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Asian nations slammed in religious freedom report

China has reacted furiously to a US State Department report that says worldwide religious freedom is sliding backwards.
Asian nations slammed in religious freedom report
Published: August 01, 2012 05:55 AM GMT
Updated: August 01, 2012 06:04 AM GMT

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton issued the State Department's annual report on international religious freedom on Monday, concluding that the "world is sliding backwards" in key regions of the globe. She also singled out many of the Asian countries including China, North Korea and Saudi Arabia as some of the world's most intolerant countries when it comes to the expression and freedom of religion. The eight counties identified as "countries of particular concern" include China, Burma, Iran, Eritrea, North Korea and Saudi Arabia. China in particular, had harsh words for the findings and commented through their official Xinhua News Agency. "The annual report, largely based on unconfirmed media reports and groundless allegations from outlawed groups and organizations with ulterior motives, is nothing but a political tool used by the U.S. government to exert pressure on other countries, mostly deemed as its rivals," it said. China said that religious freedoms were protected under the country's constitution and claimed that only a handful of "cults" and "extremist religious organizations" were illegal. Furthermore, China said the report was "full of prejudice, arrogance and ignorance." Undeterred, Clinton said a country's verbal responses would not compensate for what is actually occurring within their borders. "We are going to judge by actions, not words," Clinton said during her remarks at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, D.C. Full Story: China Claims Report on Int'l Religious Freedom Is 'Arrogant, Ignorant'Source:Christian Post Global

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