News from May 2021
By State Newswire | May 12, 2021
Release: On behalf of Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken, the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs is soliciting public input for recommendations for this year’s Secretary of State’s Award for Corporate Excellence (ACE). Now in its 22nd year, the ACE honors U.S. companies demonstrating...
By Commerce Newswire | May 12, 2021
News Release: WASHINGTON-Ranking Member James Comer (R-Ky.) opened today’s House Committee on Oversight and Reform hearing by condemning the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and calling for those who committed crimes and violence to be held accountable.
By DOJ Newswire | May 12, 2021
News Release: PROVIDENCE - A Hopkinton man arrested and charged in Rhode Island state court in July 2020 on charges that he allegedly arranged online to meet with a 14-year-old girl to engage in sexual intercourse, and arrested again in October 2020 after a Rhode Island State Police Internet Crimes Against Children...
By State Newswire | May 12, 2021
Release: The constitution provides for freedom of religion or belief and separation of government and religion. Throughout the year, the government consulted with international legal scholars regarding draft updates to the law on religion, and on August 6, it officially requested a joint opinion from the Organization...
By State Newswire | May 12, 2021
Release: The constitution provides for freedom of religion and prohibits discrimination based on religion or traditional belief. The preamble to the constitution refers to “traditional Melanesian values, faith in God, and Christian principles," but there is no state religion. On penalty of a fine, the law requires...
By State Newswire | May 12, 2021
Release: The transitional constitution provides for separation of religion and state, prohibits religious discrimination, and provides religious groups freedom to worship and assemble, organize themselves, teach, own property, receive financial contributions, communicate and issue publications on religious matters, and establish charitable institutions. In Juba, police detained a local religious leader in April for flouting COVID-19 social distancing regulations.
By USDA Newswire | May 12, 2021
News Release: This Secretarial natural disaster designation allows the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) to extend much-needed emergency credit to producers recovering from natural disasters through emergency loans. Emergency loans can be used to meet various recovery needs including...
By State Newswire | May 12, 2021
Release: The constitution provides for freedom of religion, including the right to practice one’s religious beliefs and express one’s religious opinions in public, and prohibits compulsory participation in religious services or observance of religious groups’ days of rest. In February, the country’s highest court...
By State Newswire | May 12, 2021
Release: The constitution protects “the freedom to practice one’s religion alone or in the company of others" and prohibits discrimination based on religion. In March, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) declined to hear the case of two midwives who said the regional hospitals, and by extension the state ...
By State Newswire | May 12, 2021
Release: The constitution states Buddhism is the state religion, and it is promoted by the government through holiday observances, religious training, Buddhist instruction in public schools, and financial support to Buddhist institutions. The law provides for freedom of belief and religious worship, provided...
By State Newswire | May 12, 2021
Release: The constitution provides for freedom of religion and prohibits discrimination based on religion. On Feb. 12, in response to a 2019 High Court ruling that the country’s prohibition of the cultivation and possession of cannabis was unconstitutional and an infringement on the freedom of conscience...
By DOJ Newswire | May 12, 2021
News Release: Jackson, Miss. - A Philadelphia man was sentenced today to 189 months in federal prison for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca of the Southern District of Mississippi and Jack P. Stanton, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations’ New Orleans Field Office.
By State Newswire | May 12, 2021
Release: The constitution recognizes Buddhism as the state’s “spiritual heritage," provides for freedom of religion, and bans discrimination based on religious belief. The constitution states religious institutions and personalities shall remain “above politics." The law restricts religious speech promoting enmity...
By State Newswire | May 12, 2021
Release: MR ICE: Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for joining us for today’s on-the-record briefing on the 2020 International Religious Freedom Report, which Secretary Blinken presented just about an hour and a half ago here at the State Department.
By DOJ Newswire | May 12, 2021
News Release: TRENTON, N.J. - Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Jersey Division Susan A. Gibson and Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey Rachael A. Honig announced two men have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a drug trafficking organization that sold illegal drugs in Mercer County, New Jersey, and in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
By State Newswire | May 12, 2021
Release: The constitution prohibits religious discrimination and stipulates there shall be no state religion. It provides for freedom of belief, the right to practice and promote any religion, and to belong to and participate in the practices of any religious organization in a manner consistent with the constitution.
By State Newswire | May 12, 2021
Release: The constitution guarantees the freedom of religion, including the right to change one’s religion; forbids the establishment of a state religion; guarantees equality for all religious groups; and prohibits incitement of religious hatred. On May 24, the Ministry of Justice resolved the contested leadership ...
By DOJ Newswire | May 12, 2021
News Release: SAN DIEGO -A federal grand jury indictment was unsealed in San Diego today against alleged Mexican drug cartel leader Jesus Gonzalez Penuelas in connection with suspected heroin and fentanyl trafficking. Penuelas was also the target of sanctions imposed today by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
By Homeland Newswire | May 12, 2021
News Release: WASHINGTON, DC - Today, U.S. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH), Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Chris Murphy (D-CT), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) applauded the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee...
By State Newswire | May 12, 2021
Release: The constitution establishes a secular state and provides for freedom of religious thought, expression, and practice. All religious groups must register with the government. Government officials at the department and municipal levels have the authority to issue orders suspending certain types of religious...
