Human Rights and Religious Freedom – The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community

Hearing
Date:
Location:
2255 Rayburn House Office Building

Announcement

In cooperation with The Congressional Ahmadiyya Muslim Caucus

Please join the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission for a briefing on the human rights and religious freedom issues facing the Ahmadiyya Muslim community.

The Ahmadiyya movement has 10 to 20 million followers worldwide. The movement originated in northern India in the late 19th century with Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, who believed he was chosen by Allah to renew Islam. Ahmadis stress non-violence, the tolerance of other faiths, and place a high priority on the building of mosques, schools and hospitals.

Between one half and four million Ahmadis live in Pakistan, where they have been declared non-Muslim in the Constitution and face legal and societal discrimination and violence from non-state actors. Ahmadis are among the most common defendants charged in criminal cases of blasphemy, which can carry the death penalty, and authorities in Punjab have targeted Ahmadis under Pakistan’s anti-terrorism laws. Attacks committed against them by mobs and militant groups often take place with impunity.

In addition to Pakistan, Ahmadis have faced persecution in other countries, including Algeria and Indonesia. Ahmadi leaders in Algeria were arrested and imprisoned in 2017, and the community continues to face stigmatization in the press, and harassment and threats of arrest by police. Ahmadis in Indonesia have been declared “non-Islamic, deviant and misled” by national Islamic authorities, and face legal restrictions and mob attacks.

Panelists will discuss the human rights situation of Ahmadis in Pakistan and elsewhere, and offer recommendations for how Congress can advocate on their behalf.

This briefing will be open to Members of Congress, congressional staff, the interested public, and the media. For any questions, please contact Kimberly Stanton at 202-225-3599 or Kimberly.Stanton@mail.house.gov (for Rep. McGovern) or Jamie Staley at 202-226-1516 or Jamie.Staley@mail.house.gov (for Rep. Hultgren).

Hosted by: 

James P. McGovern
Member of Congress
Co-Chair, TLHRC
Randy Hultgren
Member of Congress
Co-Chair, TLHRC
Witnesses

Opening Remarks

  • Rep. James P. McGovern, Co-Chair, TLHRC
    Written remarks
  • Rep. Jackie Speier, Member, TLHRC, and Co-Chair, Congressional Ahmadiyya Muslim Caucus

Panelists

  • N. Mahmood Ahmad, Deputy Director of Public Affairs, Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA
    Written statement
  • Farahnaz Ispahani, Global Fellow, Asia Program, Woodrow Wilson Center
    Written statement
  • Eric Goldstein, Deputy Director, Middle East and North Africa Division, Human Rights Watch
    Written statement

Moderator

  • Waris Husain, Policy Analyst, U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom

Bios

Meeting Documents

Video

Related Items
Blasphemy Laws and Censorship by States and Non-State Actors: Examining Global Threats to Freedom of Expression
Human Rights in Indonesia
Religious Freedom in Pakistan

Contact The Commission

Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission
House Committee on Foreign Affairs
4150 O'Neill House Office Building
200 C Street SW
Washington, D.C. 20515
United States of America

Phone: +1 (202) 225-3599
TLHRC@mail.house.gov

Accessibility

The Commission seeks to make its events, meetings and hearings accessible to persons with disabilities.

If you are in need of special accommodations, please call (202) 225-3599 at least four business days in advance.

Questions with regard to special accommodations in general (including availability of Commission materials in alternative formats and assistive listening devices, sign language interpretation, etc.) may be directed to the Commission.

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