IV 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 1132 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that to promote global 

religious freedom and freedom of expression, United States foreign aid 

should not be directed to countries that enforce blasphemy laws. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 23, 2018 

Mr. FRANCIS ROONEY of Florida submitted the following resolution; which 

was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 

to promote global religious freedom and freedom of expression, United States foreign aid should not be directed 

to countries that enforce blasphemy laws. 

Whereas the founding principles of the United States include 

the freedom of religion and the freedom of expression; 

Whereas the United States, in its support of and membership 

in the United Nations and other international institutions, has been party to the promotion and sustainment 

of global religious freedom; 

Whereas the United States established the United States 

Commission on International Religious Freedom (in this 

resolution referred to as ‘‘USCIRF’’) to defend the universal right to freedom of religion or belief abroad; 


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Whereas the USCIRF has identified 71 foreign countries 

with active blasphemy laws as of 2017; 

Whereas the United States continues to deliver significant 

sums of foreign aid to countries with actively enforced 

blasphemy laws; 

Whereas the Department of State in 2006 created a framework to organize United States foreign aid around strategic objectives that include, among others, governing 

justly and democratically, humanitarian assistance, and 

investing in people; 

Whereas sending foreign aid to countries with, and that enforce, blasphemy laws does not support the strategic objectives of foreign aid laid out by the Department of 

State; 

Whereas before suspending a significant amount of foreign 

aid to Pakistan in 2018, the United States provided 

Pakistan $777,000,000 in foreign aid during fiscal year 

2016, despite Pakistan having some of the strictest enforcement of blasphemy laws in the world; 

Whereas in its 2017 Annual Report, the USCIRF stated it 

was aware of at least 40 individuals sentenced to death 

or serving life sentences for blasphemy in Pakistan as of 

the date of the report; 

Whereas Saudi Arabia receives significant United States aid 

in the form of arms sales, despite the 2017 USCIRF Annual Report stating, ‘‘Saudi courts continue to prosecute 

and imprison individuals for dissent, apostasy, and blasphemy, and a law classifying blasphemy and the promotion of atheism as terrorism has been used to target 

human rights defenders, among others’’; 


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Whereas, in January 2018, the United States Agency for 

International Development pledged an additional 

$89,000,000 in development assistance for Nigeria, including $10,500,000 for supporting good governance, despite Nigeria having an actively enforced blasphemy law 

and the USCIRF labeling Nigeria as a country of particular concern; 

Whereas blasphemy laws are often not objectively enforced, 

and are instead used to punish, intimidate, and discriminate against religious minorities and embolden sectarian 

divisions; 

Whereas despite many countries with active blasphemy laws 

refusing to enforce such laws, the existence of these laws 

within a legal system is an affront to the basic human 

right to freedom of religion; and 

Whereas to maintain its position as the leading global advocate of religious freedom, the United States should refrain from providing foreign aid to countries that oppose 

such freedom of religion: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) recognizes the enforcement of blasphemy 

3 laws by foreign countries as harmful to the advance4 ment of global religious freedom; 

5 (2) affirms the enforcement of blasphemy laws 

6 as wholly incompatible with the moral principles of 

7 the United States; 

8 (3) supports the United States Commission on 

9 International Religious Freedom and its role to doc10 ument religious freedom conditions abroad and enVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:33 Oct 23, 2018 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR1132.IH HR1132

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1 gage multilaterally with organizations and institu2 tions around the world to promote religious freedom; 

3 (4) urges foreign governments to repeal any 

4 blasphemy laws and release from custody those who 

5 have been imprisoned for blasphemy; and 

6 (5) calls on the Department of State, and all 

7 other Federal agencies engaged in foreign aid dis8 bursements, when determining recipients of United 

9 States foreign aid, to consider— 

10 (A) the level of enforcement of blasphemy 

11 laws in such countries that have them; and 

12 (B) suspend, or reconsider the form or dol13 lar amount of, aid to those countries to discour14 age the enforcement of blasphemy laws. 

Æ 


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