Bishops urge Congress, Obama to give higher priority to religious freedom
November 21, 2011
Testifying on behalf of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops before a US House subcommittee, Bishop Ricardo Ramirez of Las Cruces urged Congress and the Obama administration “to place a higher priority on religious freedom and the role that it plays in foreign policy.”
“The annual reports on religious freedom prepared by the Department of State and by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom are a start but there is too little public evidence that protection of religious freedom is factored into major bilateral foreign policy decisions on a day-to-day basis,” he added. “The President and the Secretary of State should consider more closely Presidential actions that might be applied to those states where particularly severe violations of religion freedom occur.”
Bishop Ramirez also called upon Congress to reauthorize the US Commission on International Religious Freedom.
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Further information:
- In Congressional Testimony, Bishop Ramirez Urges Greater Measures to Ensure International Religious Freedom (USCCB)
- Full text (USCCB)
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