•HRES 601 IH 
Whereas Ibrahim is being held in the Omdurman Federal 
Women’s Prison with her 20-month-old son and newborn 
daughter; 
Whereas the Department of State has designated Sudan as 
a ‘‘Country of Particular Concern’’ under the Inter-
national Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (Public Law 
105–292) based on the government’s systematic, ongoing, 
and egregious violations of religious freedom since 1999; 
Whereas the Sudanese 1991 Criminal Code allows for death 
sentences for apostasy, stoning for adultery, cross-ampu-
tations for theft, prison sentences for blasphemy, and 
floggings for undefined acts of ‘‘indecency’’; 
Whereas, according to the United States Commission on 
International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), the Govern-
ment of Sudan, led by President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, 
continues to engage in systematic, ongoing, and egregious 
violations of religious freedom or belief, imposes a restric-
tive interpretation of Shari’ah law on Muslims and non- 
Muslims alike and, along with other National Congress 
Party leaders, President al-Bashir has stated that Su-
dan’s new constitution, when drafted, will be based on its 
interpretation of Shari’ah; 
Whereas, according to USCIRF, since South Sudan’s inde-
pendence from Sudan in 2011, the number and severity 
of harsh Shari’ah-based judicial decisions in Sudan has 
increased, including sentences of amputation for theft 
and sentences of stoning for adultery; 
Whereas the United States Government has designated 
Sudan as a State Sponsor of Terrorism since August 12, 
1993, for repeatedly providing support for acts of inter-
national terrorism; 
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•HRES 601 IH 
Whereas the Sudanese 2005 Interim Constitution states that 
‘‘[t]he State shall respect the religious rights to (a) wor-
ship or assemble in connection with any religion or be-
lief’’; 
Whereas the International Covenant on Civil and Political 
Rights, which the Government of Sudan has acceded, 
provides that ‘‘everyone shall have the right to freedom 
of thought, conscience, and religion. This right shall in-
clude freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of 
his choice, and freedom, either individually or in commu-
nity with others, and in public or private, to manifest his 
religion or belief in worship, observance, practice, and 
teaching.’’; 
Whereas the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & 
Public Life found that, as of 2011, 10 percent of the 198 
countries surveyed had apostasy laws which can, and 
have been, used to punish both Muslims and non-Muslims 
in countries such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Morocco, and 
Sudan; and 
Whereas people have the right to practice their faith without 
fear of death or persecution: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) condemns the charge of apostasy and adul-
tery of Meriam Yahia Ibrahim Ishag and her sen-
tence of 100 lashes and the death penalty; 
(2) calls for the immediate and unconditional 
release of Ibrahim, her 20-month-old son, and new-
born daughter; 
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•HRES 601 IH 
(3) urges the United States Department of 
State and the Department of Homeland Security to 
prioritize granting Ibrahim asylum or refugee status 
as appropriate; 
(4) encourages efforts by the United States 
Government to support religious freedom within 
Sudan, including by requiring, before normalizing 
relations or lifting sanctions under the International 
Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (Public Law 105– 
292) and the International Emergency Economic 
Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), that the Gov-
ernment of Sudan abide by international standards 
of freedom of religion or belief; 
(5) recognizes that every individual regardless 
of religion should have the opportunity to practice 
his or her religion without fear of discrimination; 
(6) reaffirms the commitment of the United 
States Government to end religious discrimination 
and to pursue policies that guarantee the basic 
human rights of all individuals worldwide; and 
(7) encourages the Department of State and 
the United States Agency for International Develop-
ment to continue their support for initiatives world-
wide that support religious freedom. 
Æ 
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