U.S. Department of State Releases 2005 International Religious Freedom Report

November 29, 2005

The U.S. Department of State issued an Annual Report to Congress on International Religious Freedom on November 8, as required under U.S. law. Prepared by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, the report includes a section on China that describes continued government repression of religious activities, especially among unregistered groups, despite a constitutional guarantee of religious freedom.

The U.S. Department of State issued an Annual Report to Congress on International Religious Freedom on November 8, as required under U.S. law. Prepared by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, the report includes a section on China that describes continued government repression of religious activities, especially among unregistered groups, despite a constitutional guarantee of religious freedom. In remarks accompanying the release of the report, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice noted that it again designates China as one of eight "Countries of Particular Concern" whose "governments have engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom over the past year."

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (CIRF), an independent U.S. government agency that reports on selected countries, also released a Policy Focus on China on November 9. The CIRF report finds continued violation of religious freedoms and notes "intensified pressure" on ethnic and religious communities that the Chinese government sees as threats to national security or social harmony.

For further information on religious freedom in China, see the CECC 2005 Annual Report’s section on Freedom of Religion and CECC roundtables on unofficial religions in China and China's new Regulation on Religious Affairs. For a related analysis, see the Human Rights Watch report Devastating Blows: Religious Repression of Uighurs in Xinjiang.