Nury Turkel Speaks at the International Religious Freedom Roundtable
August 13, 2018
On July 23rd, the International Religious Freedom Roundtable held an event on Capitol Hill highlighting the deteriorating situation facing religious believers in China entitled “Religious Persecution in China.” Co-sponsored by UHRP, it was among the events held on the sidelines of the State Department’s Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom, which took place July 23rd to 26th in Washington, D.C. The IRF Roundtable underscored the importance of drawing attention to the Chinese government’s increasingly repressive policies.
At the Roundtable, UHRP’s Chairman of the Board Nury Turkel discussed the Chinese government’s ongoing campaign of repression against the Uyghurs. Uyghurs face some of the most restrictive religious freedom conditions in China, and the current campaign is aimed at religion as an important expression of their ethnic identity. Religious expression and sentiments is one of the main targets of the re-education campaign and has resulted in many Uyghurs disappearing into camps. Mr. Turkel’s remarks can be viewed in full below:
The IRF Roundtable’s goals are to increase religious freedom as a foreign and national security policy priority through connecting civil society and governmental organizations and “reverse the rising tide of restrictions on religious freedom that has been spreading across the world.” The IRF Roundtable is encouraging U.S. citizens to voice their support for H.Res.319 – Reaffirming the commitment of the United States to promoting religious freedom globally, and for other purposes.