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[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 301 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 301

   To provide for the establishment of the Special Envoy to Promote 
 Religious Freedom of Religious Minorities in the Near East and South 
                             Central Asia.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 15, 2013

 Mr. Wolf (for himself, Ms. Eshoo, Mr. Holt, Mr. Griffith of Virginia, 
Mr. Peters of Michigan, Mr. Pitts, Mr. Franks of Arizona, Mr. Duncan of 
 South Carolina, and Mr. Smith of New Jersey) introduced the following 
      bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
   To provide for the establishment of the Special Envoy to Promote 
 Religious Freedom of Religious Minorities in the Near East and South 
                             Central Asia.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) More than 500 Baha'is in Iran have been arbitrarily 
        arrested since 2005. Roughly 100 Baha'is are presently 
        imprisoned because of their religious beliefs.
            (2) In May 2010, suspected terrorists attacked two mosques 
        in Pakistan belonging to the Ahmaddiya minority Muslim sect, 
        killing at least 80 people. Ahmadis consider themselves Muslim, 
        but Pakistani law does not recognize them as such.
            (3) Said Musa, an Afghan Christian convert, was arrested in 
        May 2010 on charges of apostasy, a crime which can carry the 
        death sentence, and was released in February 2011 only after 
        sustained international pressure.
            (4) On October 31, 2010, gunmen laid siege on Our Lady of 
        Salvation Church in Baghdad, Iraq, killing at least 52 police 
        and worshipers, including two priests, making it the worst 
        massacre of Iraqi Christians since 2003.
            (5) Iraq's ancient and once vibrant Christian population 
        that numbered an estimated 1,500,000 out of a total population 
        in Iraq of 30,000,000 in 2003 has been reduced by at least one 
        half, due in significant part to Christians fleeing the 
        violence.
            (6) In November 2010, a Pakistani court sentenced Aasia 
        Bibi, a Christian mother of five, to death under the country's 
        blasphemy law for insulting the Prophet Muhammad.
            (7) Since early 2011, violent sectarian attacks targeting 
        Coptic Orthodox Christians and their property increased 
        significantly, resulting in nearly 100 deaths, mostly Coptic 
        Christians, surpassing the death toll of the 10 previous years 
        combined.
            (8) In Egypt, with the ascent of the Muslim Brotherhood, 
        Coptic Christians, numbering roughly 8 to 10 million, are 
        leaving in droves.
            (9) On March 2, 2011, Pakistani Federal Minorities Minister 
        Shahbaz Bhatti, the only Christian member of the Cabinet, who 
        was outspoken in his opposition to Pakistan's blasphemy laws 
        was assassinated by extremists.
            (10) The Special Envoy for Anti-Semitism, Hannah Rosenthal, 
        has noted that Holocaust glorification ``is especially virulent 
        in Middle Eastern media, some of which is state-owned and 
        operated, which calls for a new Holocaust to finish the job''.
            (11) In the midst of a devastating civil war, Syrian 
        Christians and other religious minorities, which comprise 
        roughly 10 percent of the population, are particularly 
        vulnerable lacking their own militias and regional protectors.
            (12) Many of these ancient faith communities are being 
        forced to flee the lands which they have inhabited for 
        centuries.
            (13) The United States Commission on International 
        Religious Freedom has recommended that Egypt, Tajikistan, Iran, 
        Iraq, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan be 
        designated by the Department of State as Countries of 
        Particular Concern in accordance with the International 
        Religious Freedom Act of 1998.
            (14) The situation on the ground in the region continues to 
        develop rapidly and the United States Government needs an 
        individual who can respond in kind and focus on the critical 
        situation of religious minorities in these countries.
            (15) There are historical precedents, including the Special 
        Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism, the Special Envoy 
        for North Korea Human Rights Issues, and the South Sudan and 
        Sudan Special Envoy, for the Department of State, either as a 
        result of legislative mandate or initiative of the Secretary of 
        State, to create positions with a targeted focus on an area or 
        issue of recognized import.

SEC. 2. SPECIAL ENVOY TO PROMOTE RELIGIOUS FREEDOM OF RELIGIOUS 
              MINORITIES IN THE NEAR EAST AND SOUTH CENTRAL ASIA.

    (a) Appointment.--The President shall appoint a Special Envoy to 
Promote Religious Freedom of Religious Minorities in the Near East and 
South Central Asia (in this Act referred to as the ``Special Envoy'') 
within the Department of State.
    (b) Qualifications.--The Special Envoy should be a person of 
recognized distinction in the field of human rights and religious 
freedom and with expertise in the Near East and South Central Asia 
regions. The Special Envoy shall have the rank of ambassador and shall 
hold the office at the pleasure of the President.
    (c) Prohibition.--The person appointed as Special Envoy may not 
hold any other position of Federal employment for the period of time 
during which the person holds the position of Special Envoy.

SEC. 3. DUTIES.

    (a) In General.--The Special Envoy shall carry out the following 
duties:
            (1) Promote the right of religious freedom of religious 
        minorities in the countries of the Near East and the countries 
        of South Central Asia, denounce the violation of such right, 
        and recommend appropriate responses by the United States 
        Government when such right is violated.
            (2) Monitor and combat acts of religious intolerance and 
        incitement targeted against religious minorities in the 
        countries of the Near East and the countries of South Central 
        Asia.
            (3) Work to ensure that the unique needs of religious 
        minority communities in the countries of the Near East and the 
        countries of South Central Asia are addressed, including the 
        economic and security needs of such communities to the extent 
        that such needs are directly tied to religious-based 
        discrimination and persecution.
            (4) Work with foreign governments of the countries of the 
        Near East and the countries of South Central Asia to address 
        laws that are inherently discriminatory toward religious 
        minority communities in such countries.
            (5) Coordinate and assist in the preparation of that 
        portion of the report required by sections 116(d) and 502B(b) 
        of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151n(d) and 
        2304(b)) relating to the nature and extent of religious freedom 
        of religious minorities in the countries of the Near East and 
        the countries of South Central Asia.
            (6) Coordinate and assist in the preparation of that 
        portion of the report required by section 102(b) of the 
        International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6412(b)) 
        relating to the nature and extent of religious freedom of 
        religious minorities in the countries of the Near East and the 
        countries of South Central Asia.
    (b) Coordination.--In carrying out the duties under subsection (a), 
the Special Envoy shall, to the maximum extent practicable, coordinate 
with the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration of the Department 
of State, the Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom, 
the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, and 
other relevant Federal agencies and officials.

SEC. 4. DIPLOMATIC REPRESENTATION.

    Subject to the direction of the President and the Secretary of 
State, the Special Envoy is authorized to represent the United States 
in matters and cases relevant to religious freedom in the countries of 
the Near East and the countries of South Central Asia in--
            (1) contacts with foreign governments, intergovernmental 
        organizations, and specialized agencies of the United Nations, 
        the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe, and 
        other international organizations of which the United States is 
        a member; and
            (2) multilateral conferences and meetings relevant to 
        religious freedom in the countries of the Near East and the 
        countries of South Central Asia.

SEC. 5. PRIORITY COUNTRIES AND CONSULTATION.

    (a) Priority Countries.--In carrying out this Act, the Special 
Envoy shall give priority to programs, projects, and activities for 
Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan.
    (b) Consultation.--The Special Envoy shall consult with domestic 
and international nongovernmental organizations and multilateral 
organizations and institutions, as the Special Envoy considers 
appropriate to fulfill the purposes of this Act.

SEC. 6. FUNDING.

    (a) In General.--Of the amounts made available for ``Diplomatic and 
Consular Programs'' for fiscal years 2014 through 2018, $1,000,000 is 
authorized to be appropriated for each such fiscal year to carry out 
the provisions of this Act.
    (b) Funding Offset.--To offset the costs to be incurred by the 
Department of State to carry out the provisions of this Act for fiscal 
years 2014 through 2018, the Secretary of State shall eliminate such 
positions within the Department of State, unless otherwise authorized 
or required by law, as the Secretary determines to be necessary to 
fully offset such costs.
    (c) Limitation.--No additional funds are authorized to be 
appropriated for ``Diplomatic and Consular Programs'' to carry out the 
provisions of this Act.

SEC. 7. SUNSET.

    This Act shall cease to be effective beginning on October 1, 2018.
                                 <all>
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