,,iii #aaeth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 ,,res4 #afb ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,may #aa1 #bjag ,mr4 ,lankford 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,coons1 and ,mr4 ,rubio7 submitted the following resolution2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations ,,resolution ,reaffirming the commitment of the ,united ,states to promoting religious freedom1 and for other purposes4 ,whereas the ,united ,states ,congress has a proud history of promoting internationally recognized human rights2 ,whereas religious freedom is a fundamental human right of all people2 ,whereas the free exercise of religion must stand for the right to practice any faith or to choose no faith at all2 ,whereas every individual's rights to freedom of thought1 conscience1 and religion is guaranteed under the ,united ,nations ,universal ,declaration of ,human ,rights1 adopted at ,paris ,december #aj1 #aidh1 and the ,international ,covenant on ,civil and ,political ,rights1 adopted at ,new ,york ,december #af1 #aiff1 which recognize1 ,everyone has the right to freedom of thought1 conscience and religion2 this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief1 and freedom1 either alone or in community with others and in public or private1 to manifest his religion or belief in teaching1 practice1 worship and observance42 ,whereas1 during his #aida ,state of the ,union address1 ,president ,franklin ,d4 ,roosevelt noted the 8,four ,freedoms0 that the world should be founded upon1 including the 8freedom of every person to worship ,god in his own way--everywhere in the world02 ,whereas1 according to the ,united ,states ,commission on ,international ,religious ,freedom 7,,uscirf71 abuses committed by governments and non-state actors has increased and the incarceration of prisoners of conscience remains widespread2 ,whereas1 according to the latest ,pew ,research ,center's ,study of ,global ,restrictions on ,religion1 which surveyed #bjae1 an estimated #gi percent of the world's population lives in countries where freedom of religion and conscience is highly restricted1 either by the government or social groups2 ,whereas the #bjag report produced by ,,uscirf recommended that the ,department of ,state designate the following countries as ,countries of ,particular ,concern3 ,burma1 ,central ,african ,republic1 ,china1 ,eritrea1 ,iran1 ,nigeria1 ,north ,korea1 ,pakistan1 ,russia1 ,saudi ,arabia1 ,sudan1 ,syria1 ,tajikistan1 ,turkmenistan1 ,uzbekistan1 and ,vietnam2 ,whereas1 in the same report1 ,,uscirf categorized as ,tier #b violators1 meaning violations engaged in or tolerated by the government are serious and characterized by at least one of the elements of the #8systematic1 ongoing1 and egregious' ,country of ,particular ,concern standard1 ,afghanistan1 ,azerbaijan1 ,bahrain1 ,cuba1 ,egypt1 ,india1 ,indonesia1 ,iraq1 ,kazakhstan1 ,laos1 ,malaysia1 and ,turkey2 ,whereas ,,uscirf also recommended that the ,department of ,state designate the following non-state actors as entities of particular concern3 the ,islamic ,state of ,iraq and ,syria 7,,isis71 the ,taliban in ,afghanistan1 and al-,shabaab in ,somalia2 ,whereas1 according to the ,pew ,research ,center ,study1 the two geographic regions with the highest government restrictions continue to be the ,middle ,east-,north ,africa and the ,asia-,pacific2 ,whereas ,congress has recognized that ,christians1 ,yezidis1 ,shi'a1 ,turkmen1 ,shabak1 ,sabean-,mandeans1 ,kaka'i1 and other religious and ethnic minorities in ,iraq and ,syria have faced genocide and other crimes against humanity perpetrated by the ,islamic ,state of ,iraq and the ,levant 7,,isil71 and that ,,isil seeks to eradicate the communities of these minorities2 ,whereas ,egyptian ,coptic ,christians have been repeatedly targeted and their aggressors have gone unprosecuted1 including two suicide bombings conducted by ,,isil that killed #dd people at ,coptic churches on ,palm ,sunday #bjag and an attack in ,december #bjaf that killed #bi and injured numerous other ,coptic worshipers1 many of whom were women and children2 ,whereas1 according to ,,uscirf1 ,rohingya ,muslims and other religious and ethnic minorities1 including ,christians1 in ,burma have faced ongoing persecution from state and non-state actors for decades1 including incidents of intimidation and violence2 the forced relocation and destruction of religious sites2 violent attacks by mobs and the military2 sexual violence and trafficking in persons1 and an ongoing campaign of coerced conversion to ,buddhism2 ,whereas1 according to ,,uscirf's most recent annual report1 conditions for freedom of religion or belief in ,china continue to decline1 with authorities targeting anyone considered a threat to the state1 including religious believers1 and ,chinese authorities arrested ,christians for displaying the cross in their homes and printing religious materials1 threatened parents for bringing their children to church1 and blocked them from holding certain religious activities2 ,whereas1 according to ,,uscirf1 the ,government of ,eritrea continues to target ,evangelical and ,pentecostal ,christians and ,jehovah's ,witnesses1 suppresses the religious activities of ,muslims1 dominates the internal affairs of the ,coptic ,orthodox ,church of ,eritrea1 and has engaged in the torture of religious prisoners2 ,whereas apostasy and blasphemy laws are routinely used across the ,middle ,east and ,north ,africa to intimidate and punish minority faiths and those who would leave ,islam2 ,whereas1 according to ,human ,rights ,watch1 in ,pakistan1 ,christians1 ,hindus1 and ,ahmadis are often the victims of violent extremists2 forced conversion and marriage of ,christian and ,hindu girls and young women remains a systemic problem2 and blasphemy laws are often used as an excuse to settle personal scores or stir up religious animosity against marginalized religious minorities1 resulting in a climate of fear and a chilling effect on religious expression2 ,whereas1 according to the ,department of ,state's #bjae ,international ,religious ,freedom ,report1 the ,government of ,iran continues to repress religious minorities1 including ,baha'is1 ,christians1 ,sunnis1 ,sufis1 ,yarsanis1 and ,zoroastrians1 by raiding religious gatherings services1 arresting and imprisoning worshipers and religious leaders1 imprisoning educators1 confiscating properties1 and executing dissidents2 ,whereas1 according to the ,department of ,state's #bjae ,international ,religious ,freedom ,report1 the ,government of ,sudan has systematically targeted the ,christian community1 prosecuting ,christian pastors on trumped-up charges1 confiscating ,christian-owned properties1 banning the construction of new ,christian houses of worship1 destroying numerous religious facilities throughout the country1 and targeting human rights defenders for legally representing the ,christian community2 ,whereas1 according to the ,february #bjad report of the ,united ,nations ,commission of ,inquiry on the ,human ,rights ,situation of the ,democratic ,people's ,republic of ,korea 7,,dprk71 there is 8an almost complete denial of the right to freedom of thought1 conscience1 and religion10 and the ,government of the ,,dprk 8considers the spread of ,christianity a particularly serious threat0 and enforces severe punishments for the practice of ,christianity2 ,whereas the global religious freedom crisis we are experiencing today has created millions of victims and undermines liberty1 prosperity1 and peace in places vital to ,united ,states national interests--posing direct challenges to ,united ,states interests in the ,middle ,east1 ,russia1 ,china1 and sub-,saharan ,africa2 ,whereas the absence of fundamental human rights1 including religious freedom1 contributes to persecution of minorities1 religious extremism1 terrorism1 and instability2 ,whereas there is greater peace1 political and social stability1 economic development1 democratization1 and women's empowerment when human rights1 including religious freedom1 are protected and advanced2 and ,whereas ,congress recently recognized1 with broad bipartisan support1 in the ,frank ,r4 ,wolf ,international ,religious ,freedom ,act 7,public ,law #aad-bha71 enacted on ,december #af1 #bjaf1 that because the promotion of international religious freedom protects human rights1 advances democracy abroad1 and advances ,united ,states interests in stability1 security1 and development globally1 the promotion of international religious freedom requires new and evolving policies1 and diplomatic responses that are drawn from the expertise of the national security agencies1 the diplomatic services1 and other governmental agencies and nongovernmental organizations1 and are coordinated across and carried out by the entire range of ,federal agencies3 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that the ,senate-- 7#a7 reaffirms the commitment of the ,united ,states to promoting religious freedom as a fundamental human right and calls on the ,president and the ,secretary of ,state1 in accordance with the ,international ,religious ,freedom ,act of #aiih 7,public ,law #aje-bib71 as amended by the ,frank ,r4 ,wolf ,international ,religious ,freedom ,act 7,public ,law #aad-bha71 to strengthen ,united ,states foreign policy on behalf of individuals persecuted in foreign countries on account of religion2 7#b7 calls on the ,president1 the ,secretary of ,state1 and the ,ambassador-at-,large for ,international ,religious ,freedom to develop an action plan on international religious freedom and to integrate that plan into ,united ,states diplomatic1 development1 and national security strategies2 7#c7 in accordance with section #ajf of the ,international ,religious ,freedom ,act 7#bb ,u4,s4,c4 #fdae71 calls on the ,president1 in collaboration with the ,secretary of ,state1 the ,ambassador at ,large for ,international ,religious ,freedom1 and the ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development1 to develop a strategic plan to direct grants funded by the ,united ,states ,government towards civil society that are implementing innovated programs in key countries to train and work with local religious leaders of all religious communities1 including minorities1 on the importance of pluralistic societies1 rights guaranteed under international law1 and reporting mechanisms available to them within international institutions2 7#d7 urges the ,secretary of ,state to implement the requirements of section #ajc of the ,frank ,wolf ,international ,religious ,freedom ,act 7,public ,law #aad-bha7 and develop a training curriculum for all ,american diplomats in international religious freedom policy2 7#e7 urges the ,president1 the ,secretary of ,state1 the ,secretary of ,defense1 and other relevant agencies to develop a comprehensive response to protect the victims of genocide1 crimes against humanity1 and war crimes and to provide humanitarian1 stabilization and recovery assistance to all individuals from religious and ethnic groups so effected in ,iraq and ,syria2 7#f7 calls on the ,president and the ,secretary of ,state to reestablish the ,religion and ,foreign ,policy ,working ,group within the ,department of ,state's ,federal ,advisory ,committee established by the previous administration1 bringing together experts from government1 universities1 religious and other nongovernmental organizations to develop an effective multiyear plan to address religious persecution globally and protect and promote international religious freedom2 and 7#g7 calls on the ,president1 the ,secretary of ,state and the ,united ,states ,trade ,representative to ensure that trade negotiations include religious freedom conditions as mandated by the ,bipartisan ,congressional ,trade ,priorities and ,accountability ,act of #bjae 7title ,i of ,public ,law #aad-bf74