rights and/or the fight against corruption, welcome the United Kingdom’s successful promulgation of its Global Human Rights Sanctions Regulations and initial tranche of 49 sanctions designations, as well as the United States’ recent actions under the Global Magnitsky sanctions program to designate senior Chinese leaders and entities responsible for egregious human rights violations in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (Uyghur Region) against Uyghurs and other Turkic and Muslim-majority peoples.

We write you in the context of these developments to urge greater coordination between your governments as one critical element in your broader strategies to promote respect for human rights and fight corruption globally, and to request that the British and Canadian governments use their respective targeted human rights sanctions programs to mirror recent actions undertaken by the US government.

The US government’s recent sanctions designations of Uyghur Region Chinese Communist Party (CCP) secretary Chen Quanguo, other senior CCP officials, the Xinjiang Public Security Bureau (XPSB), and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC) reflect actions long called for by the Uyghur activist community and many human rights organizations. These designations mark a significant step forward in terms of holding accountable the perpetrators of atrocities against the Uyghurs and other Turkic and Muslim-majority peoples.

We note, however, that the impact and perceived legitimacy of such sanctions will be bolstered if coordinated and implemented in conjunction with the governments of the United Kingdom and Canada. We encourage your governments to prioritize multilateralization of targeted human rights and anti-corruption sanctions, which among other benefits will have the manifest impact of expanding the reach of travel restrictions and asset freezes. This, in turn, will increase the costs for each sanctioned individual and entity to continue committing human rights abuses or acts of corruption, in the Uyghur Region or elsewhere, and serve as a more effective deterrent.

In this instance, we urge the US government to share the information it has used to inform its Uyghur Region-related Global Magnitsky designations with counterparts in Canada and the United Kingdom. Likewise, we urge the governments of Canada and the United Kingdom to act upon such information by announcing their own targeted sanctions against the listed perpetrators under the Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act and the Global Human Rights Sanctions Regulations, respectively.

More broadly, we encourage each of your ministries to formalize and routinize information-sharing concerning targeted sanctions relating to human rights abuses and corruption. By collaborating across borders, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom can make it much harder for perpetrators to evade sanctions enforcement.

Globalizing and harmonizing “Magnitsky-like” targeted sanctions programs represents a significant step towards ending impunity for many of the world’s worst crimes. We applaud each of your governments for the steps you are taking in this direction, and urge further integration as you move forward in this important work.

Sincerely,

Americans for Kashmir

Association for Advancement of Freedom of Religion or Belief in Vietnam

Avaaz

The Arrested Lawyers Initiative

Bitter Winter

Boat People SOS

Buddhist Solidarity Association

Campaign for Uyghurs

Center for the Study of Democracy

Central and Eastern European Council in Canada

China Aid Association

Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD)

Council for Global Equality

CSW

The Church of Almighty God

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office

Citizen Power Initiatives for China

Coalition for Integrity

Coalition to Abolish Modern Day Slavery in Asia (CAMSA)

Committee for Religious Freedom in Vietnam

Crude Accountability

Fight For Freedom. Stand With Hong Kong.

Freedom House

Freedom Now

Free Russia Foundation

Free Uyghur Student Coalition

Friends of Angola

Global Alliance Against Communist Propaganda & Disinformation

Global Magnitsky Justice Movement (Bill Browder)

Heartland Initiative

Humanity United

Human Rights First

Human Rights Movement "Bir Duino-Kyrgyzstan"

Human Rights Watch

Human Rights Foundation

The Human Trafficking Legal Center

International Christian Concern

International Lawyers Project

International Organization to Preserve Human Rights

International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR)

Italian Federation for Human Rights (FIDU)

Jewish World Watch

Joint Baltic American National Committee

Jubilee Campaign USA

Jubilee Campaign NL

Junior Sacerdotal Council of the Cao Dai Religion

Justice for All

Justice for All Canada

Kleptocracy Initiative

Montagnards Stand for Justice

Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies

No Business With Genocide

Norwegian Uyghur Committee

PEN America

Project Expedite Justice

Project Hong Kong

REDRESS

Safeguard Defenders

StoptheDrugWar.org

Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition International (TASSC)

T'ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights

Truth Hounds

USC Gould International Human Rights Clinic

US Pinoys for Good Governance

United Macedonian Diaspora

Uyghur Human Rights Project (UHRP)

Uyghur Rally

Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation

Vietnamese Women for Human Rights

WatchDog.MD Community (Republic of Moldova)

World Uyghur Congress

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[ISNOINews]

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office joins letter asking members of Congress to co-sponsor the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, (H.R. 6210 or S. 3471), to ensure that American product supply chains are not funding the Chinese government’s oppression of the Uyghurs and other Muslim groups in Xinjiang.


https://dvov.org/wp-content/uploads...FjAAegQIBBAB&usg=AOvVaw1UJkZYoAgf16zvLJeEhhj_


* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

The Honorable ________________
United States House of Representatives or
Senate
Washington DC ____________

Dear Representative/Senator ____,

We write as an informal coalition of 150 organizations and individuals who are scholars, religious leaders, human rights advocates and practitioners to ask you to co-sponsor the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, (H.R. 6210 or S. 3471), to ensure that American product supply chains are not funding the Chinese government’s oppression of the Uyghurs and other Muslim groups in Xinjiang.

Forced labor programs are a chilling component of the CCP’s brutal campaign of repression of Xinjiang’s Muslims’ religious freedoms. China’s government is estimated to imprison over 1 million Muslims in “reeducation” camps where they face separation from their families, indoctrination, and torture. Unfortunately, the nightmare for many of these Muslims does not end at the walls of the camps. Chinese government officials coerce many former camp prisoners and local Muslim residents to work in government approved factories and other workplaces as part of their larger campaign to destroy their cultural identity and bring them under the complete control of the state.

Congress should ensure that American dollars are not funding this oppression through the importation of products made by forced labor from the Xinjiang Region. The New York Times reported that the products made off the backs of these oppressed people are going into several global supply chains of products such as textiles and personal protective equipment that are going to consumers in the United States.

Support for action on this issue comes from diverse and influential organizations such as those united under the Coalition to End Forced Labour in the Uyghur Region (EFLUR). Endorsing members of the coalition are ideologically diverse and represent many different sectors. They include over 200 advocacy, antislavery, labor rights, legal aid, and human rights organizations, as well as unions, among them the AFLCIO, Uyghur Human Rights Project, Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, Clean Clothes Campaign, and Lantos Foundation for Human Rights & Justice, and Human Rights Watch.

We join all of the endorsing organizations of the EFLUR, adding our voices as religious freedom organizations experts calling for ending the tainting of American supply chains with the forced labor of Uyghur people. The CCP has pursued this policy as a tool targeting ethnic and religious minorities in violation of their Article 18 freedom of religion or belief rights as defined by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act would safeguard American consumers from unwittingly supporting the CCP’s oppression. Key provisions of the act would create the presumption that goods produced in the Xinjiang Region are made with forced labor and prohibited from importation into the U.S. under the Tariff Act of 1930, unless there is “clear and convincing evidence” that the goods were not made with forced labor. It would also hold foreign parties accountable by enabling sanctions on those who knowingly participate in the importation of the products emerging from this forced labor.

We urge you to contact the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Rubio or Rep. McGovern, to sign on as a co-sponsor to help advance this vital legislation. It will help ensure the integrity of America’s product supply chain and stand for those facing religious oppression in China. We thank you for your thoughtful consideration of this legislation.

ORGANIZATIONS:

21Wilberforce

901 Ummah

ADL (Anti-Defamation League)

AdvanceUSA

Association for the Advancement of Freedom of Religion or Belief in Vietnam (AAFoRB-VN)

Athenai Institute

Australian Uyghur Association

Belgium Uyghur Association

Boat People SOS

Bruderhof

Buddhist Solidarity Association

Campaign For Uyghurs

Center for Pluralism

China Aid Association

Christian Freedom International

Christian Medical Dental Associations

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office

Coalition to Abolish Modern-day Slavery in Asia (CAMSA)

Columbia Muslim Students Association

Committee for Religious Freedom in Vietnam

Coordination des Associations et des Particuliers pour la Liberte de Conscience

CSW

Defense Forum Foundation Family Research Council

Free Uyghur Now Coalition

Free Uyghur Student Coalition Freedom Forward

Freedom2Care

FreeUyghurNow Coalition

Global Alliance Against Communist Propaganda and Disinformation

Happy Science Washington Bureau

Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC)

Institute on Religion and Democracy

Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility

International Bible Conference

International Center for Religion & Diplomacy

International Christian Concern

International Interfaith Peace Corps

International Organization to Preserve Human Rights

Isa Yusuf Alptekin Foundation

Jubilee Campaign

Justice For All - Save Uighurs Campaign

Justice for Uyghurs

Law and Liberty International

Minaret Foundation

Minh Van Foundation

Muslims For Muslims International

No Business with Genocide

One Way Churches International Open Doors USA

Patmos Institute REDEEM!

Religious Freedom Institute Revealing Light Ministries

Silk Road Peace Project

South Asia Minorities Alliance Foundation

Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission

St. Charles Institute

STAND: The Student-Led Movement to End Mass Atrocities Stefanus Alliance International

Stop Genocide Now

Sunshine Ministries

The Church of Almighty God

The International Campaign for Tibet

The International Multi-Faith Coalition (I.M.F.C.)

Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam

United Macedonian Diaspora

University of Maryland: College Park Muslim Student Association (UMD MSA)

Uyghur American Association

Uyghur Association of Victoria (Melbourne, Australia)

Uyghur Human Rights Project

Uyghur Projects Foundation (NPO)

Uyghur Rally

Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation

Vietnam Coalition Against Torture

Vietnamese Women for Human Rights (VNWHR)

Washingtonians for Change

World Uyghur Congress

World Without Genocide at Mitchell Hamline School of Law

YoreChildren


INDIVIDUALS (Organizations listed for identification purposes only):

Rishat Abbas (Senior Advisor, World Uyghur Congress)

Abduxukur Abdurixit (Dr, Justice for Uyghurs)

Sharareh Afshari (U.S. Representative, IOPHR)

Puneet Ahluwalia (Executive Director, South Asia Minorities Alliance Foundation)

Rasheed Ahmed (Executive Director, Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC))

Jeff Anderson (President, International Bible Conference)

Rcom Ayul (Senior member, Build Human Rights for Montagnards)

David Babu (President, Sunshine Ministries)

Jeff Barrows (Senior VP Bioethics and Public Polic, Christian Medical Dental Associations)

Sunjeev Bery (Executive Director, Freedom Forward)

Simon Billenness (Campaign Director, No Business with Genocide)

Ed Brown (Secretary General, Stefanus Alliance International)

Matthew Buondap (Senior member, Montagnards Stand for Justice)

Ann Buwalda (Executive Director, Jubilee Campaign)

Dr William Devlin (CEO, REDEEM!)

Nathan Duddles (Project Director, Silk Road Peace Project)

W. Cole Durham (Founding Director, International Center for Law and Religion Studies, BYU Law School)

Markus Eban (Member, Montagnards Stand for Justice)

A Ga (Pastor, Evangelical Church of Christ of the Central Highlands of Vietnam)

Max Gelber (Program Director, Uyghur American Association)

Shariq Ghani (Director, Minaret Foundation)

Hamid Gharagozloo (U.S. Representative, International Organization to Preserve Human Rights)

Mike Ghouse (President, Center for Pluralism)

Fr. Joseph Grieboski (Senior Fellow, The Dietrich Bonhoeffer Institute)

Y Pher Hdrue (Member, Montagnards Stand for Justice)

Carl Herbster (President, AdvanceUSA)

Lauren Homer (President, Law and Liberty International)

Johann Huleatt (Outreach Director, Bruderhof)

Bengisu I (Free Uyghur Now Coalition)

Jonathan Imbody (Director, Freedom2Care)

Abdullam Imerov (Mr, Belgium Uyghur Association)

Dolkun Isa (President, World Uyghur Congress)

David Keene (Editor at Large, The Washington Times)

Muhammad Khan (University of Maryland: College Park Muslim Student Association (UMD MSA)) Mariam Khayata (Secretary, 901 Ummah)

Metodija Koloski (President, United Macedonian Diaspora)

Yunus Kovankaya (Columbia Muslim Students Association)

Omer Kul (Dr. Phd., Isa Yusuf Alptekin Foundation)

Sean Lin (Executive director, Global Alliance Against Communist Propaganda and Disinformation)

Mario Felix Lleonart Barroso (Rev., Patmos Institute)

Faith McDonnell (Director, International Religious Liberty Program, Institute on Religion and Democracy)

Greg Mitchell (Chair, International Religious Freedom Roundtable)

Dr. Russell Moore (President, Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission)

Scott Morgan (President, Red Eagle Enterprises)

Dr. Paul Murray (Vice Chair, One Way Churches International)

Linh Nguyen (President, Minh Van Foundation)

Jeannie Nguyen (Washingtonians for Change)

Dung Nguyen (Founding Member, Washingtonians For Change)

Tien Nguyen (Volunteers for Human Rights in Vietnam)

Satoshi Nishihata (Washington Bureau Chief, Happy Science Washington Bureau)

Jenny Noyes (Executive Director, New Wineskins Missionary Network)

Rory O’Connor (President and Chairman, Athenai Institute)

Mehmet Obul (President, Australian Uyghur Association)

Alim Osman (Uyghur Association of Victoria (Melbourne, Australia))

George Parker (Exececutive Director, Revealing Light Ministries)

James Patton (President, International Center for Religion & Diplomacy)

Patrice Pederson (Founder and President, First Freedom Foundation)

Matias Perttula (Director of Advocacy, International Christian Concern)

Quang Pham (Rep., Association for the Advancement of Freedom of Religion or Belief in Vietnam)

John T Pinna (Founder and Executive Director, Muslims For Muslims International)

Benedict Rogers (East Asia Team Leader, CSW)

Mosaab Sadeia (FreeUyghurNow Coalition)

Suzanne Scholte (President, Defense Forum Foundation)

Katie-Jay Scott (Coordinator, Stop Genocide Now)

Erkin Sidick (President, Uyghur Projects Foundation (NPO))

Quoc-Hung Tran, MD (Office of External Relations, Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam)

Thierry Valle (President, Coordination des Associations et des Particuliers pour la Liberte de Conscience) Loan Vo (Coordinator, Buddhist Solidarity Association)

Elizabeth Yore (Founder, YoreChildren)

Hena Zuberi (Director, Justice For All - Save Uighurs Campaign)

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[ISNOINews]

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office joins letter asking Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to apply sanctions in response to violations of religious freedom in Vietnam.


https://dvov.org/wp-content/uploads...Vaw31eQb1XWbK6t9H9jMi0OS3&cshid=1598631900252


* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

August __, 2020

The Honorable Mike Pompeo
Secretary
Department of State
2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20520

Dear Secretary Pompeo:

We, the undersigned organizations and individuals, are writing to recommend that the Department of State apply sanctions in response to the egregious violations of religious freedom in Vietnam, which in most ways are getting progressively worse.

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom has recommended that Vietnam be designated a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) “for engaging in systematic, ongoing, and egregious religious freedom violations, as defined by the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA).” In a letter dated July 30 to you, Senators John Cornyn and Marco Rubio urged, in addition to CPC designation, that the Department of State impose Global Magnitsky Act sanctions against certain individuals who have committed grave human rights violations. We fully support these recommendations.

While reportedly there have been a few scattered improvements in recent years, the bigger picture is that the already grim situation has worsened. An increasing number of victims who reported human rights violations to UN mandate holders have been subjected to punishment, including being placed under travel ban, detained, beaten, tortured, or vilified in public. Two long-time followers of the Cao Dai Religion, following their meetings with the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief, have been purportedly excommunicated from their religion by a canonically illegitimate Cao Dai organization that was established by order of the Vietnamese Communist Party. A witness to the beatings of some 30 Catholic women by an organized mob known as Red Flag Association was issued an arrest warrant and the priest who reported the mob received death threats. On the other hand, the victims’ repeated petitions to the police asking for an investigation of the perpetrators have been ignored by the police.

In June, the Political Officer and Political Affairs Advisor at the U.S. Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) met with over twenty Montagnard Christians during a visit to Gia Lai Province and Dak Lak Province. All those who met with these U.S. officers have been subsequently taken to the police station for questioning. They were ordered to abandon their faith and stop reporting human rights violations. The police threatened them with beating, detention, imprisonment and, at least in one case, death.

Silencing those who reported human rights violations severely hampers any efforts by the international community to assess Vietnam’s compliance with its professed commitments to international human rights standards. In their April 30 communication, two UN Special Rapporteurs expressed grave concern to the Vietnamese Government: “These allegations, if correct, would not only contravene Vietnam ‘s international human rights obligations under the ICCPR, in the sense that they impinge upon internationally-recognized rights of Vietnamese nationals, but they also appear to illustrate a pattern of reprisals against persons who sought to engage and cooperate with United Nations human rights mechanisms or foreign diplomatic representatives.” (Mandates of the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief; and the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, 30 April 2020, Reference # AL VNM 2/2020)

The U.S. government has applied targeted sanctions against over 200 individuals and entities in 25 countries, but none in Vietnam. This may send the wrong message as Vietnam may come to believe—mistakenly—that its own poor human rights record might be overlooked by the U.S. Government due to geopolitical and economic interests. Applying targeted sanctions against

Vietnamese officials would dispel this impression of immunity and be an effective way for the United States both to draw a clear line for religious freedom while encouraging Vietnam to be a more responsible and reliable partner in a future strategic relationship with the United States.

We therefore further call on your good office to apply targeted sanctions under IRFA to government officials responsible for acts of severe persecution against people of faith in the following provinces:

Dak Lak Province: Government officials who are responsible for forced renunciation of faith through harassment, multiple interrogations, torture, imprisonment, denial of medical care, and intimidation of Christians, including many Montagnards (ethnic minorities living in the Central Highlands and other remote, primarily mountainous regions). Since 2013, we have documented 177 incidents of forced renunciation of faith, 8 incidents of torture, 5 incidents of imprisonment, and 2 deaths by torture, all because of the victims’ religious belief and/or practice.

Gia Lai Province: Government officials who are responsible for forced renunciation of faith through harassment, multiple interrogations, torture, imprisonment, denial of medical care, and intimidation of Christians, including many Montagnards. Since 2013, we have documented 49 incidents of forced renunciation of faith, 16 incidents of torture, 20 incidents of imprisonment, 15 incidents of beating, and 2 deaths by torture, all because of the victims’ religious belief and/or practice.

Kontum Province: Government officials who are responsible for forced renunciation of faith through harassment, multiple interrogations, torture, imprisonment, denial of medical care, and intimidation of Christians, including many Montagnards; and for demolishing a Buddhist pagoda, denying personal documents to its abbot and threatening his followers. Since 2013, we have documented 29 incidents of forced renunciation of faith, 3 incidents of imprisonment, and 1 incident of demolition of house of worship. By 2018, practically all house churches of the Montagnard Evangelical Church of Christ had been forced to cease operations.

Phu Yen Province: Government officials who are responsible for the elimination of an entire religion (An Dan Dai Dao Buddhist Sect) and the arrest, torture and imprisonment of 25 of its leaders and key followers – they are included in USCIRF’s victims list; the confiscation of religious and other property of the An Dan Dai Dao Sect and assets of four sect members who are U.S. citizens; repeated attempts to seize an independent Cao Dai temple serving its congregation in order to transfer it to a government-created sect; ordering followers of the Montagnard Evangelical Church of Christ to renounce their faith and threatening them with torture and imprisonment for non-compliance.

Nghe An Province: Government officials who are responsible for the persecution and imprisonment of Catholics calling for environmental justice after the ecological disaster of 2016; use of organized mobs known as Red Flag Associations to intimidate and incite hate speech against entire Catholic parishes and their priests; retaliation against victims and witnesses who denounced the Red Flag Associations and the government officials directing them; travel bans against priests and parishioners who advocated for environmental justice; and forcing Hmong Christians and Vietnamese Catholics to renounce their faith and threatening or punishing those who resisted.

Targeted sanctions are designed to change behavior. Sanctioning responsible Vietnamese government officials for their serious violations of religious freedom would work to prevent Vietnam from maintaining the status quo or moving in a worse direction. We therefore urge the Department of State to apply targeted sanctions under IRFA and other relevant statutes against the identified perpetrators.

Detailed information of identified perpetrators has been submitted to the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor and the International Religious Freedom Office at the Department of State. We respectfully request that you take that information into account in determining the appropriate sanctions to apply against individual government officials responsible for egregious violations of religious freedom in Vietnam.

Respectfully,

Dr. Thang D. Nguyen
CEO & President
Boat People SOS

ORGANIZATIONS

Alliance Defending Freedom International

Association for the Advancement of Freedom of Religion or Belief in Vietnam

Build Human Rights for Montagnards

Campaign to Abolish Torture in Vietnam

China Aid Association

Citizen Power Initiatives for China

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office

Coalition to Abolish Modern-day Slavery in Asia (CAMSA)

Committee for Religious Freedom in Vietnam

Con Dau Parishioners Association Human Rights First

CSW

Global Alliance Against Communist Propaganda and Disinformation Human Rights First

Freedom Now

Independent Journalists Association of Vietnam

International Christian Concern

Jubilee Campaign

Junior Sacerdotal Council of Cao Dai Religion

Vietnam Coalition Against Torture

Vietnam Human Rights Network

Vietnamese Women for Human Rights


INDIVIDUALS

Kristina Arriaga, former ViceChair USCIRF CEO, Intrinsic

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[ISNOINews]

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office joins letter to His Holiness Pope Francis calling on him to recognize the serious implications of any agreement with the People’s Republic of China.


https://campaignforuyghurs.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Letter-to-the-Vatican.pdf


* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

The Mitchell Firm
42020 Village Center Plaza
Stone Ridge, VA 20105

September 8th, 2020

His Holiness Pope Francis
Apostolic Palace
00120 Vatican City

We write as an informal coalition of individuals and organizations to call on the Holy See to recognize the serious implications of any agreement with the People’s Republic of China. The Chinese Communist Party’s continuing war on religion is routinely conducted by means of crimes against humanity. We respectfully suggest that exemplary leadership by the Catholic Church is essential to resolving this tragic situation.

The Chinese authorities have declared their intention to rewrite all religious texts, including the Bible and the Qur’an, to “reflect socialist values” as defined by Chinese Communist Party Secretary Xi JinPing. Not only is the regime committing the ongoing genocide of the Uyghur people, it is also continuing its brutal oppression of Tibetans, Mongolians, citizens of Hong Kong, and all who speak out for human rights including the right of religious believers to practice their faith.

On September 26, 2018 Pope Francis sent a message to the Catholics of China, saying that the Church’s aim “in the dialogue with civil authorities is that of ‘building a relationship based on mutual respect and deeper understanding’”.

While the People’s Republic of China has never been truly open to religious practice, in the two years since this message the attitude of authorities in China toward religious freedom has deteriorated significantly. The Beijing regime has no interest in a genuine dialogue with religious believers, and it is painfully apparent that the regime has no respect for the sanctity of any human life. The regime not only persecutes house-church Protestant Christians and “underground” (i.e. faithful) Catholics but imprisons millions of Uyghur Muslims in concentration camps and has been credibly accused of singling out prisoners of conscience who are Falun Gong practitioners for organ harvesting prior to execution.

A decision by the Holy See to regularize the status of the Catholic Church in China by giving official recognition to the government-established and government-controlled “Catholic Patriotic Association” would not only exacerbate the hardships of the Catholic clergy and believers who have courageously resisted the government’s pressure to join this organization, but would also increase the suffering of other persecuted religious believers by allowing the regime to tout the agreement as a seal of approval for the regime’s approach to religion.

We therefore implore the Holy See not to cede the Beijing government any control over the Church in
China. We respectfully request that the Holy See not renew its agreement with the People’s Republic of China at least until such time as the authorities discontinue their campaign of genocide, crimes against humanity, and other grave human rights violations against religious believers.

With great concern,

International Religious Freedom Roundtable


Organizations

Alberta Uyghur Association

Association for the Advancement of Freedom of
Religion or Belief in Vietnam (AAFoRB-VN)

Athenai Institute

Australian Uyghur Association

Australian Uyghur Tangritagh Women’s Association

Austria Uyghur Association

Belgium Uyghur Association

Boat People SOS

Buddhist Solidarity Association

Build Human Rights for Montagnards

Campaign for Uyghurs

Campaign to Abolish Torture in Vietnam

Canadians in Support of Refugees in Dire Need
(CSRDN)

China Against the Death Penalty

China Aid

Christian Freedom International

Christian Medical & Dental Associations

The Church of Almighty God

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office

Citizen Power Initiatives for China-公民力量

Coalition to Abolish Modern-day Slavery in Asia (CAMSA)

Committee for Religious Freedom in Vietnam

Committee on the Present Danger: China

Con Dau Parishioners Association

Coordination Des Associations et des Particuliers pour la Liberte de Conscience

Dutch Uyghur Human Rights Foundation

East Turkistan Association of Canada

East Turkistan Immigrants Association

East Turkistan National Awakening Movement East Turkistan Union in Europe

Faith & Liberty D.C.

Free Uyghur Student Coalition

Freedom2Care

GPF Kurdistan

Humanitarian China

Institute of China Studies (ICS) International Christian Concern

International Christian Foundation for Democracy

International Support for Uyghurs

Islamic Council of Christmas Island, Australia

Islamic Council of Queensland, Australia

Islamic Council of Victoria

Islamic Society of South Australia

Japan Uyghur Association

Jubilee Campaign USA

Junior Sacerdotal Council of the Cao Dai Religion

Justice for Uyghurs

Keep Taiwan Free

The Lutheran Center for Religious Liberty

Minaret Foundation

Minh Van Foundation

Montagnards Stand for Justice

Muslims for Progressive Values

The Nation's Mosque

Patmos Institute

People's Empowerment Foundation, Thailand

Save the Persecuted Christians

South Asia Minorities Alliance Foundation

Students for a Free Tibet

Sydney Uyghur Community

Stichting Vietnam Human Rights Foundation

Tasmanian Muslim Association, Australia

United Macedonian Diaspora

United Muslims of New South Wales, Australia

Uyghur Academy

Uyghur Academy Australia

Uyghur Academy USA

Uyghur Academy Europe

Uyghur American Association

Uyghur Association of Victoria, Australia

Uyghur Freedom Forum

Uyghur Human Rights Project

Uyghur Projects Foundation

Uyghur Rally

Vancouver Uyghur Association

Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation

Vietnam Coalition Against Torture

Vietnamese Women for Human Rights

World Uyghur Congress


Individuals

Teng Biao, Human Rights Scholar and Lawyer,
United States of America

Dr. Erkin Sidick, United States of America

Dr. Rishat Abbas, United States of America

Dr. William Devlin, CEO, Redeem, United States of America

David A. Keene, Editor-at-Large, The Washington Times, United States of America

Imam Dr. Talib M. Shareef, USAF-Retired

Fr. Joseph K. Grieboski, Senior Fellow, The Dietrich Bonhoeffer Institute

Greg Mitchell, Chair, International Religious Freedom Forum

Leigh Cummins, United States of America

Chaplain Rev. Nguyen

Hailong Liu, China

Kirsten Barak, Madison, MS, USA

John Csukás, United States of America

Hon. David Kilgour, J.D., Canada

Tanaaz Mistry, Singapore

Fiza Farheen, India

Md Azhar, India

Elizabeth M. Wu, United States of America

Roma Hashime, United Kingdom

Yosra Kamel, Egypt

Rija Qureshi, United States of America

Ashraf Kapoor, India

Isma Zafar, United Kingdom

Mahmut Anwar, Australia

Aliya Abdukadir, Australia

Daniela Wong, Panama

Amreen Shaikh, India

Roha Abrar, Canada

Mevlana Kreka, Switzerland

Rebecca Azad, United Kingdom

Michelle Seul-Ahmed, United Kingdom

Mukhshif Sharik, United States of America

Hamid Gharagozloo, International Organization to Preserve Human Rights

Luis Lopez, United States of America

Michael Hartman, United States of America

Mohammad Rahman, United Kingdom

Maheen Shakil, United States of America

Sonu Adal Khan, India

Georgia Allen, Belfast4Uyghurs, Northern Ireland

Alina Hasan, United States

Elizabeth Yore, Yore Children

Professor Thomas Kellenberg, Executive Director at Notre Dame Washington Program,
United States of America

David Anderson, M.P. Canada (retired), Founder and Believer freetobelieve.ca

Frank J. Gaffney, President, Save the Persecuted
Christians

Farahnaz Ispahani, Senior Fellow, Religious Freedom Institute Washington, DC

Scott Morgan, United States of America

Dan Tran, Chair of All Charitable Foundation, United States of America

Paul Nguyen, Catholic, United States of America

Peter Trinh, Former Catholic Seminarian and victim of persecution in Vietnam, United States of America

Tien Nguyen, United States of America

Hien T Ngo, Catholic, Chair Committee for

Religious Freedom in Vietnam, United States of
America

Minh V Nguyen, United States of America

Kyle Olbert, United States of America

Rushan Abbas, United States of America

Trang Khanh Tran, United States of America

Tuan Nguyen, Catholic, United States of America

Van Ngo, Catholic, United States of America

Pastor A Ga, Former Victim of Religious Persecution in Vietnam

Julie Millsap, United States of America

Gail Helt, United States of America

Abdulhakim Idris, United States of America

Ziba Murat, United States of America

Abibul Osman, United States of America

Stuart Morgan, Australia

Dara Davigne, United States of America

Reverend Mario Felix Lleonart Barroso of the
Patmos Institute, United States of America

Matthew Wiszowaty, United States of America

Aasiya Shafeek, India

Rabbi David Rosen, International Co-President,
Religions for Peace, Jerusalem

Ahmad Omar bin, Singapore

Bryn Marie Bowen, United States of America

Dr. Nguyen Dinh Thang, Laureate of 2011 Asia

Democracy and Human Rights Award, United
States of America

Vincent Liem Ly, Catholic, United States of America

Le-Anh Nguyen, Catholic, United States of America

Le-Phuong Nguyen, Catholic, United States of
America

Van Nguyen, Catholic, United States of America

Uyen Lu, human rights advocate, Netherlands

Keyim Yasin, Australia

Hai-y Le, United States of America

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[ISNOINews]

Church of Scientology joins letter demanding that Congress support legislation to abolish forced labor programs in China.


Coalition demands Congress support legislation to abolish forced labor programs in China

Coalition demands Congress support legislation to abolish forced labor programs in China

A large coalition of religious leaders, scholars and human rights advocates urge Congress to ensure American dollars are not funding oppression in China. A coalition of 150 organizations, religious leaders, scholars and human rights advocates who are participants in the International Religious...

dailyclout.io

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

A coalition of 150 organizations, religious leaders, scholars and human rights advocates who are participants in the International Religious Freedom (IRF) Roundtable (www.irfroundtable.org)in Washington, DC, sent a signed multi-faith letter

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

to Members of Congress imploring them to support the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (H.R.6210/S.3471). The letter briefly stated the situation of oppression in China and urged the Members to contact Representative Jim McGovern (D-MA) and Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), the sponsors of the bills. The coalition praised Congress this week for passing the House Bill H.R. 6210 and turned its advocacy to the Senate.

[SNIP]

Rev. Susan Taylor from the Church of Scientology National Affairs Office in Washington, DC, an active member of the IRF Roundtable, added, “It is up to each of us to continue to stand up for those who cannot speak out for themselves. Religious and ethnic suppression must cease in China. This legislation will be but one step.”

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[ISNOINews]

Church of Scientology joins letter to Pakistan Chief Minister Shah on behalf of Huma Younus, a Christian Pakistani girl who was kidnapped.

NOTE: I assume "Chief Minister Shah" refers to Ijaz Ahmed Shah, the Federal Minister of the Interior.

Freedom of Conscience -- the case of Huma Younus : Christian Pakistani girl who was kidnapped

the case of Huma Younus : Christian Pakistani girl who was kidnapped | CAP Freedom of Conscience

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

Dear Chief Minister Shah,

We write as a diverse group of non-governmental organizations and individuals who are scholars, religious leaders, human rights advocates, and leaders within civil society to raise our growing concern regarding the case of Huma Younus. As you may already be aware, Huma is a Christian Pakistani girl who was kidnapped, forcefully converted to Islam and then made to marry her abductor, Abdul Jabbar. Her case has drawn international attention and continues to be delayed in the court systems.

Huma was 14 years old when she was abducted at gunpoint in October of 2019 by Abdul Jabbar, an individual that the family hired on occasion for transportation purposes. In the days that followed, Huma’s parents Younis and Nagheena Masih started receiving messages via WhatsApp from Abdul’s brother with documents showing that Huma had married Abdul and converted to Islam. However, further investigation of these documents clearly showed them false. The documents showed a falsified date of birth for Huma, meant to justify the marriage by falsely claiming that Huma was 18 years old. As you know, the Sindh Child Marriage Restraint Act of 2013 prohibits the marriage of any child under the age of 18. We ask that this Law be honored in this case.

Furthermore, Huma’s parents continue to receive death threats and other threatening communication from unknown individuals pressuring them to stop pursuing legal action against Abdul. The messages showed videos of guns being fired and included other threatening language. Still, the parents continue to pursue legal action against the kidnapper. In fact, soon following the incident, Huma’s parents took legal action against Abdul, but have not had any success. A ruling by the local courts validating the marriage under Islamic law due to the fact that Huma had already started her menstrual cycles further diminishes the hope of success for Huma and her family.

Huma has not been allowed to see her parents since her abduction. She is now 15 and recent reports indicate that she is now pregnant as well.

We urge you to intervene in this situation and use your position as Chief Minister to ensure that Huma is returned to her family. We do not need to argue the blatant injustice in this matter. Huma is well below the age of consent, she was kidnapped, her captors forcibly converted her to Islam, and she was coerced into a sham marriage. She is now pregnant and reportedly being held in a single room by her abductors. We ask that you ensure that justice is served in this case and that Huma is returned to her family immediately and her abductors are held accountable.

Respectfully,

International Christian Concern

Christian Freedom International

Church of Scientology, National Affairs Office

Citizen Power Initiatives for China

Coordination des Associations et des Particuliers pour la Liberté de Conscience

David Anderson, MP, Canada (ret’d)

Dr. Jianli Yang, Founder and President Citizen Power Initiatives for China

Dr. Muhammad Ilyas, Chairman International Dialogue Research & Awareness Centre

Fr. Joseph K. Grieboski, Senior Fellow The Dietrich Bonhoeffer Institute

Greentree Global

Greg Mitchell, Chair International Religious Freedom Roundtable

Hamid Gharagozloo, International Organization to Preserve Human Rights

Jamit Jesse Jaspal Singh, Chief Operating Officer United Sikhs

John K. Hutcheson, Field Director, Greentree Global

Jonathan Imbody, Director Freedom2Care

Jubilee Campaign

Minh Van Foundation

Red Eagle Enterprises

Russian Orthodox Autonomous Church of America

Save the Persecuted Christians

United Sikhs

William Murray, President Religious Freedom Coalition

CC:

Prime Minister Imran Khan

Pakistan Parliamentary Group

Huma Younus letter

https://freedomofconscience.eu/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Huma-Younus-letter.pdf

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[ISNOINews]

Church of Scientology joins letter to House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel in support of H. RES. 49, Supporting Coptic Christians in Egypt.

IRF Roundtable Letter for H. RES. 49 - Coptic Solidarity

https://www.copticsolidarity.org/wp...9/irf-roundtable-letter-h.-res.-49-deutch.pdf

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * **

Dear Chairman Engel,

We write as an informal group of 25 organizations and individuals who are scholars, religious and secular leaders, human rights advocates and practitioners who have joined our voices to respectfully urge you bring H. RES. 49, Supporting Coptic Christians in Egypt to mark-up in the next MENA Subcommittee meeting. This resolution has strong bi-partisan support with 76 cosponsors.

During the HFAC hearing hosted recently, Egypt: Trends in Politics, Economics, and Human Rights, damning evidence was presented by survivors and policy experts regarding the worst crackdown on civil society and human rights that Egypt has seen in decades. We believe that passage of this resolution supporting the largest Christian minority in the Middle East would convey a critical message of accountability to the Egyptian government.

While the current crack down in Egypt has impacted Egyptians of all political and religious persuasions, the Coptic community suffers the double injustice of not only living under systematic discrimination by the Egyptian government, but also experiences attacks from neighbors and fellow countrymen who attack Copts and their properties with impunity. Coptic Solidarity has documented and published on these issues extensively, including this analysis of the most recent State Department’s Egypt chapter of the annual IRF report.

We previously wrote to you as a joint group of multi-faith NGOS and individuals, urging your action on behalf of imprisoned Coptic activist, Ramy Kamel, who continues to languish in prison for no other reason than creating awareness and advocating on behalf of persecuted Copts in Egypt. UN Special Rapporteurs have also published statements on his behalf acknowledging that his imprisonment is in retaliation for his human rights work and cooperation with the United Nations.

As the second largest recipient of US foreign aid, we believe that the Egyptian government must be held accountable for its human rights violations that are in clear opposition to American values of equality and religious liberty.

We urge you to mark-up H.RES. 49 before this session of Congress ends.

Respectfully,

Center for Studies on New Religions

Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP)

Coptic Solidarity

Global Imams Council

In Defense of Christians

Institute for Global Engagement

International Christian Concern

Jubilee Campaign USA

Middle East Forum

Russian Orthodox Autonomous Church of America

The Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies

The Uyghur Human Rights Project

21Wilberforce

Father John Anderson
Saint John the Merciful Mission

Hamid Gharagozloo
The US Representative, International Organization to Preserve Human Rights

Bishop Joseph K. Grieboski

Senior Fellow, The Dietrich Bonhoeffer Institute

Dr. Carl Herbster
President, AdvanceUSA

Lauren B. Homer
President, Law and Liberty International

Dr. Shannon Kroner
Executive Director, Freedom of Religion – United Solutions

Greg Mitchell
Chair, International Religious Freedom Roundtable

Scott Morgan
President, Red Eagle Enterprises

Daniel Pipes
President, Middle East Forum

Nina Shea
Director, Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom

Imam Shaikh M. Tawhidi

Rev. Susan Taylor
National Public Affairs Director, Church of Scientology National Affairs Office

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[ISNOINews]

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office joins letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Mr. Nguyễn Bắc Truyển


Religious freedom and human rights advocates call for the immediate and unconditional release of Mr. Nguyễn Bắc Truyển — Democratic Voice of Vietnam


https://dvov.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Joint-Letter-for-HRD-Nguyen-Bac-Truyen.pdf


* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

September 28, 2020

The Honorable Mike Pompeo
Secretary
Department of State
2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20520

Religious freedom and human rights advocates call for the immediate and unconditional release of Mr. Nguyễn Bắc Truyển

Dear Secretary Pompeo:

We, the undersigned organizations and individuals, are writing to call on the Department of State to press for the release of religious prisoner of conscience Nguyễn Bắc Truyển as part of the upcoming US-Vietnam Human Rights Dialogue. He is arguably the highest-profile religious prisoner of conscience in Vietnam. He has been adopted by the US Commission for International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) under its religious freedom project and by Representatives Zoe Lofgren and Harley Rouda under the Defending Freedom Project of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission. Up until his abduction by the police, he served as the original coordinator of the Vietnam Freedom of Religion or Belief Roundtable.
Mr. Nguyễn Bắc Truyển was abducted on July 30, 2017 by the Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) authorities and secretly transferred to Hanoi. After six months held incommunicado, he was tried on the charge of “acting to overthrow the people’s government” under Article 79 of the Vietnamese Penal Code (VPC) and sentenced to eleven years in prison and then to three years of house arrest following the prison term. He is now held at Prison Camp An Điềm, about 1000 kilometers away from his wife and family.

Nguyễn Bắc Truyển, born in 1968, is a Hoa Hao Buddhist. He was arrested for the first time in 2006 and sentenced to three and a half years followed by two years of house arrest on the charge of “propaganda against the state” under Article 88 of Vietnam’s Penal Code. After his release, in 2010 he joined the Vietnamese Political and Religious Prisoners Friendship Association, an organization that assists impecunious prisoners and their families. As a jurist, he provided pro-bono legal assistance to families of political prisoners, victims of land grabbing, and persecuted religious communities. From 2014 until his most recent abduction, he cooperated with the Redemptorist Order’s Justice and Peace Office as coordinator of its assistance program for disabled veterans of South Vietnam.

Nguyễn Bắc Truyển is deeply committed to the right to freedom of religion or belief. He worked to build capacity for religious communities in Vietnam so that they can fully exercise their basic rights. His inter-religious activities also aimed at strengthening the dialogue and cooperation between various religions. Until his arrest in 2017, Nguyễn Bắc Truyển coordinated the Vietnam Freedom of Religion or Belief Roundtable, a network of religious freedom advocates and members of persecuted religious and indigenous communities. He was also co-founder of Vietnam Coalition Against Torture and contributed many submissions to the UN Committee Against Torture.
Nguyễn Bắc Truyển meticulously collected evidence and interviewed victims for the compilation of submissions to the different UN mandate holders. He and his wife provided valuable assistance to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief during the Special Rapporteur’s July 2014 visit in Vietnam. His imprisonment has all the earmarks of an act of reprisal by the government for his human rights work. In his September 2019 Intimidation and Reprisals Reports, the UN Secretary General also considered the government’s travel ban imposed on Mr. Truyển’s wife, Ms. Bùi Thị Kim Phượng, to be an act of reprisal. In March 2019 she was prevented from travelling from Vietnam to Geneva, Germany, and the United States to advocate for the release of her husband.

In the latest Intimidation and Reprisal Report, released on September 15, 2020, the UN Secretary-General expressed concern regarding Nguyễn Bắc Truyển’s frail health and the lack of proper medical care in prison: “Since his arrest in July 2017, Mr. Nguyen Bac Truyen has reportedly not had a proper medical examination, faces restrictions of food and medical supplies, and his health condition has deteriorated. A petition on 18 January 2020 to the Board of Supervisors at An Diem prison requesting a medical check reportedly remains unanswered.”

Vietnam is a State Party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The detention of Mr. Nguyễn Bắc Truyển is a violation of several of its articles, including Article 18 (right to freedom of religion or belief), Article 7 (freedom from inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment), Article 9 (right to liberty and security of the person and freedom from arbitrary arrest or detention), and Article 14 (right to equality before the law; the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty and to have a fair and public hearing by an impartial tribunal established by law).

On August 13 of this year, 65 current and former parliamentarians from 28 countries sent a joint letter to Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc, calling for Nguyễn Bắc Truyển’s immediate and unconditional release. In the spirit of solidarity with our colleagues at the Vietnam Freedom of Religion or Belief Roundtable, we ask that the United States consider his freedom a key benchmark of human rights improvement at the upcoming human rights dialogue with Vietnam.

Sincerely,

Nguyen Dinh Thang, PhD
CEO & President
Boat People SOS

Enclosure: IPP/FORB joint letter to Vietnam’s Prime Minister

ORGANIZATIONS

Association for the Advancement of Freedom of Religion or Belief-Vietnam (AAFoRB-VN)

Boat People SOS

Buddhist Solidarity Association

Campaign for Uyghurs

Campaign to Abolish Torture in Vietnam

China Aid Association

Christian Freedom International

Con Dau Catholic Parishioners Association

CSW

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office

Citizen Power Initiatives for China

CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation

Coalition to Abolish Modern-day Slavery in Asia (CAMSA)

Committee for Religious Freedom in Vietnam

Coordination Des Associations et des Particuliers pour la Liberté de Conscience

Counterparts – Vietnam Veterans Association

Faith & Liberty DC

Global Women Christian Chamber of

Commerce Embassy Ministerial Alliance Sphere

Hoa Hao Buddhist Congregation (Central Overseas Executive Committee)

Hmong United for Justice

Human Rights First

Independent Journalists Association of Vietnam

Institute on Religion and Democracy

International Christian Concern

Junior Sacerdotal Council of the Cao Dai Religion

Jubilee Campaign USA

Law and Liberty International

Minh Van Foundation

Montagnards Stand for Justice

PGHH Buddhist Center, San Jose, California

Red Eagle Enterprises

Save the Persecuted Christians

Stefanus Alliance International

Stitchting Vietnam Human Rights Foundation

The Alliance for Enlightened Judaism

Union of Councils for Jews in the Former Soviet Union

Vietnam Coalition Against Torture

Vietnamese American Community in San Antonio, Texas

Vietnamese Women for Human Rights

21Wilberforce

INDIVIDUALS

Bui Kim Phuong, wife of Nguyen Bac Truyen
Vietnam

The Most Venerable Thích Thiện Minh
26-year religious prisoner of conscience
Member of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam, Vietnam

Pastor A Ga, Montagnard Evangelical Church of Christ
Former victim of religious persecution in Vietnam
Raleigh, North Carolina

Matias Perttula
Director of Advocacy, International Christian Concern

Dr. Jianli Yang
President, Citizen Power Initiatives for China

Professor Thomas Kellenberg
International Human Rights Advocate
Washington, D.C.

Michelle Nguyen
Coordinator, Vietnam Coalition Against Torture

Markus Eban
Member, Montagnards Stand for Justice, Thailand

Y Pher Hdrue
Former religious prisoner of conscience, Vietnam

Rcom Ayul
Build Human Rights for Montagnards

Paul Nguyen
Catholic human rights advocate, Houston, Texas

Dr. Grant A. McClure
Commander, Counterparts – Vietnam Veterans Association

Michael Benge
Former POW, Counterparts – Vietnam Veterans Association

Hong Thi Tran
Survivor of Torture from Vietnam, Raleigh, North Carolina

Khanh Tran
Chief Operating Officer, BPSOS
Falls Church, Virginia

Thien Nguyen
Coordinator, Buddhist Solidary Association

Tien Nguyen
Human Rights Defender
Falls Church, Virginia

Van Ngo
Human Rights Defender
Silver Spring, Maryland

Binh Luong
Manassas, Virginia

Thien Tran
Missouri, Texas

Dr. Trong Phan
Television Commentator, Irving, TX

Loc Thanh Nguyen
London, UK

Bi V. Nguyen
Palm Harbor, Florida

Dr. Nguyen Dinh Thang
Laureate of 2011 Asia Democracy and Human Rights Award

Dr. Heiner Bielefeldt
Professor of Human Rights and Human Rights Policy, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany
Former UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief

Tran Thi Nga
Former Prisoner of Conscience, Royston, Georgia

Vũ Hoàng Nguyên
Tra Vinh, Vietnam

Rev. Viet Nguyen
Parish Priest, Tampa, FL

Jeff Chen
Participant of IRF Roundtable, Rockville, Maryland

Loan Vo
Member of Buddhist Solidarity Association, Seattle, Washington

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[ISNOINews]

Rev. Susan Taylor, National Public Affairs Director, Church of Scientology National Affairs Office, joins statement condemning death threats made by Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui (aka Miles Kwok) against Chinese dissidents, including Dr. Bob Fu, Founder and President of China Aid Association.​

ChinaAid: Joint Statement on Death Threats Against Chinese Dissidents Issued


* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *



Miles Kwok (Weigui Guo) making threats toward Pastor Bob Fu.
(Photo: China Aid)

(World Wide Web—Oct. 18, 2020) On October 6, a group of advocates and allies for Chinese dissidents, including Dr. Bob Fu, circulated the following joint statement regarding Guo Wengui's death threats.

As a diverse group of advocates and allies, we the undersigned are shocked and outraged at the harassment and death threats made by Guo Wengui towards Chinese dissidents, including Dr. Bob Fu, Founder and President of China Aid Association. We urge the appropriate government agencies to intervene in holding Mr. Kwok accountable and providing protection for all those named and their families.

Guo Wengui, also known as Miles Kwok, is a Chinese billionaire businessman who fled from China to the United States in 2014 accused of bribery, fraud, and money laundering. He has been using his large social media following on YouTube, Twitter, and his personal website to incite and encourage violence against leading critics against the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). These include human rights activists and prominent members of the Chinese diaspora.

In multiple videos posted online, Guo refers to a global “kill cheaters” campaign where he encourages his followers to “take action now” and “see results.” One particularly chilling video shows the physical and verbal abuse used by his followers against Guo’s targets. He invigorates them by saying, “If you didn’t participate in the global “kill cheaters” campaign, there’s something wrong with you.” Bob Fu, who he calls a “fake pastor.” was named in the horrific campaign alongside others from around the globe.

On Saturday, Sept. 26, 2020, multiple of his followers instructed by Guo showed up outside Fu’s home in Texas while he was out of town. His family however was inside and are now fortunately under protection by local law enforcement. In response, Guo issued another video where he threatened, “We will send another 100 to 200 comrades to your house tomorrow. We will see how much power you have in the U.S…. We will not start another campaign until we are On. Guo’s followers have surrounded Jianmin’s house in Los Angeles for five days. His wife and two children are too frightened to leave. Also targeted is Pastor Zhang Boli, a Tiananmen leader still on the CCP’s “Most Wanted” list.

Bob Fu and the others mentioned in Guo Wengui’s video are under direct threat by the actions this man. He has mobilized his followers and encouraged violence against those he loosely and deceitfully deems a “CCP spy.”

We, the undersigned, stand in support of Bob Fu and decry the accusations and calls for violence made against him by Guo Wengui. We call upon all appropriate agencies of our state and federal governments to take immediate steps, including prosecutorial steps, to ensure the safety of Bob Fu, his family and the other Chinese freedom fighters in the United States.

Organizations

Institute on Religion and Democracy
Washington, DC

Advocates International
Alexandria, VA

Anglican Persecuted Church Network
Washington, DC

Boat People SOS - Religious Freedom Project
Falls Church, VA

CESNUR, the Center for Studies on New Religions Publishers of Bitter Winter, a daily magazine on human rights in China
Torino, Italy

Christian Freedom International
Falls Church, VA

Christ’s Mandate for Missions
Mill, SC

Committee for Religious Freedom in Vietnam Bethesda, MD

Coordination des Associations et des Particuliers pour la Liberté de Conscience Paris

Family Research Council
Washington, DC

GAFCON Suffering Church Network

Jubilee Campaign, USA
Fairfax, VA

International Observatory of Religious Liberty of Refugee

Law and Liberty International
Reston, VA

Minh Van Foundation Dallas, TX

Mission Africa International
Greenville, TX

Observatory for Religious Freedom
Spain

Religious Freedom Institute
Washington, DC

Revealing Light Ministries, Revealing Light Trauma Healing Centres and RISEN Together
Rockville, MD

Save The Persecuted Christians
Monument, CO

St. Charles Institute
St. Charles, IL

21 Wilberforce
Falls Church, VA
Individuals

Dr. Oluwasayo Ajiboye.
Greenville, TX

Mark E. Alexander
Plains, TX

Randall L. Bender
Sturgis, SD

Carole Bergman

D. Beret
Tampa, FL

David Bevens
Midland, TX

Kim Bongiorno
Moral Action Ministry
Arizona

Rosanne Brown

William Brown

Christian Activist Network of New England, William Brown

Zhang Cao

Rich Clark

Allison Coates
Raleigh, NC

Jim Dau IranAlive Ministries

Peggy Dau Iran Alive Miinistries

Paul Diamond, Barrister Cambridge, United Kingdom

Marco Fang

Yong Fang

Ellen Forde

Zeno Gamble, Chief Operating Officer White Mountain Research Inc.
Moran, WY

María García Observatory for Religious Freedom
Spain

Don Gillaspie
Archer Lodge, NC

William C. Gobel
Odessa, TX

Mark Gonzales President, Hispanic Action Network
Dallas, TX

Bishop-designate Joseph K. Grieboski Senior Fellow, The Dietrich Bonhoeffer Institute
Washington, DC

Baosheng Guo
Gainesville, VA
Li Hamilton

Linda Harvey President, Mission America Columbus, OH

Dr. S. Bryan Hickox Board Chair - The Jesus Alliance
Baton Rouge, LA

Sharon Ho

Fang Hong

Hansheng Huang

Weida Huang

Hugh Hung
Melbourne, Australia

Michael Husar

Jonathan Imbody
Director, Freedom2Care
Washington, DC

Chang Jin

Hui Johnson

Lois Kanolos
Founder, Voice of the Persecuted
Detroit, MI

Shao Ke

Dede Laugesen,
Executive Director
Save the Persecuted Christians
Monument, CO

Hamilton Li

Aijie Li
Hayward, CA

Linan Li

Xiaoxu Sean Lin

Shan Lin

The Rev. Jonathan Liu

Vincent Liu

Qi Lu
Detroit, Michigan

Paul Marshall Wilson
Professor of Religious Freedom, Baylor University

Faith J. H. McDonnell
Director, International Religious Liberty Program
Institute on Religion and Democracy,
Washington, DC

Reverend Trish McRae

Greg Mitchell Chair,
International Religious Freedom Roundtable

Scott Morgan President, Red Eagle Enterprises
Washington, DC

Allen Morris Executive Director, Concerned Methodists
Fayetteville, NC

Laura B. D. Mullins Fairfax, VA

Satoshi “Sam” Nishihata

George Parker Executive Director,
Revealing Light Ministries
Rockville, MD

Jorge Parrott Ph.D.
President and Dean, CMM College of Theology
Mill, SC

Pasha

Susan Pausky

Patrice J. Pederson
President, First Freedom Foundation

Matias Perttula
Advocacy Director
International Christian Concern

Macy Qui

Star River

Bianca Russell

Ann Schockett
President of the National Federation of Republican Women
Board Member of Save the Persecuted Christians

Suzanne Scholte
Seoul Peace Prize Laureate
President, Defense Forum Foundation
Chair, North Korea Freedom Coalition

Mark Siljander
President, Trac5, Inc.

Mark Singer Moral Action Ministry,
Arizona

Dale D. Stasney
Midland, TX

Elizabeth A. Taylor, DO

Rev. Susan Taylor
National Public Affairs Director
Church of Scientology National Affairs Office

Dr. Nguyen Dinh Thang

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[ISNOINews]

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office joins letter in support of Mr. Nguyễn Bắc Truyển and other prisoners on hunger strike over prison conditions in An Điềm Prison, Quảng Nam Province, Vietnam.


Re: Mr. Nguyễn Bắc Truyển and other prisoners on hunger strike over prison conditions in An Điềm Prison, Quảng Nam Province – Defend The Defenders – Người Bảo Vệ Nhân Quyền


* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

H.E. Mr. Nguyen Xuan Phuc,
Prime Minister of Viet Nam
16 Le Hong Phong Street,
Ba Dinh District,
Ha Noi, Viet Nam

December 7, 2020

Re: Mr. Nguyễn Bắc Truyển and other prisoners on hunger strike over prison conditions in An Điềm Prison, Quảng Nam Province

Your Excellency,

We, the undersigned organizations and individuals, would like to bring to your attention the situation of Mr. Nguyễn Bắc Truyển and some other prisoners of conscience in An Điềm Prison who started a hunger strike in November to protest mistreatment, unresolved grievances, and violations of Vietnam’s 2019 Law on Execution of Criminal Judgments by the prison supervisors and by the Police Department of Management of Prison, Compulsory Re-education Center and Reformatory (C10) under the Ministry of Public Security.

The An Điềm Prison supervisors have confiscated multiple letters that Mr. Truyển sent home without providing explanations. In January 2019, several hundred letters sent to Mr. Nguyễn Bắc Truyển by his Norwegian supporters via the office of Stefanus Alliance International, a Christian mission and human rights organization in Norway, were intercepted. Mr. Truyển did not receive any letter. Mr. Truyển has pre-existing medical conditions and lately developed severe joint pain, but he has not received a thorough medical check-up since he was detained by the Vietnamese police more than three years ago, on July 30, 2017. Mr. Truyển is held in An Điềm Prison, Quang Nam province, a thousand kilometers away from Ho Chi Minh City where his family lives. Due to their old age and frail health, his elderly parents are unable to make the 24-hour trip each way to visit him. In 2019 and as recently as last month, Mr. Truyển sent multiple requests to the Head of C10, asking to be granted a full medical check-up and to be transferred to a prison near his family. Thus far Mr. Truyển has not received any response from C10. Mr. Truyển has been held in a separate cell from other prisoners for several months. The prolonged social isolation is an arbitrary punishment against Mr. Truyển.

The 2019 Law on Execution of Criminal Judgments introduces an entire provision on the rights and obligations of prisoners (Article 27), which guarantees, among many things, that they “receive health care, letters, … have their lives, health, assets, dignity protected and respected, … use prayer books, express religious belief and faiths”, and “lodge complaints and denunciation”. In December 2019, Lieutenant General Nguyễn Văn Sơn, Deputy Minister of Public Security, chaired the conference on the implementation of the 2019 Law on Execution of Criminal Judgments when he directed police units at all levels to develop plans to implement the law in line with their assigned tasks and popularize the contents of the law to their officers.

While we welcome Your Excellency’s Decision 1252/QĐ-TTg – Approval of the Plan to improve the effectiveness of implementing the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and recommendations of the United Nations Human Rights Committee, that plan is yet to be fully implemented, as demonstrated by the ongoing arbitrary detention of prisoners of conscience in Vietnam.

Mr. Nguyễn Bắc Truyển is a Hòa Hảo Buddhist and an advocate for freedom of religion or belief and a defender of human rights. He was the General Secretary of the Vietnamese Political & Religious Prisoners Friendship Association, an organization dedicated to assisting prisoners of conscience and their families. As a jurist, he provided pro-bono legal assistance to families of prisoners of conscience, victims of unlawful land expropriation and marginalized religious communities. In recognition of his excellent human rights advocacy, in 2011 Human Rights Watch bestowed on him the Hellman/Hammett award. And this month, Stefanus Alliance International will organize a ceremony in Oslo to honor him with the Stefanus Prize 2020.

We are troubled by the fact that this is the second time Mr. Truyển has been imprisoned due to his peaceful advocacy for freedom of religion or belief and basic human rights. He was previously arrested in 2006 and released in 2010 after serving a sentence of three years and six months in prison for “conducting propaganda” against the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam.

We are deeply concerned that while being unjustly imprisoned, Mr. Nguyễn Bắc Truyển has been mistreated and not protected by Vietnam’s laws.

In view of the above, we urge Your Excellency to:

Immediately and unconditionally release Mr. Nguyễn Bắc Truyển and everyone who is currently imprisoned solely for the peaceful exercise of their human rights including their rights to freedom of religion or belief;

Ensure that all domestic legislation, in particular the 2019 Law on Execution of Criminal Judgmentsand Decision 1252/QĐ-TTg, are implemented fully, properly, and consistently;

Ensure that prison conditions are improved, prisoners guaranteed the rights to lodge complaints and denunciation, and there is an open and effective mechanism to track and resolve such complaints and denunciation; and

End the practice of punitive prison transfer to distant locations, which hinders visits by family members.

Yours sincerely,

Vietnam Coalition Against Torture

List of Signatories

ORGANIZATIONS

ADO Alevi Philosophy Center Association, Istanbul, Turkey

Asian American Association of Seattle, Seattle, Washington, USA

Association for the Advancement of Freedom of Religion or Belief in Vietnam, USA

Boat People SOS – Religious Freedom Project, USA

Buddhist Solidarity Association, USA

Campaign to Abolish Torture in Vietnam, USA

Christian Freedom International, Falls Church, Virginia, USA

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office, Washington DC, USA

Citizen Power Initiatives for China, Washington DC, USA

CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation, Geneva, Switzerland

Coalition to Abolish Modern-day Slavery in Asia (CAMSA), USA

Committee for Religious Freedom in Vietnam, USA

Con Dau Parishioners Association, Cary, North Carolina, USA

Coordination Des Associations et des Particuliers pour la Liberté de Conscience, France

Counterparts Veterans Association, LaPlata, Maryland, USA

CSW, United Kingdom

Defend the Defenders

Hoa Hao Buddhist Congregation – Central Overseas Executive Committee, USA

Human Rights Watch

Institute on Religion and Democracy, Washington DC, USA

International Human Rights Advocates, Washington DC, USA

Jubilee Campaign, Fairfax, Virginia, USA

Stefanus Alliance International, Norway

Stichting Vietnam Human Rights Foundation, Drenthe, The Netherlands

The 88 Project

Vietnam Coalition Against Torture

Vietnam Committee on Human Rights (VCHR), Paris, France

Vietnamese Women for Human Rights

INDIVIDUALS

Binh Tran, President, Antelope Valley Vietnamese Association, Palmdale, California, USA

Brian Britton, International Director, Harvest Family Network, Williamsburg, Virginia, USA

Dr. Grant A. McClure, Commanding Officer, Counterparts Veterans Association, Maryland, USA

Faith J. H. McDonnell, Co-Leader, Anglican Persecuted Church Network & GAFCON Suffering Church Network, Washington DC, USA

Hamid Gharagozloo, US. Representative, International Organisation to Preserve Human Rights (IOPHR), Washington D.C., USA.

Holy Bui, Principal, Asian American Association of Seattle, Seattle, Washington, USA

Huan To, IT Specialist, Vietnam Coalition Against Torture, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Hulda Fahmi, Communications Associate, Jubilee Campaign, Fairfax, Virginia, USA

Jianli Yang, PhD, President of Citizen Power Initiatives for China, Brookline Massachusetts, USA

Khanh Tran, Chief Operating Officer, Boat People SOS, USA

Loan Vo, Coordinator, Buddhist Solidarity Association, Tacoma, Washington, USA

Lorie Nguyen, Member, Buddhist Solidarity Association, Seattle, Washington, USA

Michelle Nguyen, Coordinator, Vietnam Coalition Against Torture, USA

MyLe Vo, Principal, Educational Studies, Inc., Sugar Land, Texas, USA

Nhuong Thi Tran, Vietnamese American Community of Greater Kansas City, Overland Park, Kansas, USA

Pastor Mark Foreman, Ph.D., North Coast Calvary Chapel, Carlsbad, California, USA

Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Heiner Bielefeldt, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Spardorf, Bavaria, Germany

Professor Thomas Kellenberg, Executive Director, International Human Rights Advocates, Washington DC, USA

Quynh-Vi Tran, Co-Director, Legal Initiatives for Vietnam, Taipei, Taiwan

Satoshi Nishihata, Washington Bureau Chief, Happy Science Washington Bureau, Washington DC, USA

Scott Morgan, President, Red Eagle Enterprises, Washington DC, USA

Thierry Valle, President, Coordination des Associations et des Particuliers pour la Liberté de Conscience, France

Vu Quoc Ngu, Director, Defend the Defenders

Andy Nguyen, Arlington, Texas, USA

Dai Thi Nguyen, Palmdale, California, USA

Do Truong, Calgary AB, Canada

Dr. Trong Q. Phan, Dallas, Texas, USA

Giaquoc Nguyen, Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, USA

Hung Nguyen, Calgary, Canada

Lam Trinh, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

Loan Ngo, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Luan Nguyen, Plano Texas, USA

Mai Duong, CPA, Mukilteo, Washington, USA

Michelle Le, Seattle, Washington, USA

Minh Luong Nguyen, Edmonton, AB., Canada

Paul D Nguyen, Houston Texas, USA

Phuong Ngo, Montréal, Canada

Sinh Tram, Issaquah, Washington, USA

Tien Nguyen, Falls Church Virginia, USA

Tuan Nguyen, Melbourne, Florida, USA

Tuyet Dinh, Louisville, Kentucky, USA

Van Ngo, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[ISNOINews]

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office joins letter to The Honorable Earl R. Miller,



Ambassador of the United States of America to the People’s Republic of Bangladesh regarding the beating of Human Rights attorney Rabindra Gosh.

From the Hindu American Foundation website.


https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...FjABegQIBxAB&usg=AOvVaw3mLzJBq5S5LfnCMUqyZ_p4

 

[ISNOINews]

Beth Akiyama, Executive Director of the Church of Scientology National Affairs Office (CSNAO) and Sylvia Stanard, Deputy Director of the CSNAO, have created a GoFundMe for "Toys for inner-city kids in DC."


Toys for inner-city kids in DC, organized by Sylvia Stanard




* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

Bread-for-the-Soul provides toys, food, and support for families in Washington, DC affected by HIV/AIDS and/or Covid-19.

But this year the Bread-for-the-Soul Christmas Toy and Book fundraising party which is usually attended by DC City Council members, officials and members of the Community has been cancelled due to safety concerns with Covid-19.

However, children still expect Christmas.

So in the spirit of safety & Christmas, they are asking for donations online in order to buy toy gift cards for children and food certificates for families living with HIV/AIDS, and/or Covid-19. Along with the gift cards, the families will be given face masks in their gift bags.

The staff at the Church of Scientology National Affairs Office have organizing this GoFundMe campaign to help raise extra donations for Bread-for-the-Soul.

This year is different for everyone and this is an easy way to give a little joy to families that need it more than ever.

Please donate what you can to help us make our goal.

All your donations to this GoFundMe campaign go directly to the Bread-for-the-Soul charity, which is a tax exempt 501c3 charity.

https://www.nonprofitfacts.com/DC/Bread-For-The-Soul.html

Bread-for-the-Soul founder Chuck "Mr. Black History" Hicks is the Chair for the D.C. Black History Celebration Committee and co-chair of the Black Fathers Matter Project.

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[ISNOINews]

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office Joins National Coalition Urging Biden to Make Historic Reforms to Criminal Legal System

[NOTE: The 77-page Transformative Justice Recommendations Report linked below is a major document that addresses a number of significant issues in the area of criminal justice.]


Church of Scientology Joins National Coalition Urging Biden to Make Historic Reforms to Criminal Legal System


* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *






WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, UNITED STATES, December 23, 2020 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Justice Roundtable coalition has submitted a blueprint for criminal legal system reforms to the Biden transition team in a document titled Transformative Justice Recommendations for the New Administration and the 117th Congress. The report details comprehensive and broad reform recommendations for the federal system providing a vision of transformative justice for the incoming President and the 117th Congress.

[SNIP]

NEWS PROVIDED BY
Church of Scientology National Affairs Office
December 23, 2020

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *


The 77-page Transformative Justice Recommendations Report:


https://justiceroundtable.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Transformative-Justice.pdf


The website of The Justice Roundtable:

The Justice Roundtable

The Progressive Voice for Justice Reform

justiceroundtable.org

/

 

[Karakorum]

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office joins letter to The Honorable Earl R. Miller,



Ambassador of the United States of America to the People’s Republic of Bangladesh regarding the beating of Human Rights attorney Rabindra Gosh.

From the Hindu American Foundation website.


https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...FjABegQIBxAB&usg=AOvVaw3mLzJBq5S5LfnCMUqyZ_p4


View attachment 8207

View attachment 8208

View attachment 8209

View attachment 8210

View attachment 8211

View attachment 8212

Let me highlight one more group from that list:

CESNUR is an apologist institution, defending high-control groups such as scientology or Aum Shinrinkyo (the guys responsible for the terrorist sarin gas attachs in the Tokyo subway).

If CESNUR singed something, then the cause is likely bogus and/or malignant.

 

[ISNOINews]

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office joins 1/21/21 letter urging President Biden to "re-establish a robust White House faith-based office."

I saw this mentioned on Twitter. Below is the only link that I could find at this time.

WARNING: Long post.

Islamic Society of North America (ISNA).

* * * * * BEGIN QUOTATION * * * * *

January 21, 2021

President Joseph R. Biden
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President,

We write as national faith-based bodies and organizations requesting that you re-establish a robust White House faith-based office. We deeply appreciate the outreach of your Biden-Harris transition teams over the past two months—truly validating that your Administration sees faith partners across a range of faith traditions as important for both policy and outreach with people across the country.

The White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships in the Obama-Biden Administration was extremely helpful to both the faith community and policy makers. A fully functioning faith-based office (whatever the name) with appropriate funding is critically important to facilitate fruitful partnerships with faith and civil society organizations, and to ensure that members of your Administration have substantial and timely communication with the faith community.

The voice of the faith community provides an important component in the deliverance, planning and implementation of policy and can inform the writing of legislation. People of faith see engagement with government as a fundamental part of the workings of democracy. The work of government must be wise and compassionate as it pursues policies for the common good.

Engagement with the faith community enhances the work of government and enables it to be better informed on decisions to be made.

Faith-based organizations are often the advocates and allies of last resort for the most disenfranchised Americans and issues of deepest moral complexity in our national dialogue, such as health, immigration, racial justice, climate, poverty, peacemaking and other issues. As such, we are often positioned to provide an important avenue for bi-partisanship and healing in helping to build consensus and the willingness to act.

We ask that these vital functions be included in a restored and reinvigorated high-level, fully functioning White House faith-based and community partnerships office.

• Coordinate outreach to and input from faith-based and civil society organizations, serving as a liaison office for faith traditions and religious denominations across the United States.

• Oversee and coordinate the departmental faith-based offices across the rest of governmental agencies, providing wide access for faith organizations to the policy staff of your Administration.

• Play a strong role in U.S. domestic policy, since faith-based groups will be critical for a number of planned programs. A revitalized Office of Religion and Global Affairs at State should have a similar role for faith-based input into U.S. foreign policy.

• Facilitate financial partnerships with faith-based and community organizations with the purpose of enhancing the lives of people who are vulnerable, marginalized and subject to racial discrimination.

• Connect faith-based volunteers and leaders with national initiatives either of the Administration as a whole or faith-specific programs that come directly out of the faith-based office.

• Serve as a point of contact for faith organizations to get answers and insights when grassroots faith leaders across the country have questions, or input, on various Administration policy or programmatic initiatives.

• Serve as a conduit for us to share messaging with the Administration that best communicates with people of faith throughout the country on key policy goals and initiatives.

• Provide an effective channel of communication for your Administration to get its voice out in the national faith community in cities and rural areas, featuring a representative of the White House faith office speaking directly with our grassroots on policy, special initiatives, and even points of national crisis or disaster should they emerge.

We look forward to a close and productive collaboration in the years ahead. One way to ensure excellent communication and build relationships is for the Director or staff of the White House faith-based office to meet periodically with gatherings of the Washington office staff of our organizations who participate in the Washington Inter-religious Staff Community (WISC) and WISC Heads of Washington Offices.

Please know that you, Vice President Harris, your families and the members of your Administration are very much in our prayers.

Africa Faith and Justice Network
American Friends Service Committee
American H World Service
Bread for the World
Catholic Labor Network Center on Conscience & War
Christian Connections for International Health
Christian Reformed Church Office of Social Justice (OSJ)
Church of the Brethren, Office of Peacebuilding and Policy
Church of Scientology National Affairs Office
Church World Service
Churches for Middle East Peace
Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach
Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, US Provinces.
Creation Justice Ministries
Disciples Center for Public Witness (Disciples of Christ)
Disciples Justice Action Network
Disciples Refugee & Immigration Ministries
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
The Episcopal Church
Faith in Public Life
Franciscan Action Network
Friends Committee on National Legislation
General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Interfaith Worker Justice
Islamic Relief USA
Islamic Society of North AmericaJ
Jesuit Conference Office of Justice and Ecology
Jewish Council for Public Affairs
Jubilee USA Network
Justice Revival Leadership Conference of Women Religious
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns
Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger
Mennonite Central Committee U.S. Washington Office
National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd.
National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA
National Religious Campaign Against Torture
NETWORK, Lobby for Catholic Social Justice
Pax Christi USA
Presbyterian Church (USA)
Shoulder to Shoulder
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas Justice Team
Soka Gakkai International-USA (SGI-USA)
United Methodist Church – General Board of Church and Society
Union for Reform Judaism
Unitarian Universalist Association
Unitarian Universalists for Social Justice (UUSJ)
United Church of Christ, Justice and Witness Ministries

* * * * * END QUOTATION * * * * *

******************************************

HT -- Tweet by Elana Schor, AP national reporter for religion and politics.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1352251150721024002

/

 

[Harold#1]

Thank you for posting this. Biden is foolish and will probably agree to increase the government funding of religion.

Bush started this bullshit and Obama continued it.

President Bushs Faith-Based and Community Initiative

 

[ISNOINews]

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office joins letter urging President Biden to end federal executions.

More than 80 Rights Groups Urge US President to End Federal Executions

More than 80 Rights Groups Urge US President to End Federal Executions

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

February 9, 2021
President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, D.C. 20500

Dear President Biden,

On behalf of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 220 national organizations to promote and protect civil and human rights in the United States, and the 82 undersigned organizations, we write to urge you to act on your promise of ensuring equality, equity, and justice in our criminal legal system by immediately commuting the sentences of all individuals under federal sentence of death, and reinstating the federal moratorium on the use of the death penalty. Any criminal legal system truly dedicated to the pursuit of justice should recognize the humanity of all those who come into contact with it, not sanction the use of a discriminatory practice that denies individuals their rights, fails to respect their dignity, and stands in stark contrast to the fundamental values of our democratic system of governance. If we are to truly forge a nation as good as its ideals, the federal government must take swift action to commute the sentences of those currently under federal sentence of death and end the government’s cruel, ineffective, and irreversible use of the death penalty.

For seventeen years, the federal government took a hiatus from federal executions until, in July 2019, the Trump administration announced a new lethal injection protocol and with it, the intention to resume federal executions.[1] While initially delayed over just six months, former President Donald Trump’s Justice Department hurriedly moved to execute thirteen individuals – Daniel Lee, Wesley Purkey, Dustin Honken, Lezmond Mitchell, Keith Nelson, William LeCroy, Jr., Christopher Vialva, Orlando Hall, Brandon Bernard, Alfred Bourgeois, Lisa Montgomery, Corey Johnson, and Dustin Higgs – just before the end of his presidency. As Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor noted in her dissent in United States v. Dustin John Higgs, “to put that in historical context, the Federal Government will have executed more than three times as many people in the last six months than it had in the previous six decades.”[2] In a period already marked by significant loss, as more than 419,000 Americans have died of COVID-19, as well as protest against a criminal legal system that systemically harms communities of color, the expediency with which the Trump administration raced to implement these executions while failing to take necessary action to protect individuals during the pandemic – and especially incarcerated individuals such as the 14 people on federal death row who became ill with the virus – is particularly disgraceful.[3]

Such state-sanctioned killing is not only inhumane, but in deep conflict with many of our country’s most fundamental democratic principles and civil rights protections. A cruel and unusual punishment, the death penalty fails to comport with either the 8th or 14th Amendments and violates our obligations under international law. Since 1973, more than 170 individuals have been sentenced to death and exonerated on innocence grounds, demonstrating the high propensity for error in our criminal legal system and the unfathomable consequences that may follow.[4] The only way to eliminate the possibility of executing an innocent person is to do away with the punishment altogether.

Moreover, the use of the death penalty continues to perpetuate patterns of racial and economic oppression endemic to the American criminal legal system. Throughout history, African Americans have been routinely put to death for offenses for which white individuals received lesser punishments, were more likely to be executed as juveniles, and were less likely to have their death sentence convictions reviewed by higher courts than were their white counterparts.[5] Still today, stark racial disparities in the application of capital punishment exists. For example, while just 13 percent of the U.S. population is Black,[6] 20 of the 49 individuals remaining on federal death row – or 41 percent – are African American.[7] Additionally, factors such as discrimination against low-income individuals, failures to acknowledge individuals’ histories of abuse or disability statuses, and other forms of systemic inequities in our criminal legal system more broadly further engrain and entrench the worst parts of this system in its resultant death penalty decisions. In states where the death penalty continues to be used, 72 percent of those executed in 2018 had severe mental illness, intellectual disability, brain injury, or a history of chronic childhood trauma and abuse, and nearly a quarter were executed for crimes occurring when they were 21 years of age or younger.[8]

For these reasons, we expressed our opposition to its continued existence and our support of policy approaches to end its use in our November 24, 2020 letter expressing our coalition’s transition priorities.[9] And we are not alone. In fact, momentum against the use of the death penalty has been growing in recent years as a number of states have recognized that it is an expensive, ineffective, and error prone practice too flawed to fix. Ten states have ended the use of their death penalty since 2007, bringing the total number of states that have either abolished the practice or imposed a moratorium on its use to 25, and the number of states that have not carried out an execution in more than a decade to 33.[10] This momentum has also been reflected in public opinion, as opposition to the use of capital punishment rose to its highest point in fifty years in 2020.[11]

This momentum has also been evidenced through the actions of the millions of individuals who, during the six months of the Trump administration’s execution spree, took to the streets to protest police brutality and systemic racism and demand a wholesale transformation of our criminal legal system. Such a transformation cannot occur without addressing the role the death penalty has played in reinforcing false and racialized perceptions of dangerousness, and espousing the idea that public safety is promoted and justice is achieved through harsh punishment.

In order to enact truly comprehensive reforms that reimagine public safety in our communities, we must acknowledge that increased criminalization and excessively punitive policies are not an effective response to violence, and the only way to create genuine public safety is to invest in the health, education, economic opportunity, and general well-being of all individuals.

As a candidate, you campaigned on a platform centered on strengthening “America’s commitment to justice,” based on the core beliefs that we must eliminate racial, income-based, and other disparities, and create a criminal legal system focused not on cruelty and punishment, but on “redemption and rehabilitation.”[12] Now, as president, you have the unique ability to begin effectuating these policy goals immediately by using your executive clemency powers to commute the sentences of the individuals on federal death row today. You have the power to:

* dismantle the federal death chamber at FCC Terre Haute;

* rescind the lethal injection protocol; rescind the “Manner of Execution”[13] regulation that took effect in December 2020; rescind internal DOJ guidelines on litigating death row cases that took effect in December 2020;

* establish clear executive guidelines that prohibit federal prosecutors from seeking the death penalty;


* withdraw authorization for all pending death penalty trial cases;

* issue a federal moratorium on federal executions; and

* ensure that all people currently under federal sentence of death, death sentences are commuted or reduced.

These are all actions you can begin to implement immediately, without the assistance of Congress, and we respectfully implore you to do so. We also recognize that if there is one thing that the waning months of the Trump presidency also made clear, it is the horrendous implications of simply having an informal federal death penalty moratorium in place. Therefore, we also encourage you to prioritize working with Congress to deliver on your campaign promise to work to end the death penalty through legislation such as H.R. 262, the Federal Death Penalty Prohibition Act, introduced by Senator Dick Durbin and Representative Ayanna Pressley.

Over the past year, millions of individuals have made clear that our nation must meaningfully address systemic racism and inequality and fundamentally transform our criminal legal system as we continue our work to chart a path towards a more fair, just, and inclusive society. By virtue of the office you now hold, you have the power to take swift, decisive action to begin to right the injustices of today and prevent them from continuing to occur tomorrow. As youth poet laureate Amanda Gorman proclaimed on your inaugural stage: “If we merge mercy with might and might with right, then love becomes our legacy and change our children’s birthright.”[14] By taking immediate action to commute the sentences of the 49 individuals on federal death row, you have the ability to show that the Biden-Harris administration will govern with mercy and will work to put the might of the federal government behind policies that recognize, reflect, and respect the dignity, humanity, and rights of all individuals.

If you have any questions about the issues raised in this letter, please contact Sakira Cook of The Leadership Conference at [email protected], Cynthia W. Roseberry of the American Civil Liberties Union at [email protected], Kristina Roth of Amnesty International USA at [email protected], and Lisa Cylar Barrett of the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund at [email protected].

Sincerely,

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
8th Amendment Project
Abolitionist Action Committee
Advocacy Without Borders
Alliance of Baptists
American Civil Liberties Union
American Constitution Society
American Friends Service Committee
Americans for Democratic Action (ADA)
Amnesty International USA
Arkansas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
Autistic Self Advocacy Network
Autistic Women & Nonbinary Network
Black Church ACTION FUND
California People of Faith
Center for Disability Rights
Center for Popular Democracy
Church of Scientology National Affairs Office
Church World Service
College and Community Fellowship
Community Resource Initiative
Death Penalty Action
Death Penalty Focus
Disability Rights Advocates
Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund (DREDF)
Disciples Center for Public Witness
Drug Policy Alliance
Ella Baker Center for Human Rights
Equal Justice Society
Equal Justice USA
Faith In Action LIVE FREE Project
Federal Public and Community Defenders
Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, FADP
Foundations for Divergent Minds
Friends Committee on Legislation of California
Hanover Friends Meeting, Peace and Social Concerns Committee
Human Rights Watch
Innocence Project
Interfaith Action for Human Rights
Iowans Against the Death Penalty
Jewish Council for Public Affairs
Just Futures Law
Justice Roundtable
Kansas Coalition Against the Death Penalty
Kentucky Council of Churches
Lambda Legal
League of Women Voters of the United States
Missourians for alternatives to the death penalty (MADP)
MomsRising
NAACP
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund
National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers National Association of Social Workers
National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
National Council of Churches
National CURE
National Religious Campaign Against Torture
Nevada Coalition Against the Death Penalty
New Hampshire Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
NH Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
North Carolina Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty
Operation Restoration
Oregon Justice Resource Center
Pennsylvanians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty
Prison Policy Initiative
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas Justice Team
South Dakotans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty
Southern Center for Human Rights
SPLC Action
StoptheDrugWar.org
Tennesseans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
The Braxton Institute
The National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls
The Taifa Group, LLC
Tzedek Association
Union for Reform Judaism
Vera Institute of Justice
Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty
Washington Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty Witness to Innocence
World Without Genocide at Mitchell Hamline School of Law

[1] United States Department of Justice, Federal Government to Resume Capital Punishment After Nearly Two Decade Lapse. (July 25, 2019). Federal Government to Resume Capital Punishment After Nearly Two Decade Lapse

[2] United States v. Dustin John Higgs, 592 U.S. ___ (2021). https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf/20-927_i42k.pdf

[3] Fuchs, H. Virus Hits Federal Death Row, Prompting Calls for Delays in Executions. The New York Times. (Dec. 21, 2020). Virus Hits Federal Death Row, Prompting Calls for Delays in Executions

[4] Death Penalty Information Center, Innocence: Overview. (2021). Innocence

[5] American Civil Liberties Union. The Case Against the Death Penalty. The Case Against the Death Penalty

[6] United States Census Bureau. Quick Facts. (Population estimates as of July 1, 2019). U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: United States

[7] Federal Capital Habeas Project. Federal Death Row Population By Race. (Updated Jan. 19, 2021). Federal Death Row Population By Race | Federal Capital Habeas Project

[8] Death Penalty Information Center. The Death Penalty in 2018: Year End Report. 2018 Execution Data. (revised July 2019). The Death Penalty in 2018: Year End Report

[9] The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. Transition Priorities. (Nov 24, 2020). https://civilrightsdocs.info/pdf/po...heLeadershipConference-November2020-FINAL.pdf

[10] Death Penalty Information Center. State by State. (2021). State by State

[11] Death Penalty Information Center. Gallup Poll: Public Support for the Death Penalty Lowest in a Half-Century. (Nov. 24, 2020). Gallup Poll: Public Support for the Death Penalty Lowest in a Half-Century

[12] The Biden Plan for Strengthening America’s Commitment to Justice. Joe Biden's Criminal Justice Policy | Joe Biden/

[13] Manner of Federal Executions. 85 C.F.R. 75846. (Nov. 27, 2020) Manner of Federal Executions; See also, corrected Final Rule, 85 C.F.R. 76979. (Dec. 1, 2020). Manner of Federal Executions

[14] A. Gorman. The Hill We Climb. (Jan. 20, 2021)

.
* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

/

 

[ISNOINews]

John Standard of the Church of Scientology National Affairs Office is an Advisor on the 83-page February 2021 Council for Court Excellence paper "Jails & Justice: Our Transformation Starts Today -- Phase II Findings and Implementation Plan."


District Task Force on Jails & Justice Publishes Phase II Report with 10-Year Implementation Plan to Transform Justice in D.C. - - CCE Council for Court Excellence


https://www.courtexcellence.org/uploads/publications/TransformationStartsToday.pdf







Standard is also a Civic Director of the Council.


CCE Council for Court Excellence.



/

 

[ISNOINews]

The Church of Scientology National Affairs Office and the European Office of the Church of Scientology for Public Affairs and Human Rights join petition to Excellency Stefan Löfven, Prime Minister of Sweden, on behalf of Baolige Wurina and his family, who are facing deportation from Sweden to China. The Petition asserts that Baolige fled to Sweden ten years ago from the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China (IMAR), after facing persecution from Chinese authorities for his rights activism. Since arriving in Sweden, Swedish authorities have refused to grant him asylum and ordered his deportation.

SWEDEN: Facing deportation back to China – 17 NGOs write to Prime Minister

by admin_HRWF | Feb 10, 2021


SWEDEN: Facing deportation back to China – 17 NGOs write to Prime Minister | Human Rights Without Frontiers


* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

A petition to Excellency Stefan Lo fven Prime Minister of Sweden organized by the Freedom of Religion or Belief Roundtable Brussels-EU ̈

Dear Prime Minister,

Brussels, the 8th of February 2020 (sic)

The undersigned organizations wish to express their deep concern about the case of Baolige Wurina and his family, who are facing deportation from Sweden.

As you know, China continues what Human Rights Watch has called “the worst human rights crackdown in the post-Tiananmen period. If Wurina is deported to China, he is almost certain to face incarceration and torture, and Sweden will have violated the European Convention on Human Rights.

Baolige fled to Sweden ten years ago from the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China (IMAR), after facing persecution from Chinese authorities for his rights activism. Since arriving in Sweden, Swedish authorities have refused to grant him asylum and ordered his deportation. Baolige and his wife, together with their two children, are waiting now for the Migration Court of Appeal—the last instance to decide on asylum cases in Sweden—to decide whether he will be granted Swedish protection. If the court decides on deportation, the family will be split apart. While Baolige will be sent to China, his wife, who is Mongolian, will be sent to Mongolia with their children.

Swedish authorities claim that Baolige is unable to prove that Chinese authorities constitute a threat towards him personally, even though Baolige has continued his rights activism in Sweden. He has participated in protests against China in front of the Chinese embassy, where he says embassy staff photographed the protesters. Swedish authorities have rejected the claim as “speculation,” even though China is known for its surveillance and targeting of citizens who have fled the country.

The case law of the European Court of Human Rights requires the Swedish court to examine the consequences of sending Baolige back to China, bearing in mind not only his personal circumstances, which certainly seem to warrant Swedish protection, but also the general situation in China.

The decision to deport Baolige seems based on a misreading of the general situation in Inner Mongolia—perhaps because China’s human rights abuses there are less known than those committed in Tibet and Xinjiang—but the situation is very grave and Sweden’s embassy in China appears fully aware of that. On December 10, the embassy published a statement by the EU delegation in China:

The EU… continues to be gravely concerned about the serious deterioration of the human rights situation in Xinjiang, Tibet and Inner Mongolia [our emphasis]. In addition to reports on continued large-scale extra-judicial detentions, severe and systemic restrictions on freedom of expression and association, and on freedom of religion or belief, there are growing concerns about the alleged use of forced labour, forced family separations and forced sterilization.

This fall China initiated a “dual language” policy in IMAR, similar to measures previously taken in Tibet and Xinjiang, according to which Chinese is now the language of instruction in primary and secondary school for numerous subjects previously taught in Mongolian. The policy caused widespread protests in IMAR and a subsequent crackdown by Chinese authorities. The Southern Mongolian Human Rights Centre (SMHRIC) estimates that 8,000-10,000 ethnic Mongolians have been placed under some form of police custody in IMAR since late August.

“The punitive measures…” wrote the SMHRIC, “include mass arrest, arbitrary detention, forced disappearance…house arrest…termination of employment, removal from official positions… and denial of access to financial resources…”

“Methods of coerced assimilation via police-state tactics, which have been used extensively in Xinjiang and Tibet, are now also being enforced in Inner Mongolia,” according to Dr. Willy Wo-Lap Lam, an Adjunct Professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, in a report for the Jamestown Foundation in September. “…Other harsh measures already used include: the imprisonment of political dissidents; closure of anti-Beijing social media chat rooms; and even the collection of DNA from ethnic minority residents.”

Minister of Justice and Migration, Morgan Johansson, was recently asked whether the Swedish government would cease deportations to Inner Mongolia. “I note,” responded Johansson, “that the system we have for asylum review in Sweden contains effective guarantees to ensure a legally secure process.”

That does not appear to be the case, however, when Swedish migration authorities clearly lack crucial information in their decision-making process. Such lack of information has already had tragic consequences: We must remind you that in 2012, Sweden deported two Uyghurs who had participated in demonstrations in Sweden in front of the Chinese embassy, just like Baolige. “I know that they had participated in demonstrations held by the Swedish Uyghur community in front of the Chinese embassy in Stockholm,” World Uyghur Congress spokesman Dilshat Raxit said at the time. “This is enough fodder for the Chinese authorities to punish them severely”. The two Uyghurs were never seen or heard from again. The tragedy forced Sweden to temporarily stop the deportations of Uyghurs to China.

We fear that Baolige may have to pay with his life in order for Sweden to stop the deportations of ethnic Mongolians to China. We respectfully ask for your attention and, if possible, your assistance to prevent this deportation.

Most respectfully,

Organizations

All Faiths Network UKBitter Winter, a daily magazine on religious liberty

CAP Freedom of Conscience – CAPLC

Center For Studies on Freedom of Religion Belief and Conscience (LIREC)

CESNUR – Center for Studies on New Religions

China Aid

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office Washington, DC

European Interreligious Forum for Religious Freedom – EIFRF

European Office of the Church of Scientology for Public Affairs and Human Rights

FOREF – Forum for Religious Forum Europe

Fundacion para la Mejora de la Vida, la Cultura y la Sociedad

Human Rights Without Frontiers – HRWF Int’

lInternational Human Rights Committee – IHRC

Jubilee Campaign USA

Jubilee Campaign Netherlands

ORLIR – International Observatory of Religious Liberty of Refugees

Universal Peace Federation The Netherlands (UPF NL)

Individuals

Stephen Eric Bronner
Co-Director International Council for Diplomacy and Dialogue

Dr. Jan van Butselaar

General Secretary (ret.) International Association for Mission Studies

Hulda Fahmi
International Director Set My People Free

Dr Joanne Smith Finley
Reader in Chinese Studies Newcastle University, UK

Scott Morgan
President Red Eagle Enterprises

Aaron Rhodes
President FOREF EUROPE

Enrique Miguel Sanchez Motos
President Pensadores Sin Fronteras

Bachittar Singh Ughrha,
Founder and President,Center for defence of human rights. Founder and Vice President, Gurdwara (Sikh Temple) Geneva, Switzerland.

Martin Weightman
Director All Faith Network UK

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

 

[ISNOINews]

Church of Scientology National Affairs Office joins letter urging President Biden to end federal executions.

More than 80 Rights Groups Urge US President to End Federal Executions

More than 80 Rights Groups Urge US President to End Federal Executions

* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

February 9, 2021
President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, D.C. 20500

Dear President Biden,

On behalf of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 220 national organizations to promote and protect civil and human rights in the United States, and the 82 undersigned organizations, we write to urge you to act on your promise of ensuring equality, equity, and justice in our criminal legal system by immediately commuting the sentences of all individuals under federal sentence of death, and reinstating the federal moratorium on the use of the death penalty. Any criminal legal system truly dedicated to the pursuit of justice should recognize the humanity of all those who come into contact with it, not sanction the use of a discriminatory practice that denies individuals their rights, fails to respect their dignity, and stands in stark contrast to the fundamental values of our democratic system of governance. If we are to truly forge a nation as good as its ideals, the federal government must take swift action to commute the sentences of those currently under federal sentence of death and end the government’s cruel, ineffective, and irreversible use of the death penalty.

For seventeen years, the federal government took a hiatus from federal executions until, in July 2019, the Trump administration announced a new lethal injection protocol and with it, the intention to resume federal executions.[1] While initially delayed over just six months, former President Donald Trump’s Justice Department hurriedly moved to execute thirteen individuals – Daniel Lee, Wesley Purkey, Dustin Honken, Lezmond Mitchell, Keith Nelson, William LeCroy, Jr., Christopher Vialva, Orlando Hall, Brandon Bernard, Alfred Bourgeois, Lisa Montgomery, Corey Johnson, and Dustin Higgs – just before the end of his presidency. As Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor noted in her dissent in United States v. Dustin John Higgs, “to put that in historical context, the Federal Government will have executed more than three times as many people in the last six months than it had in the previous six decades.”[2] In a period already marked by significant loss, as more than 419,000 Americans have died of COVID-19, as well as protest against a criminal legal system that systemically harms communities of color, the expediency with which the Trump administration raced to implement these executions while failing to take necessary action to protect individuals during the pandemic – and especially incarcerated individuals such as the 14 people on federal death row who became ill with the virus – is particularly disgraceful.[3]

Such state-sanctioned killing is not only inhumane, but in deep conflict with many of our country’s most fundamental democratic principles and civil rights protections. A cruel and unusual punishment, the death penalty fails to comport with either the 8th or 14th Amendments and violates our obligations under international law. Since 1973, more than 170 individuals have been sentenced to death and exonerated on innocence grounds, demonstrating the high propensity for error in our criminal legal system and the unfathomable consequences that may follow.[4] The only way to eliminate the possibility of executing an innocent person is to do away with the punishment altogether.

Moreover, the use of the death penalty continues to perpetuate patterns of racial and economic oppression endemic to the American criminal legal system. Throughout history, African Americans have been routinely put to death for offenses for which white individuals received lesser punishments, were more likely to be executed as juveniles, and were less likely to have their death sentence convictions reviewed by higher courts than were their white counterparts.[5] Still today, stark racial disparities in the application of capital punishment exists. For example, while just 13 percent of the U.S. population is Black,[6] 20 of the 49 individuals remaining on federal death row – or 41 percent – are African American.[7] Additionally, factors such as discrimination against low-income individuals, failures to acknowledge individuals’ histories of abuse or disability statuses, and other forms of systemic inequities in our criminal legal system more broadly further engrain and entrench the worst parts of this system in its resultant death penalty decisions. In states where the death penalty continues to be used, 72 percent of those executed in 2018 had severe mental illness, intellectual disability, brain injury, or a history of chronic childhood trauma and abuse, and nearly a quarter were executed for crimes occurring when they were 21 years of age or younger.[8]

For these reasons, we expressed our opposition to its continued existence and our support of policy approaches to end its use in our November 24, 2020 letter expressing our coalition’s transition priorities.[9] And we are not alone. In fact, momentum against the use of the death penalty has been growing in recent years as a number of states have recognized that it is an expensive, ineffective, and error prone practice too flawed to fix. Ten states have ended the use of their death penalty since 2007, bringing the total number of states that have either abolished the practice or imposed a moratorium on its use to 25, and the number of states that have not carried out an execution in more than a decade to 33.[10] This momentum has also been reflected in public opinion, as opposition to the use of capital punishment rose to its highest point in fifty years in 2020.[11]

This momentum has also been evidenced through the actions of the millions of individuals who, during the six months of the Trump administration’s execution spree, took to the streets to protest police brutality and systemic racism and demand a wholesale transformation of our criminal legal system. Such a transformation cannot occur without addressing the role the death penalty has played in reinforcing false and racialized perceptions of dangerousness, and espousing the idea that public safety is promoted and justice is achieved through harsh punishment.

In order to enact truly comprehensive reforms that reimagine public safety in our communities, we must acknowledge that increased criminalization and excessively punitive policies are not an effective response to violence, and the only way to create genuine public safety is to invest in the health, education, economic opportunity, and general well-being of all individuals.

As a candidate, you campaigned on a platform centered on strengthening “America’s commitment to justice,” based on the core beliefs that we must eliminate racial, income-based, and other disparities, and create a criminal legal system focused not on cruelty and punishment, but on “redemption and rehabilitation.”[12] Now, as president, you have the unique ability to begin effectuating these policy goals immediately by using your executive clemency powers to commute the sentences of the individuals on federal death row today. You have the power to:

* dismantle the federal death chamber at FCC Terre Haute;

* rescind the lethal injection protocol; rescind the “Manner of Execution”[13] regulation that took effect in December 2020; rescind internal DOJ guidelines on litigating death row cases that took effect in December 2020;

* establish clear executive guidelines that prohibit federal prosecutors from seeking the death penalty;


* withdraw authorization for all pending death penalty trial cases;

* issue a federal moratorium on federal executions; and

* ensure that all people currently under federal sentence of death, death sentences are commuted or reduced.

These are all actions you can begin to implement immediately, without the assistance of Congress, and we respectfully implore you to do so. We also recognize that if there is one thing that the waning months of the Trump presidency also made clear, it is the horrendous implications of simply having an informal federal death penalty moratorium in place. Therefore, we also encourage you to prioritize working with Congress to deliver on your campaign promise to work to end the death penalty through legislation such as H.R. 262, the Federal Death Penalty Prohibition Act, introduced by Senator Dick Durbin and Representative Ayanna Pressley.

Over the past year, millions of individuals have made clear that our nation must meaningfully address systemic racism and inequality and fundamentally transform our criminal legal system as we continue our work to chart a path towards a more fair, just, and inclusive society. By virtue of the office you now hold, you have the power to take swift, decisive action to begin to right the injustices of today and prevent them from continuing to occur tomorrow. As youth poet laureate Amanda Gorman proclaimed on your inaugural stage: “If we merge mercy with might and might with right, then love becomes our legacy and change our children’s birthright.”[14] By taking immediate action to commute the sentences of the 49 individuals on federal death row, you have the ability to show that the Biden-Harris administration will govern with mercy and will work to put the might of the federal government behind policies that recognize, reflect, and respect the dignity, humanity, and rights of all individuals.

If you have any questions about the issues raised in this letter, please contact Sakira Cook of The Leadership Conference at [email protected], Cynthia W. Roseberry of the American Civil Liberties Union at [email protected], Kristina Roth of Amnesty International USA at [email protected], and Lisa Cylar Barrett of the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund at [email protected].

Sincerely,

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
8th Amendment Project
Abolitionist Action Committee
Advocacy Without Borders
Alliance of Baptists
American Civil Liberties Union
American Constitution Society
American Friends Service Committee
Americans for Democratic Action (ADA)
Amnesty International USA
Arkansas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
Autistic Self Advocacy Network
Autistic Women & Nonbinary Network
Black Church ACTION FUND
California People of Faith
Center for Disability Rights
Center for Popular Democracy
Church of Scientology National Affairs Office
Church World Service
College and Community Fellowship
Community Resource Initiative
Death Penalty Action
Death Penalty Focus
Disability Rights Advocates
Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund (DREDF)
Disciples Center for Public Witness
Drug Policy Alliance
Ella Baker Center for Human Rights
Equal Justice Society
Equal Justice USA
Faith In Action LIVE FREE Project
Federal Public and Community Defenders
Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, FADP
Foundations for Divergent Minds
Friends Committee on Legislation of California
Hanover Friends Meeting, Peace and Social Concerns Committee
Human Rights Watch
Innocence Project
Interfaith Action for Human Rights
Iowans Against the Death Penalty
Jewish Council for Public Affairs
Just Futures Law
Justice Roundtable
Kansas Coalition Against the Death Penalty
Kentucky Council of Churches
Lambda Legal
League of Women Voters of the United States
Missourians for alternatives to the death penalty (MADP)
MomsRising
NAACP
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund
National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers National Association of Social Workers
National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
National Council of Churches
National CURE
National Religious Campaign Against Torture
Nevada Coalition Against the Death Penalty
New Hampshire Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
NH Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
North Carolina Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty
Operation Restoration
Oregon Justice Resource Center
Pennsylvanians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty
Prison Policy Initiative
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas Justice Team
South Dakotans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty
Southern Center for Human Rights
SPLC Action
StoptheDrugWar.org
Tennesseans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
The Braxton Institute
The National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls
The Taifa Group, LLC
Tzedek Association
Union for Reform Judaism
Vera Institute of Justice
Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty
Washington Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty Witness to Innocence
World Without Genocide at Mitchell Hamline School of Law

[1] United States Department of Justice, Federal Government to Resume Capital Punishment After Nearly Two Decade Lapse. (July 25, 2019). Federal Government to Resume Capital Punishment After Nearly Two Decade Lapse

[2] United States v. Dustin John Higgs, 592 U.S. ___ (2021). https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf/20-927_i42k.pdf

[3] Fuchs, H. Virus Hits Federal Death Row, Prompting Calls for Delays in Executions. The New York Times. (Dec. 21, 2020). Virus Hits Federal Death Row, Prompting Calls for Delays in Executions

[4] Death Penalty Information Center, Innocence: Overview. (2021). Innocence

[5] American Civil Liberties Union. The Case Against the Death Penalty. The Case Against the Death Penalty

[6] United States Census Bureau. Quick Facts. (Population estimates as of July 1, 2019). U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: United States

[7] Federal Capital Habeas Project. Federal Death Row Population By Race. (Updated Jan. 19, 2021). Federal Death Row Population By Race | Federal Capital Habeas Project

[8] Death Penalty Information Center. The Death Penalty in 2018: Year End Report. 2018 Execution Data. (revised July 2019). The Death Penalty in 2018: Year End Report

[9] The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. Transition Priorities. (Nov 24, 2020). https://civilrightsdocs.info/pdf/po...heLeadershipConference-November2020-FINAL.pdf

[10] Death Penalty Information Center. State by State. (2021). State by State

[11] Death Penalty Information Center. Gallup Poll: Public Support for the Death Penalty Lowest in a Half-Century. (Nov. 24, 2020). Gallup Poll: Public Support for the Death Penalty Lowest in a Half-Century

[12] The Biden Plan for Strengthening America’s Commitment to Justice. Joe Biden's Criminal Justice Policy | Joe Biden/

[13] Manner of Federal Executions. 85 C.F.R. 75846. (Nov. 27, 2020) Manner of Federal Executions; See also, corrected Final Rule, 85 C.F.R. 76979. (Dec. 1, 2020). Manner of Federal Executions

[14] A. Gorman. The Hill We Climb. (Jan. 20, 2021)

.
* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

/

Daily KOS has a story promoting the letter the Church of Scientology National Affairs Office joined urging President Biden to end federal executions.

The Daily KOS story is:

Civil rights groups write to ask Biden to end the federal death penalty for good


Civil rights groups write to ask Biden to end the federal death penalty for good


The Daily KOS story links to the ACLU's copy of the letter signed by the Church of Scientology National Affairs Office:


Coalition Letter to President Biden


For those who may not know, Daily KOS is a liberal website devoted to promoting the Democratic party. It does not pretend to be neutral or non-partisan.

So we have a liberal, Democratic website linking to and promoting a letter that was cosigned by the Church of Scientology National Affairs Office.

This is how it works.

/