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U.S.: Clinton Promoting Global Human Rights

By Frank T. Csongos

U.S. President Bill Clinton spoke out on Monday for human rights around the
world. He used the
anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a platform to
advocate tolerance in places
ranging from Serbia to Afghanistan. RFE/RL's Senior Correspondent Frank T.
Csongos reports from
Washington. 

Washington, 7 December 1999 (RFE/RL) -- U.S. President Bill Clinton says
America will keep
campaigning for human rights around the globe because it is not only the
right thing to do but it is the best
way to foster peace, freedom, and tolerance.

Clinton commemorated at a White House ceremony the 51st anniversary of the
Universal Declaration of
Human Rights by the United Nations General Assembly. The document was signed
on December 10, 1948
in Paris. The Soviet Union and six of its allies abstained in voting for the
declaration at the assembly.

The document affirms standards of human rights and fundamental freedoms
worldwide. It declares: "All
human beings are free and equal in dignity and human rights. All have the
right to life, liberty and security. All
are endowed with reason and conscience. All have the right to a standard of
living adequate to health and
well-being."

Clinton said on Monday the real genius of the declaration is that basic
human rights are not cultural, but
universal.

In commemorating the declaration, Clinton honored the legacy of former First
Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, wife
of four-term U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Eleanor Roosevelt was a
driving force behind the
declaration and served as the first chairwoman of the UN Commission on Human
Rights.

Clinton used the occasion to honor five Americans who have fought for the
advancement of human rights.
The group included American civil rights and religious figures and advocates
of women's rights.

In a speech, Clinton said much work is to be done to make the world better.

"We must stay committed in the places where the glory has not come and
continue to speak out for human
rights around the world, from Burma to Cuba to Sudan; from Serbia to North
Korea and Vietnam. We must
do so because it's the right thing to do and the surest path to a world that
is safe, democratic and free."

Clinton then singled out Afghanistan, where he said the ruling Taliban
movement has been committing
widespread human rights violations. "In Afghanistan we have strongly
condemned the Taliban's despicable
treatment of women and girls. We have worked with the United Nations to
impose sanctions against the
Taliban, while ensuring that the Afghan people continue to receive
humanitarian assistance. We are
Afghanistan's strongest critic, but also its largest humanitarian donor, and
today we take another step
forward." 

Clinton announced that the United States will provide at least $2 million
next year to educate and improve
the health of Afghan women and children refugees. And he said the U.S. will
make available $1.5 million in
emergency aid for those who were displaced by the recent Taliban military
offensive.

Also participating in the human rights declaration commemoration was First
Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton.

"The declaration points to all the major faiths of the world which have at
the core the belief that we should
treat one another as we would ourselves and our neighbors. Nothing debases
religion more than using it as a
weapon of intolerance."

The Clintons invited Belquis Ahmadi, an Afghan refugee and human rights
figure, to take part in the
commemoration. She spoke about intolerance facing women in Afghanistan and
said oppressed people
around the world take strength about America's support of liberties.

"I am here today because you and your government have been a voice for human
rights and a voice for
women all around the globe. You give us hope that we will not be silenced."

Clinton used the event to criticize the continued Russian military offensive
against Chechnya, saying he is
deeply disturbed by reports that innocent Chechens are bearing the brunt of
the war.

He also expressed concern about China's crackdown on adherents of the Falun
Gong religious movement,
which he called troubling.

07-12-99 

07-12-99