About the Author: Uzra Zeya serves as Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor.

Some 15 years ago, I had the distinct privilege of serving as the Human Rights Officer in Damascus, Syria. My responsibilities were much like those of the hundreds of colleagues who contributed to the 2012 Human Rights Reports at U.S. missions worldwide. I met with local civil society leaders and human rights defenders as well as government officials and the media in order to provide an accurate, honest picture of the human rights situation on the ground. We pride ourselves on this objective reporting, and it was a great honor to stand beside Secretary of State John Kerry as hereleased the 2012 Human… more »

About the Author: David Meyer is a Foreign Affairs Officer working on Roma issues in the Office of European Affairs in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor.

The Romani people, one of the largest minority groups in Europe, have made significant contributions to European and American culture and societies. From musicians and dancers in Spain, to human rights lawyers in Budapest, to dedicated educators in Macedonia, the Roma people continue to shape Europe’s future. Yet, the Roma are one of the most marginalized groups in Europe, facing challenges to overcome systematic discrimination. On April 8, 2013, U.S. and European human rights activists and scholars came together at Harvard University for a conference entitled “Realizing Roma Rights: Addressing Violence, Discrimination, and Segregation in Europe to celebrate International Roma Day” to discuss how the Roma can reclaim their rights and harness the human potential of a diverse population of more than 10 million people.

Living in Eastern Europe in 2009, I witnessed firsthand… more »

About the Author: David Kennedy is a Public Affairs Officer at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations in Geneva.

At the front lines of the fight for freedom of expression and peaceful assembly are human rights defenders, who often depend on the internet to communicate with fellow activists and to report on human rights violations to the international community. For the third year in a row, the U.S. Mission to the United Nations in Geneva brought together human rights activists from different parts of the world to meet with fellow activists, U.S. and international government leaders, and members of civil society and the private sector. Since 2011, the Internet Freedom Fellows program has convened human rights activists from across the globe to Geneva, Washington and Silicon… more »

About the Author: Ambassador Eileen Chamberlain Donahoe serves as the U.S. Representative to the Human Rights Council.

The Human Rights Council 22nd Session, which ended on March 22, was one of the most significant in the Council’s short history. The packed agenda and vast portfolio of country situations and human rights issues addressed over the past four weeks are clear evidence of the Council’s ability to serve as the lead entity in the UN for promoting and protecting human rights.

In addition to the Council’s official agenda, nearly 150 different parallel events sponsored by civil society and governments took place, a clear signal that human rights defenders consider the Council a crucial venue for their work. When Shin Dong Hyuk, a young man who escaped from the brutal North Korean labor camp in which he had been born and grew up, gave compelling testimony at an event organized by a leading NGO, it was clear that the Council can and does bring the reality of human rights issues… more »

About the Author: Michael Posner serves as Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor.

As we start the New Year, I want to reflect on four events that took place in the last few months of 2012 that illustrate how the Obama Administration’s human rights policies are achieving concrete results. 

• In November, President Obama became the first sitting U.S. president to visit Burma. This visit was the culmination of 18 months of active diplomatic efforts between the United States and Burma focused significantly on political and economic reform and the protection of human rights. During the President’s visit, the Burmese government announced a series of important human rights commitments, including access for the International Committee of the Red Cross to prisons and conflict areas, the opening of… more »

About the Author: Melanne Verveer serves as Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues.

As we commemorate International Human Rights Day today, December 10, I can’t help but recall the moment 17 years ago in Beijing when then-First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton proclaimed, “Women’s rights are human rights and human rights are women’s rights.”

Today, for many of us, these 11 words may seem obvious, even instinctive. But in 1995, they were a revelation. I remember being among the delegates at the Fourth World Conference on Women, and feeling a current of excitement wash across the room. It was perhaps one of the first times the world had heard a person of global stature assert at a global forum in such unequivocal terms that women’s rights and human rights were one and the same.

Today, in my official travels, I still meet women all over the world who tell me how those eleven words nearly two decades ago changed their lives. They helped raise the… more »

Press Statement
Victoria Nuland
Department Spokesperson
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
December 10, 2012

We are deeply concerned by the Cuban Government’s repeated use of arbitrary detention and violence to silence critics, disrupt peaceful assembly, and intimidate independent civil society.

We understand that across Cuba, 94 members of the peaceful pro-democracy group - The Ladies in White - were reportedly beaten and detained on December 9. Just ahead of Human Rights Day, the women had used their weekly gathering, church attendance, and peaceful march to focus attention on continued human rights abuses in Cuba.

We call on the Cuban Government to end the increasingly common practice of arbitrary and extrajudicial detentions, and we look forward to the day when all Cubans can freely express their ideas, assemble freely, and express their opinions peacefully.

About the Author: Michael Posner serves as Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor.

Sixty-four years ago today, on December 10, 1948, the world came together to adopt the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). In the UDHR, the United States and governments from around the globe recognized that human beings are, by virtue of their birth, endowed with certain inalienable rights, and that these serve as “the foundation of freedom, justice, and peace in the world.” Today, we affirm this commitment and look to the Universal Declaration not just as a reminder of values, but as a guide for action.

Last Thursday in Dublin, Secretary Clinton emphasized the important role that human rights has played and will continue to play in our foreign policy. As she said,… more »

Press Statement
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
December 10, 2012

On December 10, 1948, world leaders gathered at the United Nations General Assembly and affirmed the inherent dignity and inalienable rights of all people. In adopting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the international community committed to building a world where all people are “born free and equal in dignity and rights” and are entitled to liberty, equality, and justice under the law. As we celebrate Human Rights Day more than six decades after the adoption of this cornerstone document, we reaffirm our commitment to promoting and protecting its fundamental truths.

We do so by advancing the universal freedoms enshrined in the UDHR, including the freedom to speak, the freedom to assemble, and the freedom to worship. When governments seek to deny these liberties through repressive laws and blunt force, we stand against this oppression and with people around the world as they defend their rights. These rights are complementary and mutually reinforcing. As I said in Dublin, religious freedom is about people being able to practice their faith, but it is also about the right of people to think what they want, say what they think, associate with others, and assemble peacefully without the state looking over their shoulders or prohibiting them from doing so. It is neither necessary nor acceptable to sacrifice one right in the name of another. MORE

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton delivers remarks entitled “Frontlines and Frontiers: Making Human Rights a Human Reality” in Dublin, Ireland on December 6, 2012. A text transcript can be found at http://www.state.gov/secretary/rm/2012/12/201618.htm.