Indian Minority Foundation Criticizes USCIRF Report on Religious Freedom
The Indian Minority Foundation (IMF) has strongly condemned the report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) on international religious freedom. The IMF stated that this ‘mischaracterization’ undermines USCIRF’s credibility and understanding of India’s religious freedom landscape.
IMF strongly condemns the USCIRF’S International Religious freedom report. USCIRF’s efforts to label India alongside authoritarian regimes like Afghanistan, Cuba, North Korea, Russia, and China overlook India’s democratic framework, vibrant civil society, and pluralistic history.
The IMF criticized USCIRF’s attempt to compare India with countries like Afghanistan, Cuba, North Korea, Russia, and China, highlighting the misdirected nature of its activism. The IMF emphasized that India, the world’s largest democracy, has a robust constitutional framework, a vibrant civil society, and a long history of pluralism.
The IMF also pointed out that the flawed comparisons with non-democracies highlight USCIRF’s failure to understand the nuanced reality of India’s religious freedom landscape and discredit genuine concerns about human rights violations globally.
The IMF claimed that the USCIRF’s report appears to be influenced by NGOs and activists affected by regulations unrelated to religion or religious identity. The IMF accused the USCIRF of mixing up the secular issue of strict monitoring of foreign funding to NGOs and activists under FCRA regulations with allegations of violence against minorities.
The IMF further stated that the USCIRF ‘suffers from anti-India bias’ and noted that the US State Department has consistently refused to endorse USCIRF’s designation of India as a ‘country of particular concern’ since 2020. This indicates a disconnect between USCIRF’s claims and the State Department’s understanding of India’s situation.
The IMF also mentioned that the USCIRF ‘appears to operate with a magnifying lens, searching for violations’ across the globe while ‘losing sight of the bigger picture of harmony and coexistence in many societies.’ The IMF referred to the report as a ‘case of American Diplomacy’ making a mistake reminiscent of the early years of the Second World War when the fighter aircraft of the allied forces failed to tell ‘friend’ from ‘foe.’
