BRI welcomes the USCIRF 2026 Annual Report for exposing the Burmese military’s ongoing and egregious attacks on religious freedom in Burma

ELLICOTT CITY, MD––On March 4, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released its 2026 Annual Report: Key Findings and Recommendations at the Longworth House Office Building (Room 1539) on Capitol Hill, Washington, DC.

The Report on Burma documents that in 2025, Tatmadaw forces destroyed 379 religious sites and killed more than 259 clergy and civilians sheltering in places of worship. Despite the military’s self-proclaimed role as guardian of Theravada Buddhism, it increasingly targeted Buddhist sites nationwide. In March 2025, the junta bombed Sein Yadanar Monastery in Nawnghkio, Shan State, killing 14 people.

The report’s recommendations to the Administration include redesignating Burma as a “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC) for systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom under the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA), and engaging with the National Unity Government (NUG), ethnic organizations, and pro-democracy groups — as outlined in the BURMA Act of 2022 — to ensure freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) is embedded in transitional governance and post-coup rebuilding efforts.

For Congress, the report recommends introducing and passing legislation to ban the Tatmadaw from using U.S.-based lobbying firms to evade accountability for its crimes and cultivate ties with the United States.

The Burma Research Institute (BRI) strongly supports these recommendations. However, we call on USCIRF to go further by recommending that the Administration formally determine that the Tatmadaw’s atrocities against Christians constitute crimes against humanity and war crimes and publicly condemn these acts.

The USCIRF report matters — but the U.S. government must act now,” said Zo Tum Hmung, President & CEO, Burma Research Institute.

On January 29, 2026, BRI released its report, Burma: Severe Violations of Religious Freedom Against Christians, on Capitol Hill, Washington, DC. The report urges the Trump Administration to protect Christians in Burma. xxx