Religion
Related: About this forumSuzan Johnson Cook to resign as religious freedom ambassador
Lauren Markoe
WASHINGTON (RNS) Suzan Johnson Cook, the State Departments ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom, will announce this week that she is resigning after 17 months on the job, according to two sources familiar with her office.
President Obama nominated the former Baptist minister to serve as his top adviser on protecting religious freedom around the world. When confirmed by the Senate in April 2011, she became the first woman and the first African-American in the position, which had been held by two people before her.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton meets with Ambassador-At-Large for International Religious Freedom Suzan Johnson Cook in Istanbul, Turkey, on July 15, 2011.
Obama had been criticized for taking too much time after his own swearing-in to nominate a religious freedom ambassador, a position created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998.
He first nominated Johnson Cook in June 2010, but her nomination expired in January 2011 and Obama was forced to renominate her several weeks later.
Read more at http://www.religionnews.com/2013/10/16/suzan-johnson-cooke-resign-today-religious-freedom-ambassador/
kestrel91316
(51,666 posts)hrmjustin
(71,265 posts)trotsky
(49,533 posts)The question is whether a special ambassador is needed for this function.
hrmjustin
(71,265 posts)the right not to believe as well.
trotsky
(49,533 posts)Was there something not working previously? Do we have any information showing a specially-funded ambassador has fixed those shortcomings, if they existed?
hrmjustin
(71,265 posts)However I still have no issue with it.
The former Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, John Shattuck, cited specific countries that fail to recognize the fundamental right of religious freedom. There is a civil war ensuing in Sudan because of the ruling party's intolerance of opposing religions.[3] The Chinese Catholics and Chinese Protestant groups battle government repression, and the Chinese government tightly regulates religious practices in the regions of Tibet and Xinjiang.[4] Members of the Rohingya Muslim minority are forced to take refuge in the neighboring Bangladesh. There are suspect cases of minority oppression in Europe as well. Russia's new religion law seeks to make restraints and inhibit new religious communities' ability to own property, publish literature or operate schools.[5] This Act tries to recognize such kind of blatant forms of religious discrimination and oppression. It finds that over one-half of the population of the world lives under regimes that have strict policies against basic religious freedoms. Title VII of the Act has noted that some regimes engage in persecution that includes subjection of those people who engage in practice of religious faiths that are not state sponsored, to detention, torture, beatings, forced marriage, rape, imprisonment, enslavement, mass resettlement and death. Senator Don Nickles (R-OK) in his speech to the Congress on October 2, 1998 stated:
[ ]this is an important aspect of the bill. If the definition of religious persecution were limited to only torture, imprisonment, or death, [ ] the Act would only cover about a few countries, and would not include about 80 to 85% of the religious persecution that takes place in the world [ ]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Religious_Freedom_Act_of_1998
cbayer
(146,218 posts)Since so much international conflict is connected to religion, it is critical that our state department have people with a keen understanding of religion and the ability to speak with some authority when the issue of religion and religious freedoms are on the table.
Seems like a no brainer to me.
kestrel91316
(51,666 posts)cbayer
(146,218 posts)in a region where the politics are very much tied up with religion, it would make a lot of sense to have expertise in the area.
They don't replace a competent ambassador any more than any member of the embassy team.
kestrel91316
(51,666 posts)our international relations. One would think that would be a basic job requirement.
cbayer
(146,218 posts)Do you think they carry the level of expertise in all the aspects of diplomacy or do they have staff, aides and consultants to whom they turn for education and guidance?
It would be nice if they had competence in all areas, but then they would be superhuman.