US Human Rights Efforts Highlighted in New Report

March 28, 2005

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice spoke today at a press briefing announcing the release of the report “Supporting Human Rights and Democracy: The U.S. Record 2004 – 2005” and reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to promoting human rights worldwide.

Rice said that freedom, democracy and human rights are “non-negotiable,” universal principles that the international community has an obligation to protect. “As this year's report describes in detail, we are working tirelessly to support democracy and human rights in every country where these principles are not completely fulfilled,” she said.

Acting Assistant Secretary of State Michael Kozak, also spoke and noted that the United States engages foreign governments, nongovernmental organizations and the media in promoting the protection of human rights.

Addressing human rights issues in countries such as North Korea and Iran, where the United States has no formal diplomatic relations, may require different strategies and may be difficult, Kozak said, but promoting human rights in all countries requires some similar approaches. “In every country, we try to reach out to people in opposition parties, in independent media, in nongovernmental organizations in the country,” he said. “And we try to give them support in the efforts that they're making to improve the situation in their own country.”

Asked about U.S. relationships with countries where human rights violations occur, such as Libya and Pakistan, Kozak said, “Any country that expects to have good relations with us, whether it's in the security field and/or commercial area or anything else, needs to pay attention to their human rights.”

However, he also noted that bilateral relationships are “a balancing act” in which all areas of U.S. national interest need to be considered, including human rights protection. “When you've got a country with which you have decent or good trade relations and so on, that gives you certain opportunities … to advance your human rights agenda,” he said.

Kozak also answered questions regarding human rights issues in countries in Asia including Laos, Burma, Cambodia, Vietnam and China. He addressed the U.S. decision to not go forward with a U.N. Human Rights Commission resolution against China, citing prison reform and religious freedom measures as steps toward the improvement of human rights in that country.

Kozak said the Sudan, as discussed in the report, has “one of the most acute human rights problems in the worldright now.” He noted that the United States is trying to “maintain access for humanitarian relief efforts” while pressuring the Sudanese government to end violence in the Darfur region of the country.

The original press release and transcripts of the briefing are available at http://usinfo.state.gov/usinfo/Archive/2005/Mar/28-237311.html?chanlid=washfile.

The full report is available at: http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/shrd/2004/.