Washington D.C., Nov 8, 2005 / 22:00 pm
China and Vietnam have been renamed to the U.S. government’s list of countries designated as Countries of Particular Concern due to their policies that deny citizens religious freedom and human rights.
The designation was indicated in the State Department's 2005 International Religious Freedom Report, which was released by Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice.
Congressman Chris Smith (R—NJ), chairman of the Committee on Africa, Global Human Rights and International Operations, commended the Bush administration for the report.
"By forthrightly naming the countries that systematically and egregiously violate the right to religious freedom, no matter friend or foe, we can begin to develop solutions that will guarantee the right to religious freedom to all people as enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” he said.