Proposed Legislative Agenda for 2024 International Religious Freedom Summit
1) H. Res. 82 — Expressing the sense of Congress regarding the need to designate Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern for engaging in and tolerating systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom, the need to appoint a Special Envoy for Nigeria and the Lake Chad region, and for other purposes (Already introduced). View.
2) H.R. 5686 — Preventing Ethnic Cleansing and Atrocities in Nagorno-Karabakh Act of 2023 (Already introduced). View.
3) The Protecting Holy Sites Act of 2023 — Introducing a Congressional bill on the preservation of religious cultural heritage for diverse holy sites and communities. (Draft in progress: Congressman French Hill will likely introduce).
4) USCIRF Reauthorization — A simple two-sentence bill, already drafted, calling for USCIRF to be reauthorized for the next two years (To be introduced before Summit. Congressmen Smith, Cuellar, and Bilirakis have agreed, and Congresswoman Eshoo will likely round out the list).
5) NSC Special IRF Advisor — Bipartisan, bicameral congressional letter calling on the Biden Administration, specifically the President, to appoint a qualified individual to serve on the National Security Council as Special Advisor to the President on International Religious Freedom. (Draft in progress).
6) Rescuing Afghan Religious Minorities in Pakistan — Bipartisan, bicameral congressional letter on challenges related to religious minorities from Afghanistan facing persecution by the Taliban who are stuck in Pakistan and face imminent deportation to Afghanistan. (Draft in progress).
7) Join Tom Lantos Commission on Human Rights (Draft in progress, and staff recruitment event is being organized).
Third Annual “In Solidarity with the Persecuted: A Special Briefing for U.S. Congress Members and Staff”
Side Event
January 30, 2023 / 4:30-5:30 pm
Rayburn House Office Building 2044-2045
The briefing followed by Joint Reception by IRF Summit 2023 and IRF Secretariat
To mark the IRF Summit—and as a culmination to Congressional Advocacy Day—we will once again hold a short program on Capitol Hill that will feature 2-3-minute testimonials of international religious freedom community leaders representing persecuted faith communities speaking on behalf of each other. We expect to hear from members of Congress during the event. The side event will feature remarks and observations by Co-Chairs Dr. Katrina Lantos Swett and Sam Brownback.
(limited seating capacity)
