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03-09-2007, 14:23 PM
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#1 (permalink)
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Postmaster General
Military Professional
Join Date: 08-20-03
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Our human rights hypocrisy
Quote:
Rosa Brooks:
Our human rights hypocrisy
A federal report has harsh words for foreign governments while barely mentioning U.S. violations.
March 9, 2007
ON TUESDAY — to ritualized hoots of derision from around the globe — the U.S. Department of State released its 2006 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. The annual reports detail "the status of internationally recognized human rights" in virtually every country in the world — except, of course, the U.S. itself.
At first glance, this year's reports contain few surprises. The State Department laments the genocide in Darfur, notes that Russia has experienced a "further erosion of government accountability" and reminds us that Cuba denies its citizens "the fundamental right to change their government peacefully." The reports also document rights abuses in China, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Venezuela, North Korea — in fact, pretty much all over the place. Even tiny Monaco is rebuked for denying its citizens "the right to change their government or denounce the royal family."
Although the State Department announces the annual reports with fanfare, the rest of the world rarely responds with enthusiasm. This year is no exception. China, a perennial target, declared that "the United States has lorded it over other countries by condemning other countries' human rights practices while ignoring its own problems." Other foreign commentators also complained about U.S. hypocrisy. After Guantanamo Bay, Abu Ghraib, Haditha and other highly publicized human rights controversies, they wondered, where does the U.S. get off casting stones at others?
There's nothing inherently sinister about the State Department's failure to include a chapter on U.S. human rights abuses in the reports. Originally intended for internal government consumption, the reports were designed to help Congress determine which lucky nations would receive foreign aid. (Back in the day, Congress had a quaint tradition of insisting that the U.S. not provide security assistance to foreign governments responsible for "gross violations" of human rights.) Because — by definition — the U.S. doesn't provide foreign aid to itself, there was traditionally no reason for the reports to detail U.S. human rights lapses.
But over the years, the country reports have evolved far beyond their original purpose, becoming a high-visibility part of U.S. public diplomacy. As a result, they're inevitably scrutinized with care, both for what they say and what they don't say.
On close examination, this year's reports are notable for several major omissions — and one intriguing inclusion.
First, the intriguing inclusion: This year's reports contain an unusual — if elliptical — acknowledgment of serious U.S. failings. "We recognize that we are writing this report at a time when our own record, and actions we have taken to respond to the terrorist attacks against us, have been questioned," notes the introduction, which goes on to insist that "U.S. laws, policies and practices governing the detention, treatment and trial of terrorist suspects have evolved considerably over the last five years." It ain't much, but it's significant.
In the sausage factory of the executive branch, phrases like those only end up in the annual country reports after months of interagency slicing and dicing. Those unprecedented sentences survived because Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice fought for them — and won, beating back opposition that came mainly from Vice President Dick Cheney's office. No one should view this as a dramatic turnaround, but it suggests a growing administration awareness of just how much U.S. credibility has suffered as a result of post-9/11 human rights abuses.
Still, those important sentences are undermined by some glaring omissions in the country reports.
The report on Iraq, for instance, contains harsh words for the government, decrying "overcrowding and lack of judicial oversight" in Iraqi prisons and detention centers, incidents of "arbitrary arrest and detention" and "instances of torture and other abuses by government agents and by illegal armed groups." Not mentioned at all: The U.S. itself holds about 14,000 detainees in Iraq. Although some U.S. officials acknowledge that many of these detainees are probably innocent, most have never had any meaningful opportunity to challenge their detention. Meanwhile, credible allegations of detainee abuse persist.
Similarly, the report on Afghanistan highlights serious abuses by the Taliban and the Afghan government but makes no mention of the hundreds of detainees still held in Afghanistan by U.S. military and intelligence agencies. Reports on Poland, Romania, Germany and Italy contain no references to investigations into secret U.S. detention facilities or the illegal U.S. abduction and transfer of terror suspects to third countries that use torture.
But in the end, though their omissions expose the U.S. to charges of hypocrisy, the annual country reports remain valuable. Not least, the reports represent an ongoing U.S. acknowledgment that core human rights norms ought to be respected by all — even though the U.S. has lately been a notorious violator.
In 1655, La Rochefoucauld wrote that "hypocrisy is the homage vice pays to virtue." If that's true, there's hope for the U.S. government yet.
rbrooks@latimescolumnists.com
Our human rights hypocrisy - Los Angeles Times
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The report is an internal US document that requires a stipulation about human rights violation so as to judge the merits of US Foreign aid and so it is nothing to get surprised about if it does not highlight US human rights violations.
That Condoleezza Rice had the courage to mention, even if very mildly, the US errors, it speaks highly of the lady's moral courage. It has not been done before. She does stand head over shoulders to many international politicians, who pretend piety.
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The report, however, is important to know of the human rights situation the world over. It need not be the Gospel Truth, but it nevertheless is a documented report that does have an effect on world politics.
__________________
"Some have learnt many Tricks of sly Evasion, Instead of Truth they use Equivocation, And eke it out with mental Reservation, Which is to good Men an Abomination."
I don't have to attend every argument I'm invited to.
HAKUNA MATATA
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03-09-2007, 21:41 PM
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#2 (permalink)
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Senior Contributor
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ray
The report is an internal US document that requires a stipulation about human rights violation so as to judge the merits of US Foreign aid and so it is nothing to get surprised about if it does not highlight US human rights violations.
That Condoleezza Rice had the courage to mention, even if very mildly, the US errors, it speaks highly of the lady's moral courage. It has not been done before. She does stand head over shoulders to many international politicians, who pretend piety.
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The report, however, is important to know of the human rights situation the world over. It need not be the Gospel Truth, but it nevertheless is a documented report that does have an effect on world politics.
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In the world of politics it is that kind of courage that seperates that person from the crowd, and that person usually sees their career end because they are villafied by their peers for not being a "team player". First rule of politics is "Deny everything and admit nothing." You and I may respect C. Rice for her courage, but her collegues will try to put her out to pasture for it. |
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03-09-2007, 21:58 PM
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#3 (permalink)
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Senior Contributor
Join Date: 01-27-06
Location: DPRK, Democratik People's Republik of Kalifornia
Country: 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ray
The report is an internal US document that requires a stipulation about human rights violation so as to judge the merits of US Foreign aid and so it is nothing to get surprised about if it does not highlight US human rights violations.
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Hey, I'm all for denouncing the US human rights violations if we can curtail our aid to our own government.
Did you know that we provide the koran to terrorists held in our prison camps?
Did you know we provide meals that comply to the muslim dietary requirement to terrorists in our prison camps?
Did you know we allow terrorists in our prison camps to pray 5 times a day?
Did you know the guards at our terrorists prison camps are not allowed to touch the koran?
Did you know a US border agent framed by our own federal government to protect a drug dealer/human trafficker was denied a request to have a bible?
There are human rights violations. You just have to look to see who the victim is.
__________________
"Only Nixon can go to China." -- Old Vulcan proverb.
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03-10-2007, 05:28 AM
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#4 (permalink)
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Banished
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gunnut
Hey, I'm all for denouncing the US human rights violations if we can curtail our aid to our own government.
Did you know that we provide the koran to terrorists held in our prison camps?
Did you know we provide meals that comply to the muslim dietary requirement to terrorists in our prison camps?
Did you know we allow terrorists in our prison camps to pray 5 times a day?
Did you know the guards at our terrorists prison camps are not allowed to touch the koran?
Did you know a US border agent framed by our own federal government to protect a drug dealer/human trafficker was denied a request to have a bible?
There are human rights violations. You just have to look to see who the victim is.
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Don't you mean concentration camp? In fact, don't you mean concentration camp where concentration camp victims are tortured, denied their habeus corpus rights and left to rot at the whim of a fascist Government ? |
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03-10-2007, 06:42 AM
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#5 (permalink)
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Senior Contributor
Join Date: 01-27-06
Location: DPRK, Democratik People's Republik of Kalifornia
Country:
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bateman
Don't you mean concentration camp? In fact, don't you mean concentration camp where concentration camp victims are tortured, denied their habeus corpus rights and left to rot at the whim of a fascist Government ?
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You mean like what Fascist Democrat Roosevelt did in WW2 to American citizens who happened to look different? Nope, I definitely don't mean concentration camp. I can only wish Roosevelt treated his citizens half as good as how we're treating terrorists now. |
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