VIRTUAL EVENT - Religious Freedom for Indigenous Communities in Latin America

        Source:                      www.uscirf.gov
Date:                          December 1, 2023

U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom 

Wednesday, December 13, 2023
11:00 am – 12:00 pm ET
Virtual
Register Here
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) will host a virtual discussion of USCIRF’s report on religious freedom conditions for Indigenous communities in Latin America.
Despite increased international attention to the religious freedom concerns of Indigenous communities and individuals, discrimination, violent attacks, threats, and land seizures persist. In Mexico, drug traffickers have murdered religious leaders working to protect Indigenous communities. In the Colombian and Venezuelan Amazon, drug and human traffickers, paramilitary groups, and guerrillas illegally build roads, landing strips, and clandestine ports on religiously significant ancestral lands. Throughout the region, extractive companies cause serious damage to sacred natural sites. And, within Indigenous communities, those who convert to a religion or belief different from that practiced by the majority may be subject to fines, imprisonment, or violence.
Panelists will discuss national, regional, and international legal instruments protecting the right to freedom of religion or belief for Indigenous communities and individuals in Latin America. They will also assess state efforts to protect that right and highlight the threats impacting the religious freedom of Indigenous communities and individuals.  
USCIRF Commissioners Frank Wolf and Mohamed Magid will be joined by the authors of the report, Dennis D. Petri, International Director of the International Institute for Religious Freedom, and Teresa Flores, Director of the Observatory of Religious Freedom in Latin America, for this discussion. The event will be moderated by USCIRF Researcher Luke Wilson and will include Q&A for attendees.
Panelists

Frank Wolf, Commissioner, USCIRF
Mohamed Magid, Commissioner, USCIRF
Dennis D. Petri, International Director, International Institute for Religious Freedom
Teresa Flores, Director, Observatory of Religious Freedom in Latin America

Moderator

Luke Wilson, Researcher, USCIRF

This virtual event is open to the public and media. The video recording will be posted on the Commission website. For any additional questions, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..