1 So in original. Probably should be “Presidential”.
2 See References in Text note below.
There is established within the Department of State an Office on International Religious Freedom that shall be headed by the Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom appointed under subsection (b) of this section.
The Ambassador at Large shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.
The Ambassador at Large shall have the following responsibilities:
The primary responsibility of the Ambassador at Large shall be to advance the right to freedom of religion abroad, to denounce the violation of that right, and to recommend appropriate responses by the United States Government when this right is violated.
The Ambassador at Large shall be a principal adviser to the President and the Secretary of State regarding matters affecting religious freedom abroad and, with advice from the Commission on International Religious Freedom, shall make recommendations regarding—
(A) the policies of the United States Government toward governments that violate freedom of religion or that fail to ensure the individual's right to religious belief and practice; and
(B) policies to advance the right to religious freedom abroad.
Subject to the direction of the President and the Secretary of State, the Ambassador at Large is authorized to represent the United States in matters and cases relevant to religious freedom abroad in—
(A) contacts with foreign governments, intergovernmental organizations, and specialized agencies of the United Nations, the Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe, and other international organizations of which the United States is a member; and
(B) multilateral conferences and meetings relevant to religious freedom abroad.
The Ambassador at Large shall have the reporting responsibilities described in section 6412 of this title.
The Secretary of State shall provide the Ambassador at Large with such funds as may be necessary for the hiring of staff for the Office, for the conduct of investigations by the Office, and for necessary travel to carry out the provisions of this section.
(Pub. L. 105–292, title I, §101, Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2791.)
The Ambassador at Large shall assist the Secretary of State in preparing those portions of the Human Rights Reports that relate to freedom of religion and freedom from discrimination based on religion and those portions of other information provided Congress under sections 2151n and 2304 of this title that relate to the right to freedom of religion.
On September 1 of each year or the first day thereafter on which the appropriate House of Congress is in session, the Secretary of State, with the assistance of the Ambassador at Large, and taking into consideration the recommendations of the Commission, shall prepare and transmit to Congress an Annual Report on International Religious Freedom supplementing the most recent Human Rights Reports by providing additional detailed information with respect to matters involving international religious freedom. Each Annual Report shall contain the following:
A description of the status of religious freedom in each foreign country, including—
(i) trends toward improvement in the respect and protection of the right to religious freedom and trends toward deterioration of such right;
(ii) violations of religious freedom engaged in or tolerated by the government of that country;
(iii) particularly severe violations of religious freedom engaged in or tolerated by the government of that country; and
(iv) wherever applicable, an assessment and description of the nature and extent of acts of anti-Semitism and anti-Semitic incitement that occur in that country during the preceding year, including—
(I) acts of physical violence against, or harassment of, Jewish people, acts of violence against, or vandalism of, Jewish community institutions, and instances of propaganda in government and nongovernment media that incite such acts; and
(II) the actions taken by the government of that country to respond to such violence and attacks or to eliminate such propaganda or incitement, to enact and enforce laws relating to the protection of the right to religious freedom of Jewish people, and to promote anti-bias and tolerance education.
An assessment and description of the nature and extent of violations of religious freedom in each foreign country, including persecution of one religious group by another religious group, religious persecution by governmental and nongovernmental entities, persecution targeted at individuals or particular denominations or entire religions, the existence of government policies violating religious freedom, including policies that discriminate against particular religious groups or members of such groups, and the existence of government policies concerning—
(i) limitations or prohibitions on, or lack of availability of, openly conducted, organized religious services outside of the premises of foreign diplomatic missions or consular posts; and
(ii) the forced religious conversion of minor United States citizens who have been abducted or illegally removed from the United States, and the refusal to allow such citizens to be returned to the United States.
A description of United States actions and policies in support of religious freedom in each foreign country engaging in or tolerating violations of religious freedom, including a description of the measures and policies implemented during the preceding 12 months by the United States under titles I, IV, and V of this Act in opposition to violations of religious freedom and in support of international religious freedom.
A description of any binding agreement with a foreign government entered into by the United States under section 6441(b) or 6442(c) of this title.
A description of—
(i) the training described in section 6472(a) and (b) of this title and section 6473(b) and (c) of this title on violations of religious freedom provided to immigration judges and consular, refugee, immigration, and asylum officers; and
(ii) the development and implementation of the guidelines described in sections 6472(c) and 6473(a) of this title.
An Executive Summary to the Annual Report highlighting the status of religious freedom in certain foreign countries and including the following:
An identification of foreign countries in which the United States is actively promoting religious freedom. This section of the report shall include a description of United States actions taken to promote the internationally recognized right to freedom of religion and oppose violations of such right under title IV and title V of this Act during the period covered by the Annual Report. Any country designated as a country of particular concern for religious freedom under section 6442(b)(1) of this title shall be included in this section of the report.
An identification of foreign countries the governments of which have demonstrated significant improvement in the protection and promotion of the internationally recognized right to freedom of religion during the period covered by the Annual Report. This section of the report shall include a description of the nature of the improvement and an analysis of the factors contributing to such improvement, including actions taken by the United States under this chapter.
If the Secretary of State determines that it is in the national security interests of the United States or is necessary for the safety of individuals to be identified in the Annual Report or is necessary to further the purposes of this chapter, any information required by paragraph (1), including measures or actions taken by the United States, may be summarized in the Annual Report or the Executive Summary and submitted in more detail in a classified addendum to the Annual Report or the Executive Summary.
The Secretary of State shall ensure that United States missions abroad maintain a consistent reporting standard and thoroughly investigate reports of violations of the internationally recognized right to freedom of religion.
In compiling data and assessing the respect of the right to religious freedom for the Human Rights Reports, the Annual Report on International Religious Freedom, and the Executive Summary, United States mission personnel shall, as appropriate, seek out and maintain contacts with religious and human rights nongovernmental organizations, with the consent of those organizations, including receiving reports and updates from such organizations and, when appropriate, investigating such reports.
(Pub. L. 105–292, title I, §102, Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2792; Pub. L. 107–228, div. A, title VI, §681(a), Sept. 30, 2002, 116 Stat. 1408; Pub. L. 108–332, §6(b), Oct. 16, 2004, 118 Stat. 1285.)
Titles I, IV, and V of this Act, referred to in subsec. (b)(1)(C), (F)(i), are titles I, IV, and V of Pub. L. 105–292, Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2791, 2800, 2811. Titles I and IV are classified principally to this subchapter (§6411 et seq.) and subchapter III (§6441 et seq.) of this chapter, respectively. Title V amended sections 2151n, 2452, 3965, 4013, and 6202 of this title and enacted provisions set out as a note under section 2151n of this title. For complete classification of titles I, IV, and V to the Code, see Tables.
This chapter, referred to in subsec. (b)(1)(F)(ii), (2), was in the original “this Act”, meaning Pub. L. 105–292, Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2787, which is classified principally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 6401 of this title and Tables.
Section is comprised of section 102 of Pub. L. 105–292. Subsec. (d) of section 102 of Pub. L. 105–292 amended sections 2151n and 2304 of this title.
2004—Subsec. (b)(1)(A)(iv). Pub. L. 108–332 added cl. (iv).
2002—Subsec. (b)(1)(B). Pub. L. 107–228 inserted “including policies that discriminate against particular religious groups or members of such groups,” after “the existence of government policies violating religious freedom,”.
Amendment by Pub. L. 108–332 applicable beginning with the first report under sections 2151n(d), 2304(b), and 6412(b) of this title submitted more than 180 days after Oct. 16, 2004, see section 6(c) of Pub. L. 108–332, set out as a note under section 2151n of this title.
For abolition of Immigration and Naturalization Service, transfer of functions, and treatment of related references, see note set out under section 1551 of Title 8, Aliens and Nationality.
In order to facilitate access by nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and by the public around the world to international documents on the protection of religious freedom, the Secretary of State, with the assistance of the Ambassador at Large, shall establish and maintain an Internet site containing major international documents relating to religious freedom, the Annual Report, the Executive Summary, and any other documentation or references to other sites as deemed appropriate or relevant by the Ambassador at Large.
(Pub. L. 105–292, title I, §103, Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2795.)
United States chiefs of mission shall seek out and contact religious nongovernmental organizations to provide high-level meetings with religious nongovernmental organizations where appropriate and beneficial. United States chiefs of mission and Foreign Service officers abroad shall seek to meet with imprisoned religious leaders where appropriate and beneficial.
(Pub. L. 105–292, title I, §105, Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2795.)
It is the sense of the Congress that—
(1) United States diplomatic missions in countries the governments of which engage in or tolerate violations of the internationally recognized right to freedom of religion should develop, as part of annual program planning, a strategy to promote respect for the internationally recognized right to freedom of religion; and
(2) in allocating or recommending the allocation of funds or the recommendation of candidates for programs and grants funded by the United States Government, United States diplomatic missions should give particular consideration to those programs and candidates deemed to assist in the promotion of the right to religious freedom.
(Pub. L. 105–292, title I, §106, Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2796.)
Subject to this section, the Secretary of State shall permit, on terms no less favorable than that accorded other nongovernmental activities unrelated to the conduct of the diplomatic mission, access to the premises of any United States diplomatic mission or consular post by any United States citizen seeking to conduct an activity for religious purposes.
The Secretary of State shall make reasonable accommodations with respect to the timing and location of such access in light of—
(1) the number of United States citizens requesting the access (including any particular religious concerns regarding the time of day, date, or physical setting for services);
(2) conflicts with official activities and other nonofficial United States citizen requests;
(3) the availability of openly conducted, organized religious services outside the premises of the mission or post;
(4) availability of space and resources; and
(5) necessary security precautions.
The Secretary of State may permit access to the premises of a United States diplomatic mission or consular post to foreign nationals for the purpose of attending or participating in religious activities conducted pursuant to this section.
(Pub. L. 105–292, title I, §107, Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2796.)
To encourage involvement with religious freedom concerns at every possible opportunity and by all appropriate representatives of the United States Government, it is the sense of the Congress that officials of the executive branch of Government should promote increased advocacy on such issues during meetings between foreign dignitaries and executive branch officials or Members of Congress.
The Secretary of State, in consultation with the Ambassador at Large, the Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, United States chiefs of mission abroad, regional experts, and nongovernmental human rights and religious groups, shall prepare and maintain issue briefs on religious freedom, on a country-by-country basis, consisting of lists of persons believed to be imprisoned, detained, or placed under house arrest for their religious faith, together with brief evaluations and critiques of the policies of the respective country restricting religious freedom. In considering the inclusion of names of prisoners on such lists, the Secretary of State shall exercise appropriate discretion, including concerns regarding the safety, security, and benefit to such prisoners.
The Secretary shall, as appropriate, provide religious freedom issue briefs under subsection (b) of this section to executive branch officials and Members of Congress in anticipation of bilateral contacts with foreign leaders, both in the United States and abroad.
(Pub. L. 105–292, title I, §108, Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2796.)