Condoleezza Rice Delivers Remarks On Human Rights and Democracy

SECRETARY RICE DELIVERS REMARKS ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY

MARCH 28, 2005

SPEAKERS: CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECRETARY OF STATE

MICHAEL KOZAK, ACTING ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE, BUREAU OF DEMOCRACY, HUMAN RIGHTS, AND LABOR

[*] RICE: Good morning.

QUESTION: Happy Easter, plus one.

RICE: Oh, thank you very much. It was a very nice holiday. Thank you.

In his inaugural address, President Bush said, "It is the policy of the United States to seek and support the growth of democratic movements and institutions in every nation and culture, with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in the world."

One of history's clearest lessons is that our nation is safer and the world more secure whenever freedom and democracy prevail.

The charge to the international community is clear. We are on the right side of freedom's divide, and we have an obligation to help those who are unlucky enough to have been born on the wrong side of that divide.

America's experience as a democracy affirms our conviction that all people can live and prosper in peace. Even in our darkest moments here in the United States, we have been guided by our commitment to freedom and self-government.

We have reached a simple conclusion: The survival of liberty in our land is dependent on the growth of liberty in other lands.

Freedom, democracy and human rights are not American principles or Western values. These ideals are shared by all people. They are the non-negotiable demands of human dignity.

Today it is my pleasure to present the State Department's report, "Supporting Human Rights and Democracy." This congressionally mandated report details the many ways the United States is working to advance the cause of freedom worldwide.

As this year's report describes in detail, we are working tirelessly to support democracy and human rights in every country where these principles are not completely fulfilled.

The past year has seen a dramatic shift in the world's landscape. Elections in Afghanistan, the Palestinian territories and Iraq, and developments in places like Georgia and Ukraine and Lebanon have brought the dramatic first steps of democracy to populations that have lived under tyranny and oppression for too long.

What these have shown us is that societies of free citizens must be founded on a commitment to the dignity of each individual.

Some have questioned whether certain countries or societies are ready for freedom or ready to take responsibility in determining their own futures, as if freedom and human rights were prizes to be won.

RICE: We reject these cynic...

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