MODERATOR: All right.
Well, hello, everyone, and welcome to the
Foreign Press Center in New York.
I’m the new director here, Liz Detmeister.
It’s our pleasure today to present this
briefing discussing the importance of safeguarding
religious freedom.
Before I introduce our speaker, I’d like
to take a moment to ask you to silence your
cell phones.
Today’s briefing is on the record and will
be livestreamed and transcribed.
Our speakers will make some introductory remarks
and then you’ll have an opportunity to ask
questions at the end.
When you’re offered the microphone, as a
courtesy to our briefers, please indicate
your name and news outlet.
The first speaker today is Sam Brownback,
the Ambassador-at-Large for International
Religious Freedom at the U.S. Department of
State.
And here today in the front row we’re welcoming
several survivors of religious persecution.
Thank you very much, Ambassador.
AMBASSADOR BROWNBACK: Thank you very much,
appreciate that.
I want to give you a brief overview of what
took place, if you weren’t watching on it,
and then I want to ask these survivors to
be coming up and to make a few brief comments,
each of them on their situation.
The United States hosted the first-ever event
at the UN around the topic of religious freedom.
To our knowledge, and in searching the records,
this has not been done at a General Assembly
ever before.
The United States did this because we think
it’s a critical topic at a critical time.
Religious freedom is going down around the
world, not increasing.
Religious persecution is increasing.
Pew Charitable Trusts has it at nearly 80
– over 80 percent of the world’s population
lives in a religiously restricted environment,
and that restriction can go from fairly minor
items all the way to death penalty for being
a minority faith.
And that is going on in the world today.
Level of Christian persecution in particular
is at an all-time high.
It’s never been higher than what it is today.
The Secretary of State spoke about an alliance
that we are pushing.
The United States is pushing an International
Religious Freedom Alliance.
This is an alliance of likeminded nations
to push on the topic of religious freedom,
to stand up against religious persecution
around the world in its various varieties.
And we’ve been meeting and talking with
nations, and the Secretary put forward a plea
there today to ask likeminded nations to come
join us.
And we believe we’ll be able to put together
a strong alliance to push for religious freedom.
This is not a new topic.
It is in the UN Charter Declaration of Human
Rights.
Religious freedom is there.
It’s not new to the United States.
This is in our founding documents.
It’s our First Amendment.
But we find as this right erodes and shrinks
around the world, generally other rights erode
too, and we believe that as this right will
expand around the world, other rights will
expand as well.
So we are serious about this.
We’re serious about the alliance that we
put forward here.
We hope to announce some initial members of
that coming up in the near future of who would
join in with this alliance.
And we really believe that this is the turning
point in the battle.
Secretary Guterres made very strong comments
in favor of religious freedom and against
persecution.
We’re delighted to have him participating
in this event as well.
And we look forward to his and other UN groups’
support for this push that’s in the UN founding
documents.
With that, I want to bring up, to start with,
Meriam Ibrahim, and just – I’m going to
ask different individuals – we got to get
us a mike where they could stand up and speak
briefly.
Meriam is a Sudanese Christian that was imprisoned
for her faith and had the death penalty put
on her and would have been executed but for
the fact that she was pregnant at the time,
and the world community engaged and she was
able to get out and get free.
It should never have happened to her in the
first place, but it did, and she’s here
to support this cause.
Meriam, you want to stand up and I think you
can – you want to – you can come up here
or you can stand up there, but you need to
turn around, if you would, so that they can
get a video of you.
MS IBRAHIM: Yeah.
Thank you, Ambassador Brownback.
I’m so grateful for this opportunity.
And this is very brave steps for us to be
here, and this issue of freedom of religion
to be brought up at the UN, it’s never happened
before.
And we need more attentions, need more work,
and we appreciate the U.S. effort on that.
When a mother sentenced to death or imprisoned
for 10 years, taken away from her family,
her husband, pastor imprisoned or killed because
he’s running (inaudible) or he’s preaching
the word of God, it’s something that we
shouldn’t be silent about it.
We should speak up.
We should work.
We should all come together, because when
it’s happening in any country, it’s affected
the other countries.
Like when it’s happening in Sudan or it’s
happening in Egypt, we all get affected, as
a Christian, Muslim, or Jewish – all the
religion.
So we appreciate the U.S. effort on that.
We’re hoping for more work to be done, and
at this time when the all world leader around
here at the UN, so we call them, every member
at the UN, at the United Nations, and the
international human rights law, they should
respect the freedom of religion hopefully
for everyone, all the cities and the countries.
And thank you, Mr. Brownback.
AMBASSADOR BROWNBACK: Next will be Nyima Lhamo.
Her uncle was one of the most highly revered
reincarnated lamas and a very prominent Tibetan
prisoner who died in a Chinese prison, and
she has since been an outstanding advocate
for the Tibetan people and Tibetan Buddhism.
Do you want to come up here?
Come on up.
MS LHAMO: (Via interpreter) I express my deep
gratitude to Ambassador Brownback and the
United States administration for this opportunity
of taking up the religious freedom issue here
at the United Nations and for my participation
here.
As Ambassador Brownback mentioned, I’m the
niece of a Tibetan Buddhist master Tenzin
Delek Rinpoche.
On account of the persecution he faced and
on account of the persecution my family faced
in Tibet, I had to eventually escape to
the
United States.
One thing that I’ve learned after coming
to the West and particularly after attending
today’s session in the United Nations is
that suffering is not just our families alone
or my communities alone; they’re suffering
all over the world, and religious freedom
is being violated all over the world.
And therefore, today I’ve learned that it’s
very important for everybody in the international
community to come together.
And so the United States has created this
very good opportunity space for the international
community to focus on the religious freedom,
of the issue, and we need to be united on
this issue.
And so that is basically my first point, that
we are not all here to speak about ourselves,
but – or speak about our situation alone,
but to look at what the international community
can together do on the issue of religious
freedom.
So in the case (inaudible) more than hundred
Tibetans have self-immolated solely because
they haven’t been given that opportunity,
that freedom, that right that is the fundamental
rights of all human beings.
And in the case of the Tibetans, it’s particularly
the religious freedom of the Tibetan people
that have been violated.
And that has led to the Chinese authorities
creating situation where even something like
the internet, which is taken for granted to
here in the West (inaudible) afford it or
being given to the people there.
For the Tibetan people, a very concrete symbol
of religious freedom would be how the Chinese
authorities behave or act towards his holiness,
the Dalai Lama.
The more than 100 Tibetans have self-immolated
have done so primarily because they have known
they wanted his holiness, the Dalai Lama,
to have the opportunity to return to Tibet.
But they don’t have that opportunity.
So therefore for us, if we
have 
to have
a benchmark for religious freedom of
the Tibetan people, it would be for the possibility
and ability of his holiness, the Dalai Lama,
to be able to go back to Tibet and to practice
his religion there.
I’m sorry I became a little bit emotional,
but this is what we have learned for the last
so many years.
And therefore with this sort of added, I would
like to conclude by again thanking you, Ambassador
Brownback, and the administration here for
organizing this opportunity.
And I would like everybody to be united in
the struggle for religious freedom.
AMBASSADOR BROWNBACK: Thank you very much.
Next is Irene Weiss.
Irene’s a survivor of the Holocaust, and
I think can speak – her life speak louder
than words about what happens if you don’t
address the issue of protecting your religious
minorities.
Irene.
MS WEISS: Thank you.
Thank you for listening to a little bit of
my history.
When I was 13 years old, my family was taken
out of our home and delivered to Auschwitz
where everybody was murdered upon arrival.
I had one sister who survived.
I have enormous empathy for the people here
today who are suffering.
After so many years of the Holocaust, I thought
there would never be discrimination against
religion and people who are different.
But here we are again.
What – this event is extremely important
for the people here because their stories
are being heard.
And hopefully things will get better for them
because of the publicity that this will provide.
One of our problems was in my time in Auschwitz
that we felt that we were abandoned, and for
years the killing went on, and nobody came
to help us.
So I’m very grateful for the event today
because I hope that this new generation of
suffering people are not forgotten and will
not be forgotten.
So thank you for this event very much.
AMBASSADOR BROWNBACK: Thank you, Irene.
She’s been an inspiration to many of us.
Dabrina Bet-Tamraz, her father was convicted
in Iran.
Daughter of a Christian pastor there, and
she was one that spoke at the event here with
the secretary-general and the President.
Dabrina.
I think these mikes you can use.
MS BET-TAMRAZ: This event today gives a voice
to many people who don’t have a voice, who
are today imprisoned, are waiting for their
trials, house arrest of the families who are
afraid to speak out.
What you are doing here gives a voice to many.
In Iran, Christians, alongside other minorities,
religious minorities, are being denied of
their freedom of religious faith.
My father is appealing a 10-years prison sentence.
My brother is appealing four months for just
going on a picnic.
My mother is appealing a 5-years prison sentence.
So far, until this very day, no Christians’
sentences has been dropped by the supreme
court.
It is foreseen that the lawyers have small
hopes – and if I say small hopes, I’m
being very positive – for my family’s
sentences to be dropped.
There are actually no hopes.
There are over 200 Christians since only two
years that we know of today serving lengthy
prison sentences or awaiting their trials.
Churches are being closed down.
Farsi-speaking people – Farsi-speaking Christians
are not allowed to go to churches.
Any church that has conducted ever a Farsi
service are shut down, including our church
and our sister churches.
The only church that are able to function
today are Catholic or Orthodox, who are also
very much restricted.
Christian children are denied of school, of
attending to university.
Boys cannot go to the army, cannot get a driving
license.
Either you have to convert to Islam, or you
are denied of a very small things such as
driving your car.
And the Christian persecution, as well as
the persecution for Baha’is, Sunni Muslims,
Sufis is increasingly in Iran.
And if you don’t speak about it, if you
don’t publicize this news, Iran will do
whatever it wants.
This is why it’s so important that I stand
here today.
Thank you for having me, and speak on these
truths, on these facts, and hopefully we will
be able to limit the persecution within Iran.
Thank you.
AMBASSADOR BROWNBACK: Thanks.
Jewher Ilham is a Uighur – a Chinese Uighur.
Her father was a Uighur scholar, internationally
known, and is still in prison.
And she spoke passionately and very clearly
today.
Jewher.
MS ILHAM: Hello, everyone.
My name is Jewher Ilham.
I’m the daughter of Ilham Tohti.
I’ve been speaking for my father’s, like,
his situation for about five years.
He was detained in 2014, and it’s been more
than five years.
But today I don’t want to only speak about
his case; I want to speak for my people, the
Uighurs.
Many of you may know we have 1 to 3 million
people that are held in concentration camps.
Unfortunately, we don’t have the exact numbers
because there is no way to be known, the exact
numbers.
And so far I have to say it’s fortunate
that U.S.
Government has been doing a lot for and speaking
up very often for Uighurs’ cause, and I
would urge, encourage the other countries
can do the same.
Because of course, having U.S., one of the
most powerful country in the world, standing
up for our people will be very, very helpful
and important, but at this time we all – everyone
in this world – need to be united, because
this is not only about one person.
It’s not only about a group of people.
It’s about human, it’s a humanitarian
crisis.
And this is the largest humanitarian crisis
since the World War II, and we don’t want
the same thing happen again.
We all know that was a tragedy, that that
was tragic, and I hope this UNGA event could
help the world realize it is very important,
it could encourage this – the world to take
actions to help the Uighurs, to help my father,
and hope all the ones who have been held for
a wrong reason, that they can go back home
freely and they will be able to practice their
religion or to speak the language that they
want to speak, dress the way they want to,
dress – eat the food that they want to eat,
behave the way they want to behave freely.
And thank you very much today, and I hope
you can tell your fellow – your families,
your friends, your people and your countries,
your government to take actions.
Thank you very much.
AMBASSADOR BROWNBACK: Thank you.
Rabbi Faiz Algaradi is among the last members
of the Jewish community in Yemen; was persecuted
for his faith, fled, and he was one that spoke
here today as well.
Rabbi, please come forward.
RABBI ALGARADI: Yeah, hi.
Hi, everyone.
And I sent some letters to the U.S. officials,
and today I get my speech for two or three
minutes, and we worked in the ministerial
for a week —
AMBASSADOR BROWNBACK: It’s not – not hearing
– I can’t hear you very well —
RABBI ALGARADI: Yeah.
And we were in the ministerial for four days,
and we have to know what is the message we
can deliver for every character or official
in any country in the world.
There’s an idiom that said “make your
problem my problem.”
So I think that America now, especially the
United States, feel the problems of other
countries its problem.
I ask every country, please, make your own
people problem your own problem and help them.
You are the best key – you are the best
key – to help your people.
I was in Yemen, and I faced a lot of problems,
even though I was – I hold a government
position.
Whenever people try to help me, even the – I
think it’s called the human watch – and
this story was – depressed me a lot.
I think it’s good to share it to you.
I don’t know if it’s possible or not,
but I will share it.
Many people told me not to share it, but I
want to share it.
I was rabbi for 400 people.
There was a lot of (inaudible), but when I
faced problems, they told me, “You are the
rabbi, you have to convert to Islam because
this will help us to convert your community.”
I said, “That’s a problem.
I know the history in Yemen – I was born
here – what happened here.”
I went to high officials.
They said, “Maybe you go to the ministry
of human rights.”
I went there.
The first person I met, he said, “What do
you want here?”
I said, “I think I need help from you.”
He said, “Why?”
I said, “Because this is the office of human
rights.”
He said, “Yes, but you are not human, you
are a Jewish.”
This was the message.
I plead the Yemeni Government that they try
to help, but there is more people in charge,
more than the government, as we see now.
Yemen lost – the Yemeni Government lost
one-third of its land.
It’s in the hand of Houthis.
So I don’t know if I can ask the Yemeni
Government, because they need the help.
How to protect the government?
And we know that the Yemeni former president
was killed.
I know that he was a fighter for human rights,
and I supported him in Yemen, but unfortunately
we see that he is not alive, and this shows
a bad face of Yemen.
So I ask the – here is the message.
It will go back to the United Nations: Please
help Yemen to rebuild the government and help
everyone to get its human rights.
Today not just Jewish are abused in Yemen;
also officials, governors, ministers are abused
– I mean Muslims, not Jewish.
So this is terrible, and I pray for the safety
of Yemen, for the peace of Yemen, for the
peace of Israel, for the peace of every land
in the world.
Thank you very much.
AMBASSADOR BROWNBACK: Thank you, Rabbi.
Thank you very much.
RABBI ALGARADI: Thank you.
AMBASSADOR ALGARADI: Finally, we have Andrew
Brunson.
Andrew was put in a Turkish prison for two
years.
President of the United States fought hard
to get him out.
He’s here and he’s been one of the key
spokespeople for religious freedom around
the world.
Andrew.
MR BRUNSON: So I was arrested and imprisoned
by the Turkish Government.
I had spent a number of years in Turkey working
in churches, and I think that’s why they
imprisoned me.
My special interest here is obviously I suffered
from religious persecution; the United Nations
Working Group on Arbitrary Detention determined
that – when they examined my case that I
was held for – well, because of my nationality,
to use me as a bargaining chip, but also because
of religious persecution.
My special interest – I love Turks.
I love Turkey.
I love Muslims, and I would like to see them
have freedom of choice.
In the United States we have – I think President
Erdogan – I read recently – recently spent
$100 million – Turkey did – constructing
a large mosque near Washington D.C., and we
have temples, mosques; we have all kinds of
religions in the States, and people are free
to practice them.
And we take it for granted in the West often
that that’s the way that most of history
has been and that that’s the way most of
the world is, and it’s simply not the case.
Freedom of religion is something that has
– we have seen very rarely in history and
only in a few places, but it’s very important
because wherever you have freedom of religion,
you find that the society is free in many
other ways as well.
Where you don’t have religious freedom,
there is often repression.
So I would love to see Muslims who – my
wife and I spent years among Muslims.
We would love to see them have freedom to
choose what they want to believe, and if they
want to follow Islam, that’s fine, and if
they want to do – believe some other way,
to have that freedom as well.
I wonder if there are any questions that you
would like to ask.
AMBASSADOR BROWNBACK: Yeah, please, go ahead.
For myself, or for anybody here.
Please.
MODERATOR: Oh, okay.
Give me a moment.
We’ll get you the microphone.
If anyone has any questions, yes, we’ll
come around.
Please, again —
MR BRUNSON: If you have anything for me, you
can ask, and then I’ll sit down, and then
– or should I just sit down?
MODERATOR: I think maybe just sit down and
we’ll ask each person to stand as they’re
addressed, if that’s all right.
And if you have a question, please do identify
yourself and your outlet.
Thank you.
QUESTION: Thank you.
My name’s Humeyra Pamuk.
I’m from Reuters.
I’d like to ask you about the concrete steps
that U.S. is thinking about taking when it
comes to China’s treatment of the Uighurs.
We know that you’ve been weighing on how
exactly to sort of address them or like confront
them, and we know that Deputy Sullivan is
holding an event tomorrow, but beyond that,
we haven’t heard President Trump talk about
Uighurs specifically.
Is this something that’s going to happen?
If you can just flesh out a little bit about
your plans of how to address this, that would
be super appreciated.
Thank you.
AMBASSADOR BROWNBACK: Yeah, it’s a key question.
Obviously, there are trade negotiations that
are going on right now, and at the same time
there’s these discussions that are taking
place about religious persecution, human rights,
and security issues.
These are generally following separate tracks
of what’s taking place.
The President met with Ilham in the White
House in the Oval Office in July along with
– and we’ll be putting forward a Uighur
seminar tomorrow – the Deputy Secretary,
as you noted.
That’s proceeding and moving forward.
The longer these things go without resolution,
the more likely there will be other actions
that follow.
We don’t preview sanctions or other actions
that will take place, but if China continues
to conduct this very – this war on faith,
this will be something that will continue
to attract a great deal of interest from the
United States, concern, and action as this
continues – if this continues on forward.
We call on the Chinese Communist Party and
the government to allow the people of China
to freely practice their faith that they choose.
QUESTION: Thank you very much.
My name is Alex Rauflogu of Turan News Agency.
I just wanted to take it from where Meriam
Ibrahim just left a couple minutes ago, that
what happens in one country could affect another
country.
So speaking of Uighurs, do you have any concerns
that’s what’s happening in China towards
Uighurs, Muslims, and Christians could affect
other countries, like in Central Asia?
We have seen reports about in Tashkent, for
instance, this forced beard shaving incident
that took place recently.
Also my second question is about Azerbaijan,
if you don’t mind, that there is a list
of political prisoners, and local NGOs claim
that 68 individuals are imprisoned in connection
with their religious activities.
So is this something that you see from the
broader picture that what’s happening in
countries like China, Turkey impacts other
countries as well?
And one more question, if you don’t mind.
The President announced today 25 million aid.
If I’m not mistaken, it’s about political
religious freedom aid.
Can you explain to us in terms of logistics
and perhaps priorities how you’re going
to choose those countries or who is going
to get that aid?
Thank you very much.
AMBASSADOR BROWNBACK: We hope that our stance
by the United States and now what we’re
encouraging this International Religious Freedom
Alliance will affect all the nations.
Almost every nation signed on with the UN
Declaration of Human Rights, and it declares
it grants religious freedom.
But there’s been nobody pushing on it.
Nobody has asserted that this is something
that should be pressed for, fought for.
And the United States is willing to fight
for this, and we hope that by doing that – whether
it’s with China or others – that that
will have impact in other places.
And our simple request is very simple and
very clear: We believe that all people everywhere
should have freedom of religion all the time.
And this is in the UN Charter and it’s in
most countries’ constitutions.
So we do hope that our standing up and pushing,
and then more hopefully forcefully in the
future, this Alliance of International Religious
Freedom nations will push for this that both
the Secretary of State and the President talked
about.
The aid itself is targeted towards religious
institutions and protecting religious institutions
and artifacts.
Later, the 1st of October, I’ll be one of
– co-hosting a conference in Morocco where
we’ll be talking about the preservation
of religious heritage sites.
And there are a number of these that are getting
destroyed, have become run down in various
countries, and we want to see them protected,
and also we want to see better security at
religious institutions, where we see a lot
of them destroyed around the world, people
killed at these houses of worship.
That’s an offer.
That’s us putting forward some resources
to help in both that preservation and protection
area for religious facilities.
I don’t know how you guys want to call them
out there.
QUESTION: Hi, Ambassador.
My name is Rong Shi, a reporter with the Voice
of America Mandarin Service.
Because of traffic I came late.
Probably you already talked about something
that my question regards.
Can you tell me how the U.S.
Government, too, brought the issue that human
rights crisis in Xinjian to this period of
the UN Assembly, how it ended in the New York?
What kind of activity, what kind of events,
will be held during this period?
Give me a general introduction.
AMBASSADOR BROWNBACK: Yeah.
Well, the first one was this morning with
the President of the United States, Vice President,
Secretary of State, secretary-general of the
UN, talking about religious freedom and our
International Religious Freedom Alliance.
That’s the signature presidential event
of this UN, and the President used it to push
the issue of religious freedom.
It’s the first time a member-state has held
a meeting here and called a gathering during
the UN General Assembly on the issue of religious
freedom, which is amazing and tragic in and
of itself that it’s taken this long for
somebody to stand up and say that something
needs to happen in this.
The second is this International Religious
Freedom Alliance that the Secretary of State
announced at our ministerial on religious
freedom that he asked nations to join here.
This will be the most significant human rights
new effort push in a generation taking place,
because we’ve had so much decline in human
rights and religious freedom in particular,
and we’re going to call likeminded nations
together and ask them to join this alliance
and push on the issue of religious freedom
and against religious persecution around the
world.
We want to see the iron curtain on religious
persecution come down.
We want it now.
Those are the big pushes.
Tomorrow the State Department will also host
– Deputy Secretary Sullivan an issue specifically
on the Xinjiang crisis, and we’ll be doing
that with a number of other nations who will
co-host with us on that topic as well.
And then on Wednesday there’ll be a meeting
with business leaders on the topic of religious
freedom that the United States is cohosting
with others as well.
So that’s kind of the panoply of events
that we’ll be putting forward at the U.S.*
General Assembly this year.
Yeah.
QUESTION: Thank you.
From your remarks that you made earlier, it
appears to me that freedom of religion takes
a back seat, and you acknowledged that.
But what could be done to revive or to bolster
the strength of people who are fighting for
freedom of religion?
Also, you again mentioned that economics takes
precedence over other issues, and that’s
also the problem of human rights.
So what could be done to remedy the situation?
Thank you.
AMBASSADOR BROWNBACK: Well, I guess I would
just disagree with your premise that the economics
is taking precedent over this.
The President led his signature event at the
UN on religious freedom.
This was his signature event.
He did it today.
It had the secretary-general there, and we’re
going to push on this topic.
It is a sad thing that it hasn’t been pushed
on before, but it’s being pushed on now.
And we’re going to push hard on this topic,
and we call on other nations to join us and
this alliance to push for religious freedom
and against religious persecution, and we
hope many nations will – will do that.
MODERATOR: We have time for just one more
question.
QUESTION: Thank you, Ambassador.
Ben Marks with NHK, Japan Broadcasting.
During UNGA, have you asked to have any meetings
with China or other countries that are persecuting
religious freedom to try and talk to them
directly about your concerns you have?
And did you get any response from them, if
you did?
AMBASSADOR BROWNBACK: This is my third time
here at the UN on religious freedom and religious
persecution issues.
Each of the times we’ve mentioned China,
the last two times there have been Chinese
individuals at the meeting.
One was a Security Council forum that they
hosted, and before then was a religious freedom
event.
It wasn’t the General Assembly, obviously.
Each time, the Chinese official denied what
was taking place in Xinjiang, that there was
anything happening there, said it was training
camps, education facilities.
And I asked then – I said, “If they’re
education facilities, what about all the people’s
names that I have that are missing?
Will you help me find them?
Will you tell me where they are?”
And I’ve gotten no response.
I’d be happy to meet with Chinese officials
about this and have them honestly address
what the situation is.
Unfortunately, it’s not just the Uighurs.
It’s also the Tibetan Buddhists, as you’ve
heard.
It’s Falun Gong – the organ harvesting
issue that the Chinese still will not come
forth about.
It’s house church, Christian house church
and the persecution that’s taking place
there.
It’s a war on faith.
And I went to Hong Kong and spoke about this
there, and I said this – they’re conducting
a war on faith.
It’s a war they will not win.
MODERATOR: Thank you so much.
This concludes our briefing for today.
The transcript will be posted to the Foreign
Press Center’s website, fpc.state.gov.
We thank you all for your attendance and thank
you, Ambassador Brownback.
