WASHINGTON – The State Department yesterday announced the inclusion of Saudi Arabia among a small group of nations singled out for their persecution of religious minorities and laws against free worship.

Following over one year of intense and often secret negotiations with the House of Saud, Secretary of State Powell determined that Saudi Arabia, along with Eritrea and Vietnam, were nations that “continue to violate their citizens’ religious liberty.”

The designation marks the first time in recent memory the State Department has publicly tried to name and shame the Saudis through its myriad reports on issues ranging from human rights to international terrorism.

“I think this is the first institutional naming of Saudi Arabia that has occurred in recent memory. This reflects the values that the legislation is implementing and has been the subject of discussion for quite some time,” a former American ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Robert Jordan, said yesterday in an interview.

Mr. Jordan, who was America’s ambassador in Riyadh between 2001 and 2003, said the issue of designating Saudi Arabia on the list was under discussion for over a year. Last year, the country escaped the designation because America’s ambassador for religious freedom, John Hanford, had yet to complete a visit to the country. Mr. Jordan, who was ambassador at the time, said he did not favor the designation then because quiet diplomacy would have been more effective.

“The diplomatic efforts were made to encourage the Saudis to move forward. While there has been progress, the designation suggests there has not been sufficient progress,” Mr. Jordan said.

Eritrea, Saudi Arabia, and Vietnam join Burma, China, Iran, North Korea, and Sudan on the list of nations of particular concern with respect to religious liberties. The annual list is required by legislation signed in 1998.

Under the International Religious Freedom Act, the State Department is given flexibility as to whether or not to actually sanction those nations.

Mr. Powell hinted that it was unlikely the Saudis would suffer any substantive consequences for their designation on as a “country of particular concern.” He said, “Let me emphasize that we will continue engaging the Countries of Particular Concern with whom we have bilateral relationships. Our existing partnerships have flourished in numerous capacities and they are just one of the best ways for us to encourage our friends to adopt tolerant practices.”

The report notes that non-citizens in Saudi Arabia, a country that imports many of its engineers, taxi drivers, and domestic workers, must identify their religion on government-issued identity cards. Under Saudi law, individuals can be convicted of trying to convert people to even non-Salafi sects of Islam, and judges may discount the testimony of non-Muslims in court proceedings.

In Saudi Arabia, not only must every citizen be Muslim, but any public worship of religions other than Islam is strictly prohibited. The report says, “Customs officials routinely open mail and shipments to search for contraband, including Sunni printed material deemed incompatible with the Salafi tradition of Islam, Shia religious materials, and non-Muslim materials, such as Bibles and religious videotapes. Such materials are subject to confiscation, although rules appear to be applied arbitrarily.”