Uzbekistan, for the first time in 13 years, is not a country of particular concern - Michael Pompeo
25/06/2019 09:17
Uzbekistan, for the first time in 13 years, is not a country of particular concern - Michael Pompeo
25/06/2019 09:17
Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 21 June 2019, the US State Department published the next report on religious freedom for 2018, which assesses the state of freedom of religion in the world.
The document is published annually and, on its basis, the US Secretary of State makes a decision to classify one or another state as a list of "countries of particular concern." In December 2018, the head of the State Department, by his decision, officially brought Uzbekistan out of this category, thereby recognizing the country’s significant progress in ensuring religious freedoms.
In presenting the report, Secretary of State Michael Pompeo stressed the priority importance of ensuring religious freedoms in the US foreign policy agenda and gave an assessment of the situation in a number of countries.
“I will start with good news. Much work remains to be done in Uzbekistan, but for the first time in 13 years, it is no longer defined as a country of particular concern,” Michael Pompeo said.
The US foreign minister also noted the adoption of a “Road Map” in Uzbekistan to implement the recommendations of the UN special envoy on freedom of religion or belief Ahmed Shahid, the release of 1,500 prisoners convicted on religious grounds, and their free movement, removing 16,000 people from lists of people involved in extremist religious movements.
The Secretary of State expressed hope for further legal reform of the registration procedures for religious organizations and ensuring free attendance of mosques by children with their parents.
As the Embassy of Uzbekistan to the United States notes, the Uzbek-American cooperation in ensuring religious freedoms is constructive and dynamic.
In July 2018, Uzbekistan was first represented at the Ministerial Conference on the Promotion of Religious Freedoms. Subsequently, our country was visited by a delegation led by Ambassador on Special Assignments Sam Brownback, who had the opportunity to see the adoption of practical measures to ensure religious freedom, improve and simplify existing standards, including the development of a new draft law “On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations”, the release of thousands of people convicted of religious crimes, as well as the creation of institutional mechanisms to promote enlightened Islam and the development of religious education.
A series of joint seminars on countering religious extremism and radicalization is held in Uzbekistan with the participation of American experts. In the near future, in conjunction with the United States Institute for Peace (USIP), it is planned to hold a regular seminar in the International Scientific Research Center. Imam al-Bukhari, which has become a successful platform for building up educational and research potential in the field of promoting religious pluralism and preventing radicalization.
At the end of May of this year, for the first time in the history of bilateral relations, Washington, together with the official delegation, visited the mufti of Uzbekistan, Usmankhon Alimov, who took part in an interfaith iftar and a roundtable on the issues of ensuring freedom of religion in our country, and held a number of meetings with relevant departments USA.
A group of pastors, rabbis and imams from various US states is scheduled to visit Uzbekistan in November for interfaith dialogue.
According to the Embassy of Uzbekistan, at the invitation of the US State Department, the Uzbek delegation headed by Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov will take part in the second Ministerial Conference on the Promotion of Religious Freedoms to be held July 18 in Washington DC.
$ 1 | 12697.00 | 0.000% |
1 | 13547.70 | 0.000% |
₽ 1 | 135.05 | 0.000% |