USIA - Text: Nancy Rubin Remarks to U.N. Commission on Human Rights, 97-04-09

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TEXT: NANCY RUBIN REMARKS TO U.N. COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS

(U.S. delegation head notes continuing rights abuses) (2210)

"Respect for democracy, fundamental freedoms and the rule of law at home means respect for them abroad, to the benefit of all nations and all people, " she told the commission April 9.

In a statement reviewing the human rights situation in countries around the world, Rubin also made the following points:

• Cuba remains the Western Hemisphere's sole dictatorship, "denying its citizens the very tangible benefits of democracy."
• The United States "remains deeply concerned about the volatile situation in the Balkans."
• The United States "is deeply concerned with Belarus' accelerating slide toward authoritarianism."
• The United States "remains acutely concerned over the conditions in central Africa."
• Saddam Hussein's repression of the Iraqi people "has not abated, despite the great hardships to which he has put his people."
• "Burma's severe repression of human rights remains a matter of grave concern."
• We have also noticed a troubling deterioration in the human rights situation in Sri Lanka.

Following is the text of Rubin's remarks.

(begin text)

Three times a year the United States makes formal statements on the human rights situation in the countries of the world. The first is when the annual country reports are released in late January. The second is when we speak on item 10 here at the commission. The last occasion is during the Third Committee of the U.N. General Assembly.

These are not casual occasions, but opportunities we take very seriously. Our government works hard gathering reliable information to determine the extent to which human rights are respected or abused in the countries of the world.

In doing so we make no claim that our record is perfect, for it is not.

But there are reasons why we do it. First and foremost is the fact that we believe that international human rights standards, as reflected in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, are a common standard for all nations. These fundamental rights and freedoms are not just for Americans; they belong to everyone, in every country. Believing this -- and believing it deeply -- obliges us to speak out where we see human rights abused.

Our commitment to human rights and their applicability to all people has deep and enduring roots in our national institutions and identity. Indeed, the United States was founded on the principles that all people are created equal and that they are endowed with the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

The history of this century has clearly demonstrated that nations which respect the human rights of their own citizens respect the rights of their neighbors. Respect for democracy, fundamental freedoms and the rule of law at home means respect for them abroad, to the benefit of all nations and all people.

Those who cannot accept or understand this should reflect on the dark chapters of this century's history. From the massive horrors of World War I and II to the Soviet Gulag and the Chinese Cultural Revolution; from the killing fields of Cambodia to the cruelties of apartheid and the tragedies in the former Yugoslavia, Rwanda, and Burundi, the lesson remains the same. The costs of tolerating human rights abuse are very, very high.

And yet, there are nations which come here not to defend human rights, but to undermine them, not to expose abuse, but to divert attention away from it. It is some of these nations that we wish to discuss today, at the same time that we cite those who deserve praise for the progress they have made.

In our own hemisphere, the overwhelming trend over the past decade has been the consolidation of democracy and the institutions of civil society. Not surprisingly, much good has come of this: healthier economies and healthier societies. Yet there is one state which continues to deny reality, while denying its citizens the very tangible benefits of democracy. I refer of course to Cuba, the hemisphere's only remaining dictatorship, which continues to arrest, detain, threaten, and harass human rights and pro- democracy activists it considers a threat. Sadly, Fidel Castro has made it clear that he intends no political opening to accompany the limited economic liberalization measures implemented by his government in recent years.

By contrast, the final peace accord the government of Guatemala and the URNG guerrillas signed in late December closed out a year of significant improvement with respect to human rights and the rule of law in that country. The Guatemalan government has demonstrated that it has the political will to combat impunity. In a marked departure from previous years, the courts convicted members of the security forces who had been charged with human rights abuses. Further, paramilitary forces were disbanded, the guerrillas are now demobilizing, and the military is being reduced and restructured to carry out its proper role within a democratic society.

The government of Colombia is struggling to improve its human rights situation, while dealing with violent guerrilla groups, paramilitary units, and narco-traffickers. During last year's commission, the Colombian government agreed to establish an office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights in Bogota to promote and protect human rights, monitor abuse, and prepare analytical reports for the High Commissioner for Human Rights. Still, the government must continue to show the political will to address the human rights situation by arresting and prosecuting human rights abusers in the security forces, and identifying and penalizing illegal collaboration between the military and paramilitary units.

The United States remains deeply concerned about the volatile situation in the Balkans. The deterioration of conditions in Albania continues to pose a major threat to the human rights of that country's citizens, and we strongly support the efforts the OSCE, the EU, and the Italian-led multinational force to stem this potential humanitarian crisis.

While the United States welcomes the fact that the Serbian government finally agreed to permit the democratic opposition to take control of the municipalities it won in the November elections, we continue to be distressed by the Serbian government's lack of commitment to democratic reform and independent media. The United States remains deeply concerned by the continuing denial of basic human rights to the Albanian minority in Kosovo, and the Serbian government's refusal to address this issue. In addition, Belgrade has failed to live up to key provisions of the Dayton Accords and continues to protect a number of individuals accused of crimes against humanity by the International War Crimes Tribunal.

As it seeks to become part of the democratic community of nations, it is important that Croatia continue to cooperate fully with the U.N. Transitional Administration for Eastern Slavonia to ensure the peaceful reintegration of Eastern Slavonia while also assuring respect for human rights for all residents, returning displaced persons, and refugees. The U.S. continues to press Croatia to apprehend and surrender for prosecution all persons indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal, to guarantee freedom of the press, to guarantee local Serb community representation at all levels of the government, and to provide protection of local Serbs' legal and civil rights under Croatian law.

In Eastern Europe, the recent conduct of the government of Belarus stands in sad contrast to the positive achievements of neighbors like Poland, the Czech Republic, and Hungary. The United States is deeply concerned with Belarus' accelerating slide toward authoritarianism. The severe restrictions which the Lukashenko government has imposed on economic reform, democratic opposition, and the media can only limit the country's hopes for development.

The United States remains deeply concerned about the human rights situation and the potential for inter-communal violence on Cyprus. We call on both the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities on that island to create a climate whereby a just solution to their differences can be found.

The African states as a whole have often been criticized because of the human rights problems in some of them. The United States does not take this simplistic view, but notes with satisfaction the progress that many African states have made over the past year. In Ghana, for example, the recent elections were free and fair. At the same time, the country has made noticeable progress economically and in strengthening its civic institutions. Mali, too, continues to make positive strides as it continues on the path to further democratization.

After several failures, the ceasefire in Liberia gives hope that that country's long descent in chaos has finally ended and the process of healing through national elections may soon begin. And in South Africa, the process of national reconciliation continues through the wise administration of Nelson Mandela's government and the careful deliberations of the National Truth Commission.

At the same time, the human rights situation in Nigeria is very poor. The regime of General Abacha has continued to rely on arbitrary detention, arrests, and wide-scale harassment to silence its many critics. Security forces have committed extrajudicial killings, tortured and beat suspects and detainees, while continuing to harass human rights and democracy activists. All these and numerous other abuses have taken place in a climate of serious infringements on freedom of speech, assembly, association, travel and workers rights.

The United States remains acutely concerned over the conditions in central Africa. We strongly urge the rebel forces under Laurent Kabila to come to an agreement with the current government in order to avoid further bloodshed and suffering in Zaire. We deeply regret the death of the human rights monitors in Rwanda last fall, and we call on the government there and in Burundi to expend every effort to bring those guilty of massive and genocidal human rights abuse to justice.

Six years after the end of the Persian Gulf War, the government of Iraq still refuses to comply with the U.N. Security Council resolutions and destroy completely its weapons of mass destruction. At the same time, Saddam Hussein's repression of the Iraqi people has not abated, despite the great hardships to which he has put his people.

Meanwhile the Iranian government's human rights record has failed to improve. Their systematic abuses include extrajudicial killings and summary executions, disappearances, the widespread use of torture, arbitrary arrest, and detention, the lack of fair trials, and restrictions on freedom of speech and press. We further deplore the continuing abuse of those who practice the Baha'i faith. And we find it incomprehensible that the Iranian government has not acted to restrain those Iranian citizens who are responsible for offering a reward for the death of Salman Rushdie.

The United States continues to be deeply concerned about the crippling restrictions the Taliban have imposed on Afghanistan's women and girls. Surely, forbidding women from working when many of them are the sole source of support for their families is a cruel abuse of their rights, and a foolish policy as well. Similarly, forbidding girls to attend school can only add to the intellectual impoverishment of the country.

Burma's severe repression of human rights remains a matter of grave concern, as SLORC's military rulers maintained broad restrictions on the basic rights to free speech, assembly, and association. Meanwhile the political activities of the country's most well-known, democratic figure, Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, continued to be severely restricted.

We have also noticed a troubling deterioration in the human rights situation in Sri Lanka. Of particular concern are the unsolved disappearances of more than 700 persons in Jaffna and the slow progress made by the government in prosecuting security forces personnel implicated in human rights abuses. We are also troubled by the continuing failure of the armed forces and the LTTE insurgents to capture POWs in numbers commensurate with the scale of the conflict, since it suggests that both sides have adopted a "take-no-prisoners" policy. We call upon the government and the LTTE, therefore, to observe international humanitarian norms.

While we do not seek confrontation with China over human rights, we firmly believe that the People's Republic of China should be held accountable, and certainly at this commission, to international standards that China itself has endorsed. Chinese society has undergone significant transformation since the introduction of economic reforms, resulting in greater scope for individual choice. Nevertheless, China's government continues to commit widespread and well-documented human rights abuses and to severely restrict fundamental freedoms of speech, the press, assembly, association, and religion in violation of internationally-accepted norms.

No country should lie beyond the commission's scrutiny, Mr. Chairman. Nor should those who have made progress pass unnoticed for their efforts. Our goal at the commission is the protection and promotion of the fundamental rights and freedoms for every individual. By speaking out honestly and frankly, we can help accomplish that. For silence is evil's best companion, and light the strongest enemy of dark designs. Thank you.

(end text)

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