14 December 2009

Clinton Lays Out Obama Administration Agenda on Human Rights

Democracy and development the cornerstones to foster human rights

By Jane Morse
Staff Writer

Washington — Support for democracy and the fostering of economic development are the cornerstones of the Obama administration’s agenda for promoting human rights around the world, says Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.

In a speech December 14 at Georgetown University in Washington, Clinton presented the president’s goals for human rights in the 21st century. She said human rights must be seen in a broad context that recognizes both “negative and positive requirements.” People everywhere, Clinton said, should be free from tyranny in whatever form and they must also be free “to seize the opportunities of a full life.” For human rights to be fulfilled, she said, people must be “free from the oppression of want — want of food, want of health, want of education, and want of equality in law and in fact.”

The secretary said democracy fosters human rights by allowing people to fulfill their potential through the freedom to choose laws and leaders, to share and access information, to speak, criticize and debate. “They must be free to worship, associate, and to love in the way that they choose,” she said. “And they must be free to pursue the dignity that comes with self-improvement and self-reliance, to build their minds and their skills, bring their goods to the marketplace, and participate in the process of innovation.”

“Democracy has proven the best political system for making human rights a human reality over the long term,” Clinton said. She added that the Obama administration will promote democracy “not because we want other countries to be like us, but because we want all people to enjoy consistent protection of the rights that are naturally theirs, whether they were born in Tallahassee or Tehran.”

Human rights, democracy and development are not three separate goals with three separate agendas. “To make a real and long-term difference in people’s lives, we have to tackle all three simultaneously with a commitment that is smart, strategic, determined and long-term,” she said.

While acknowledging that there is no single formula for fostering human rights, democracy and development that can be applied to every situation, Clinton outlined critical elements in the Obama administration’s plan for action.

Holding all nations accountable to universal standards of human rights is a priority, she said. The United States will assess its own performance, she said, by participating through the United Nations in the Universal Periodic Review of its own human rights record.

“By holding ourselves accountable, we reinforce our moral authority to demand that all governments adhere to obligations under international law,” Clinton said.

In enforcing human rights standards, the United States will balance pressure and incentives in a pragmatic approach that does not compromise its principles, she said, and will work for positive change within multilateral institutions. In the search for innovative ways to achieve results, the secretary said she has commissioned the first-ever Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review to develop a forward-looking strategy.

Human rights, she said, cannot be just a project for governments — change must be driven by citizens and their communities. Among the tools to promote grass-roots efforts is the Global Human Rights Defenders Fund, which last year provided targeted legal and relocation assistance to 170 human rights defenders around the world. Spotlighting human rights activists’ efforts and supporting civil society leaders help lay the foundation for change from the bottom up, she said.

For its part, Clinton added, the United States “will not ignore or overlook places of seemingly intractable tragedy and despair.”

A transcript of Clinton’s speech is available from America.gov.