News from June 2020
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The 2011 Constitutional Declaration functions as the interim constitution and states that Islam is the state religion and sharia the principal source of legislation. The activities of non-Muslims remained curtailed by legal prohibitions on the distribution or publication of information aimed at changing...
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitution states that the country is secular, prohibits religious discrimination, provides for freedom of religion, bans the use of religion for political ends, and stipulates impositions on freedom of conscience stemming from “religious fanaticism" shall be punishable by law. In May the government...
By DOL Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
News Release: (Washington, D.C.) - Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, emphasized the need to address growing inequity in our education system due to COVID-19 by ensuring K-12 schools deliver high quality services to all students-whether schools open physically, remotely, or a hybrid of both.
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitution provides for freedom of conscience and religious belief and practice, including worship. It prohibits discrimination based on religion. Laws prohibit actions that incite religious hatred and violence. Prime Minister Keith Rowley issued public messages for Easter, Ramadan, and Diwali...
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitution states freedom of religious conscience is inviolable and provides for freedom of worship, with some restrictions. It recognizes Greek Orthodoxy as the “prevailing religion." On June 11, the parliament passed legislation amending the penal code to remove laws criminalizing malicious blasphemy ...
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitution specifies Islam is the state religion and defines the national identity as being based on a single religion - Sunni Islam - but proclaims equality of rights and obligations for all, regardless of religious belief. The constitution also specifies that the principles and rules to regulate...
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: Reports on Hong Kong, Macau, Tibet, and Xinjiang are appended at the end of this report.
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitution states no law may be passed to establish a state religion or impair the free exercise of religion. The government may provide assistance to religiously affiliated schools for nonreligious purposes. Observers stated Kosrae State government leaders expressed differing opinions regarding...
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitution provides for the freedom of religious choice, as long as doing so does not impinge on the rights of others or the national interest. It prohibits religious discrimination, establishment of a state religion, and formation of political parties based on religious affiliation. In separate...
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitution defines the country as a secular state and provides for freedom of religion. The Committee for Religious Affairs (CRA), part of the Ministry of Information and Social Development (MISD), is responsible for religious issues. According to local and international observers, authorities...
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitutions of the union government and of the semiautonomous government in Zanzibar both prohibit religious discrimination and provide for freedom of religious choice. Since independence, the country has been governed by alternating Christian and Muslim presidents. Twenty-two members of the Association...
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitution provides for freedom of conscience and religious worship, and prohibits religious discrimination. The constitution establishes Roman Catholicism as the state religion and mandates Catholic religious teaching in state schools, from which students may opt out. In May parliament enacted ...
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitution provides citizens with “the right and freedom to believe or not to believe in religion." The government officially recognizes four religions: Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, and the Baha’i Faith. Decree 315, issued in 2016 with the stated intent of clarifying rules for religious practice,...
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitution states that while the official religion is the Shafi’i School of Islam, all other religions may be practiced “in peace and harmony." In April the government implemented the second and third phases of the Sharia Penal Code (SPC), which includes offenses punishable by corporal and capital...
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitution provides for freedom of religion and states all persons are equal before the law. It prohibits discrimination based on religion. The constitution grants automatic official recognition to the Roman Catholic Church and states other religious groups may also apply for official recognition...
By Homeland Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
News Release: LOS ANGELES - A Glendale man pleaded guilty today to a federal fraud charge for opening more than a dozen bank accounts, knowing that they would be used to launder fraudulently obtained tax refunds obtained by filing tax returns under stolen identities.
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitution provides for freedom of religion, including the freedom of individuals to change their religion, and senior government officials publicly defended the right of religious freedom. Religious organizations may register as nonprofit religious institutions with the government or register...
By DOJ Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
News Release: Hattiesburg, Miss. - Brothers Victor Smith, 43, and Michael Smith, 42, of Hattiesburg, were sentenced today for possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute and possession of stolen firearms, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst, Special Agent in Charge Kurt Thielhorn with the Bureau of Alcohol...
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitution prohibits religious discrimination and grants individuals freedom of religion in conformity with the law. The law criminalizes abuses against religious freedom. Notwithstanding these legal protections for religious freedom, widespread insecurity stifled full implementation of laws protecting...
By State Newswire | Jun 10, 2020
Release: The constitution prohibits discrimination based on religion; provides for freedom of belief, religion, and worship; and states no one “shall be obligated by coercive measures to declare his or her ideology or beliefs." According to numerous press reports, President Daniel Ortega and Vice President Rosario...
