Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  The use of the Magnitsky act is something that Freedom House has been very involved with, both in the U.S. and in co-operating with other governments. I would be very happy to provide more information on that.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I don't know about interfaith groups broadly. I know that one of the things we supported, for example, through the program we do, was a group of a Christian pastor and an imam working together to look at ways to reduce pre-election discrimination and violence in Nigeria. I don't know that it would be considered an interfaith group writ large.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  You're looking at me, so I'm wondering if you're directing that to me.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  That's fine. If you're looking at specific people or recommendations for specific countries, I don't have those with me right now but we could definitely provide you that information.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  As you noted, I think that's a really big question and also a question that has a lot of implications in terms of what the foreign policy needs of any particular country are. I think one thing I would say is that being able to engage with like-minded countries that are collectively looking at these questions and trying to answer with regard to what could effectively be done in any particular situation.....

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  First of all, I think it's context-dependent, because different governments are going to react in different kinds of ways. Of course, that's the job of diplomacy, to know whether or not it should be public or private diplomacy or what types of interventions would happen in any particular situation.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I don't know that I have an answer to that question because our work is really looking at the cases that come in. Obviously we're tracking the situations that are evolving, so certainly we're watching what is happening in India with the rise of Hindu nationalism. That is certainly an area that we are watching.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  That's a broad question. I think there is the role of the international actors that have to be engaged there, but obviously the state also has an obligation to protect its citizens, and this unfortunately is an area where.... I will speak about all marginalized groups, because this doesn't stay with just Christians or just faith-based minority groups.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I can speak to that briefly. In the religious freedom cases that I know of—and I'm sure there are cases that this has been a part of, and I can get information on those for you if you want—we do work broadly across a whole suite. This particular fund is within a larger suite of emergency funds working on human rights across the board.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I know about situations in which other faith groups do, but they may know more about the Christian groups helping.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  That's a big question. In terms of the work I do, I don't know that I'm qualified to fully say what is the best political structure. Obviously, from Freedom House we support the growth of democracy, but as I noted in my testimony, even in places that are democratic there are still challenges in the way in which minorities across the board, certainly Christian but also other religious minorities, can be treated.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  It does.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Right. What you're saying is true. One of the cultural.... There's the notion of Leke Dukagjini and the guest and God. The view is that the guest is as close to God in the view of.... I've mangled the actual statement on that, but absolutely that's why the Jews were taken in. It went from I think 200 Jews to 2,000 after World War II.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  My colleagues might have opinions on it, but I will say that in our cases, because we document who the perpetrators are, that is where we are seeing the specific perpetrators. In all of those cases, though, impunity is a major factor in it. While we don't tag impunity as one of the actors in our cases, it is absolutely the case that these types of attacks couldn't continue to occur in the kind of consistent way they do if there weren't ongoing impunity and a lack of state involvement in terms of their responsibility for protection.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  It's interesting in Albania. I will say first that this is just my commentary, because I lived in Albania for four years. This is not based on the work I do currently, and we have not had cases coming in from Albania. I just want to be clear about that up front. Religion in Albania is a complicated thing, given that it was an atheist country for a very long time.