Secretary Clinton comments on 2010 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices

Dallas, TX (Law Firm Newswire) May 27, 2011 – In April, 2011, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton delivered the 35th annual report to Congress on the state of human rights around the world. The yearly report details the legal status of human rights in more than 190 countries around the world.

Clinton said that the State Department was “particularly disturbed” by three growing trends in 2010, which included crackdowns on civil society activists; violations against the fundamental freedoms of expression, association and assembly through limited Internet freedoms; and the repression of vulnerable minorities.

She expressed disappointment that Venezuela and Russia were censoring journalists and activists, and that intellectuals and other outspoken people in China were being arrested and detained. She also spoke against the repression of minorities throughout the world, speaking specifically about blasphemy in Pakistan and how it carries a death penalty.

Clinton paid particular interest in the recent uprisings in Libya, Egypt, Tunisia, and other Middle Eastern countries. “We have been particularly inspired by the courage and determination of the activists in the Middle East and North Africa and in other repressive societies who have demanded peaceful democratic change and respect for their universal human rights. The United States will stand with those who seek to advance the causes of democracy and human rights wherever they may live, and we will stand with those who exercise their fundamental freedoms of expression and assembly in a peaceful way,” she said.

Clinton expressed hope that this year’s Human Rights Report would bring increased attention to those countries, and help them to transition to more democratic nations.

“It is refreshing to see the Department of State acknowledge activists’ efforts in the Middle East demand peaceful, democratic change, in their exercise of universal human rights,” says Dallas immigration lawyer Stewart Rabinowitz of the firm of Rabinowitz & Rabinowitz, P.C. “Equally so, it is significant that United States considers human rights a core element of its foreign policy.”

Clinton also announced the launch of humanrights.gov, a government website that will provide a searchable database of reports, statements and news from around the world. “We hope this will make it easier for citizens, scholars, NGOs, and international organizations to find the information they need to hold governments accountable,” she said, about the site.

To learn more, contact a Dallas immigration lawyer or Dallas immigration attorney at Rabinowitz & Rabinowitz, P.C., call 1.972.233.6200 or visit http://www.rabinowitzrabinowitz.com.

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