President George W. Bush
Attention: Ambassador Shirin R. Tahir-Kheli, National Security Council
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington D.C. 20500
Fax: + 1 202-456-2461

Dear President Bush,

The International League for Human Rights, a non-governmental organization based in New York with special consultative status with the UN ECOSOC, is deeply concerned about the severe and increasing restrictions on freedom of religion and the persecution of non-traditional religious minorities in Turkmenistan. As one of the most repressive and isolated countries in the world, Turkmenistan has consistently violated international norms on religious freedom to which it is a party. Having already sponsored two UN resolutions condemning Turkmenistan's flagrant human rights abuses, including its restrictions on religious freedom, the U.S. government should further express its concern by designating Turkmenistan as a "Country of Particular Concern" (CPC) under the International Religious Freedom Act.

Since 1997 Turkmenistan has outlawed all faiths except for Sunni Islam and the Russian Orthodox Church. According to Section 402 (b)(1)(A) & C of the U.S. International Religious Freedom Act, a country can be given CPC status if it "has engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom." Evidence gathered by local and international human rights groups and by the U.S. State Department in its annual International Religious Freedom Report last year, testifies very clearly of Turkmenistan's blatant attack on all forms of religious freedom, association and expression.

A draconian new law on religion, signed by President Saparmurat Niyazov in October 2003, declares illegal all unregistered religious activities. Forced to gather and worship in secrecy, religious minorities are also threatened by a new amendment in the country's Criminal Code, which prescribes penalties of up to a year of "corrective labor" for breaking this law. Harassment and attacks against these religious minority groups have escalated over the past year. Particularly vulnerable have been various Protestant evangelical and Muslim Shia groups.

In an effort to force Turkmenistan to adopt reform measures and to hold the government accountable to its violation of international human rights laws, the State Department should consider recommending the US Commission on International Religious Freedom to assign Turkmenistan CPC status.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Louise Kantrow
Executive Director