(The Christian Post) The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom has, for the first time since 2004, recommended that the State Department add India to its list of countries that engage in or tolerate egregious violations of religious freedom.
USCIRF, a bipartisan panel of religious freedom activists and scholars tasked with advising the White House, State Department and Congress on religious freedom matters, released its 2020 annual report Tuesday morning.
“While we do see some positive developments in some countries, we noted a noticeable deterioration of religious freedom in others,” USCIRF Vice-Chair Nadine Maenza said on a press call on Tuesday.
The report is shorter than it has been in years past to be more accessible to policymakers and it emphasizes key findings that justify the commission’s reasoning for recommending that 14 countries be designated as “countries of particular concern.”