| | Human Rights Day 2004Human Rights: The Cornerstone of American Foreign Policy
"The progress of liberty is a powerful trend. Yet, we also know that liberty, if not defended, can be lost. The success of freedom is not determined by some dialectic of history. By definition, the success of freedom rests upon the choices and courage of free people." --President George W. Bush
A History of Human Rights Day President Dwight D. Eisenhower proclaimed December 10 as Human Rights Day, in honor of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on December 10, 1948, by the United Nations General Assembly. Since that day the world order has been reshaped by these powerful concepts. Inspired by this Declaration, people throughout the world have embraced the principles of democracy, human rights and religious freedom. The adoption of these values have contributed largely to a freer, more prosperous, and stable global arena. A community of free nations has joined together in promoting these values; together we have built a stronger, more prosperous world.
The Significance of Human Rights in U.S. Foreign Policy The promotion of human rights and democratic practices is a cornerstone of the United States Government's foreign policy. Supporting democracy not only promotes such fundamental American values as religious freedom and worker rights, but also helps create a more secure, stable, and prosperous global arena in which the United States can advance its national interests. In addition, democracy is the one national interest that helps to secure all the others. Democratically governed nations are more likely to secure the peace, deter aggression, expand open markets, promote economic development, protect American citizens, combat international terrorism and crime, uphold human and worker rights, avoid humanitarian crises and refugee flows, improve the global environment, and protect human health. Thus, the United States is committed to keeping human rights issues at the forefront of our international agenda. The U.S. Department of State compiles and publishes encyclopedic annual reports on countries around the world in order to facilitate understanding of their human rights practices and to promote both good governance and international religious freedom. See the 2003 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices and the 2004 International Religious Freedom Report.
U.S. Actions and Programs Worldwide With these goals in mind, the United States seeks to:
- Promote democracy as a means to achieve security, stability, and prosperity for the entire world;
- Assist newly formed democracies in implementing democratic principles;
- Assist democracy advocates around the world to establish vibrant democracies in their own countries; and
- Identify and denounce regimes that deny their citizens the right to choose their leaders in elections that are free, fair, and transparent.
U.S. actions to promote human rights range from using diplomatic channels to funding a variety of human rights and democracy promotion programs. U.S. Government assistance provides for academic exchanges, human rights training, labor rights advocacy, elections monitoring, Internet access and training, and support for independent media and freedom of expression. It encourages religious freedom and freedom of the press and strengthens political and social institutions.
The Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL) is committed to supporting and promoting democracy programs throughout the world. As the nation's primary democracy advocate, DRL is responsible for overseeing the Human Rights and Democracy Fund (HRDF), which was established in 1998 to address human rights and democratization emergencies. DRL uses resources from the HRDF, as well as those allocated to Regional Democracy Funds, to support democratization programs such as election monitoring and parliamentary development. The U.S. effort to promote democracy and human rights is reported annually in "Supporting Human Rights and Democracy: The U.S. Record 2003-2004."
International Cooperation We work with freedom-loving citizens around the world to establish governments based on the principals of democratic governance, freedom of speech, religious tolerance, and market economics. This year saw particular improvements in Iraq and Afghanistan. Working hand-in-hand with the peoples of these nations to establish human rights and democratic freedoms for people who have suffered years of oppression. In Iraq, the Interim Government is busily preparing for scheduled elections at the end of January 2005. This work is being carried out under the framework of a Transitional Administrative Law that is a landmark of human rights guarantees in the Middle East. Afghanistan held their first ever election for head of state on October 9. Voter turnout was in the millions, representing all groups, including a large turnout of Afghan women. Three years ago, Afghanistan was a bastion of international terrorism. Today, it is a liberated country with functioning institutions that safeguard human rights and promote equality. The U.S. is committed to reforming and sustaining institutions that support human rights and promote new initiatives. Since 1948, we have witnessed many milestones on our path toward the advancement of human rights internationally, including the establishment of the High Commissioner for Human Rights at the UN. In 2004, the United Nations passed two more resolutions that reinforce the importance for all nations to preserve human freedom. For more information, visit the UN Human Rights website, the USUN Human Rights website, and the U.S. Mission to Geneva Human Rights website.
This year the United States is also joining with the Community of Democracies in support of a statement about the importance of Human Rights Day. The statement has been issued by Chile acting as the chair of the Community of Democracies.
America's Growing Commitment While citizens' desire for individual freedoms and rights can be repressed for a time by authoritarian and corrupt regimes, history shows us that transition is possible and encourages our support of the inalienable rights of freedom loving people everywhere.
We recognize that each country has a unique history and traditions that will lead them on different paths to freedom. Whatever the path or pace, the United States is prepared to stand those who seek freedom. We work in over a hundred countries to promote human rights, sponsor programs worldwide to ensure that the roots of democracy grow deep and strong, and that human rights are aggressively promoted. Our annual report, "Supporting Human Rights and Democracy: The U.S. Record 2003-2004" documents these programs. The U.S. Congress constantly reviews the human rights work carried out by the U.S. Government and pursues legislative initiatives to provide additional protection for human freedoms in other countries. This demonstrates the high priority the Congress places on human rights concerns and reaffirms our national commitment to perpetuating democracy and human rights progress across the globe. For more information on congressional legislation relating to human rights visit: http://thomas.loc.gov/home/thomas.html. | | |