Teaching Jobs In Brunei

Uzbekistan. The Government continued to commit numerous serious abuses of religious freedom. The Government permitted the operation of what it considers mainstream religions but invoked the Law on Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations to restrict the religious freedom of other groups. This law contravenes internationally recognized norms, and its registration requirements for religious organizations are strict and burdensome, though Christian churches generally are tolerated as long as they do not attempt to win converts among ethnic Uzbeks. The law prohibits or severely restricts activities such as proselytizing, importing and disseminating religious literature, and offering private religious instruction, and there are stiff civil and criminal penalties for violating this law. The Government continued its campaign against unauthorized Islamic groups it suspected of extremist sentiments or activities, arresting numerous alleged members of these groups an ... [Read More]

Executive Summary

Laos.  The U.S. Ambassador visited several problem areas to observe the situation of religious freedom firsthand.  The Ambassador and other Embassy officials persistently raised both, general religious freedom concerns and specific cases of abuse with senior Lao officials.  The Embassy maintained an ongoing dialog with the Department of Religious Affairs in the Lao Front for National Construction and informed officials of specific cases of arrest or harassment.  The Embassy hosted the visit of a member of the U.S. Congress and supported and encouraged the visits of recognized U.S. NGOs devoted to promoting religious freedom. [Read More]

I) Southeast Asia and the Pacific

Drug Trafficking Linked to North Korea. There are regular seizures of relatively small amounts of methamphetamine and heroin along the North Korean/PRC (People’s Republic of China) border. Seizures are made from North Korean nationals traveling to China, at least some of whom are seeking refuge in a region inhabited by Korean ethnic groups on the Chinese side of the border. Typical seizures are on the order of a few hundred grams to a kilogram. Besides this low-level trafficking, several major seizures with a North Korean connection were reported:On December 28, 2000, officials from the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau on Taiwan seized 134 kilograms (almost 300 pounds) of heroin in a warehouse in Taipei. The person arrested in connection with this seizure identified North Korea as the source of the drugs. In two separate incidents during April 2001, authorities on Taiwan seized 65.6 kilograms of methamphetamine on April 12 in Pingtung County, and 42 kilogram ... [Read More]

Department of State Washington File: Transcript: Powell Says Asia Can Count on Enduring Support from U.S.

I had another rush of memories last fall returning to Vietnam for the first time in 32 years. I was in a 757 this time, my own plane, the Secretary of State, flying into the capital of my former enemy. I was in the cockpit looking out the window, watching as the green vegetation got closer and closer as the pilot descended, watching as he went over the little hills, slowly, slowly, until finally we landed in Hanoi. It was a moving moment for me after 32 years. It was a very emotional moment for me to land in this place that I had spent two years of my life. ... [Read More]