2.1: Rule of Law and Human Rights

Advance and protect human and individual rights as embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international conventions.

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As President Bush said in his January 2002 State of the Union Address, “America will always stand firm for the non-negotiable demands of human dignity: the rule of law; limits on the power of the state; respect for women; private property; free speech; equal justice; and religious tolerance.” Our objectives in this area are to advance and protect human and individual rights as embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international conventions to which states are signatory, and to promote societies in which the state and its citizens are accountable to laws that are publicly promulgated, equally enforced, and independently adjudicated, and which are consistent with international norms and standards. To accomplish this, we will speak out forthrightly through public statements and instruments such as the Human Rights Practices, Trafficking in Persons, and International Religious Freedom reports. We will speak out against states that wield the law as a political weapon or instrument of repression, and that manipulate laws and the judicial system in order to maintain power. We will speak in defense of human rights defenders who are silenced by their governments in order to draw international attention to their plight. We will actively promote the recognition of freedom of religion and conscience throughout the world as a fundamental human right, and denounce regimes that persecute their citizens or others on the basis of religious belief. We will promote and monitor universal recognition and implementation of labor rights and the abolition of abusive child labor practices, and will encourage responsible corporate social behavior. We will protect the rights of women and other underserved populations, including trafficking victims. We will work with members of the UN General Assembly, UN Human Rights Council and other multilateral mechanisms to call countries to account on their performance. We will complement our diplomatic activity by using our foreign assistance to:

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