Next Wednesday, Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04), Chairman of the House panel on global human rights, will be chairing a hearing entitled “Advancing Human Rights to Combat Extremism.” The hearing will explore the best strategies to counter violent extremism in the Islamic world, including by promoting religious freedom.

    Smith’s bill which was signed into law last year, the Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act (H.R. 1150), provided specific tools and resources for the State Department to implement religious freedom into U.S. diplomacy and all aspects of foreign policy, helping to counter violent extremism abroad. That law built upon existing law, the landmark International Religious Freedom Act of 1998.

    The new law required religious freedom training for all Foreign Service Officers; allowed the President to designate “violent non-state actors” for particularly severe violations of religious freedom, and sanction individuals for those abuses; strengthened the investigations into and monitoring of religious persecution; created a “Designated Persons List” for violators of religious freedom who have been sanctioned for their abuses; strengthened the Special Advisor for religious freedom position at the National Security Council; set up a comprehensive religious prisoners list of persons detained, imprisoned, tortured, and subject to forced renunciation of faith; required that the Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom report directly to the Secretary of State; elevated the position of ambassador within the department; and set up a “Special Watch List” in the existing “Countries of Particular Concern” list.

    “The advancement of fundamental human rights – in particular, freedom of religion – should be a core objective of US foreign policy,” Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.), Chair of the House Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations, stated.

    “By emphasizing such principles, we counter extremist messaging, support moderate voices, and promote the popular aspirations of people around the world who wish to live in freedom and peace,” Smith, author of the Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act, said. “We need to encourage such voices of moderation in the Islamic world, while waging a full-throated war of ideas with radical extremists such as ISIS.  The ideological battlefield is just as important as the territorial one.”   

    Witnesses will discuss the best strategies to counter violent extremism in the Islamic world through promoting religious freedom and empowering moderate Muslims to speak out against Islamist extremism. They will also discuss how the Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act has impacted these efforts since the law’s enactment.

Who:               

Chairman Smith (NJ-04), Senior Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the House Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations; other members of the Committee

Witnesses:          

Thomas Farr, Ph.D.

President, Religious Freedom Institute

Director, Religious Freedom Research Project

Georgetown University

Mr. Neil Hicks

Director, Human Rights Promotion

Human Rights First

John Lenczowski, Ph.D.

Founder and President

The Institute of World Politics

Sayyid Syeed, Ph.D.

Senior Advisor

Office of Interfaith and Community Alliances

Islamic Society of North America

What:              House hearing on advancing human rights to combat extremism

When:             Wednesday, December 6, 2017 10 AM

Where:           Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2172 (first floor)