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MR MILLER: Good afternoon, everybody. Let me provide the – I’m going to start out with – by supplying you with the run of present right this moment for the discharge of the State Department’s annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. The Secretary will open it up with some opening feedback, then take a few questions. He might be adopted by Ambassador Robert Gilchrist, the senior official within the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, who will give extra feedback after which keep to take your questions in regards to the report. And then I’ll observe up with any extra questions you could have about the remainder of the world.
With that, I’ll flip it over to the Secretary.
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Thanks, Matt. Hey, good afternoon, everybody.
QUESTION: Good afternoon.
SECRETARY BLINKEN: So I’m happy to be right here to launch the 2023 Human Rights Report. At the top of final yr, we marked the seventy fifth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, affirming the basic concept that “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.” Those phrases 75 years in the past enshrined a variety of common rights – civil and political, financial, social, cultural – the correct to precise ourselves freely, to decide on our leaders, to worship as we want, the correct to training, to simply labor situations.
Standing up for freedom and human rights is solely the correct factor to do. But defending and selling this inalienable and common rights can be profoundly in our nationwide curiosity. Countries that respect human rights usually tend to be peaceable, affluent, steady.
The report that we’re placing out right this moment presents a factual, systematic account of human rights information throughout practically 200 nations and territories. Each one is held to the identical customary – developed and growing nations, rivals, in addition to allies and companions. While the report focuses on human rights challenges overseas, we acknowledge that the United States faces its personal shortcomings. The energy of democracies like ours is that we deal with these shortcomings, these imperfections brazenly, with out sweeping them below the rug.
The report illustrates that there’s a lot work to be accomplished to uphold the rights set out within the Universal Declaration. We as soon as once more see human rights and the rule of legislation below stress in additional methods and in additional locations throughout the globe. Governments proceed to lock up residents who problem these in energy and name for a greater future, from Belarus to Venezuela. Many are younger. Of the roughly 1,000 political prisoners in Cuba, the typical age is simply 32.
Tragically, as we noticed with Aleksey Navalny’s unjust imprisonment in a Russian penal colony, incarceration can include horrific situations – with abuse, even demise. Governments like Russia additionally arbitrarily detain overseas nationals for political functions, utilizing human beings as bargaining chips. Paul Whelan, Evan Gershkovich, and each unjustly held particular person deserves to go free. The United States and our many companions will maintain working on daily basis to reunite them with their households and to carry accountable governments that interact on this deplorable follow.
At the identical time, the report reveals that governments are extending their abuses past their very own borders. Nicaragua – making an attempt to stress and punish exiled activists by seizing their belongings. Tajikistan – working with different nations to forcibly return human rights defenders, legal professionals, and journalists who’ve fled overseas.
The report paperwork atrocities paying homage to humanity’s darkest moments. In Sudan, each the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces have dedicated warfare crimes. Rohingya in Burma, Uyghurs in Xinjiang – every victims of genocide and crimes towards humanity. The United States will proceed to lift our deep issues immediately with the governments accountable.
This yr’s report additionally captures human rights abuses towards members of susceptible communities. In Afghanistan, the Taliban have restricted work alternatives for girls, shuttered establishments discovered educating ladies, and growing floggings for ladies and men accused of, quote, “immoral conduct,” finish quote. Uganda handed a draconian and discriminatory Anti-Homosexuality Act, threatening LGBTQI+ people with life imprisonment, even demise, merely for being with the individual they beloved.
The United States can be actively working to make sure that rising applied sciences are used to bolster rights, not undermine them; to guarantee that know-how is used to advance equal alternative, to not discriminate towards individuals.
Just to quote one instance, we’ve mobilized a coalition of likeminded governments to counter the proliferation and misuse of economic spyware and adware. Today, as a part of our government-wide effort, we’re imposing visa restrictions on greater than a dozen people who contributed to human rights abuses by serving to to develop and promote these instruments.
Hamas’s horrific assaults on Israel on October seventh final yr, and the devastating lack of civilian life in Gaza as Israel workout routines its proper to make sure that these assaults by no means occur once more, have additionally raised deeply troubling human rights issues.
We proceed to work on daily basis to carry the combating to an finish, to safe the discharge of hostages held by Hamas and different teams, to uphold worldwide humanitarian legislation, to stop additional struggling, to create a path towards a extra peaceable and safe future for Israelis and Palestinians alike.
These are just some illustrations from the numerous nations coated on this report. And the report itself is only one of quite a few ways in which the United States is working to advertise respect for rights and the dignity of all individuals. We additionally leveraged bipartisan laws, just like the Global Magnitsky Act, and instruments just like the Khashoggi Ban to carry to account those that perpetrate or revenue from human rights abuses.
Thanks partly to efforts like these, particularly by advocates and residents who’re on the entrance strains, 2023 additionally noticed some encouraging developments. Despite the proliferation of anti-LGBTI+ legal guidelines in some components of the world, nations from Estonia to Japan to Mauritius made essential strides in advancing the rights of LGBTQI+ people. Even as labor activists have been focused, locked up, and killed, unions from South Africa to Mexico to Brazil improved working situations and superior employees organizing themselves – key goals of the worldwide labor directive that President Biden issued final November.
Jordan took steps to make sure that youngsters with disabilities may attend faculty and obtain the assist that they want. These brilliant spots are an essential reminder that progress on human rights is certainly potential, so long as dedicated people in each a part of the globe proceed to work to uphold basic dignity for all individuals.
On that observe, let me simply shut by thanking a remarkably devoted workforce throughout this division – right here on this constructing, at our posts around the globe – who’ve spent months painstakingly compiling this report. I additionally need to acknowledge everybody who helped doc the incidents that make up this essential useful resource – journalists, human rights defenders, residents – usually at nice private danger. Because of every of you, we now have a clearer image of human rights situations as they’re, in addition to a renewed dedication to strengthen them for the long run.
So with that, let me take a couple of questions, after which I’ll flip it again over to Bob and to Matt.
MR MILLER: Humeyra.
QUESTION: Hello, Mr. Secretary. I’ve two questions; one is in regards to the report, however let me rapidly go to your telephone calls final evening. You had two essential telephone calls with Israel’s Benny Gantz and Yoav Gallant, who each strongly objected to imminent punitive motion from U.S. on particular Israeli army unit over human rights allegations. Have these telephone calls modified your thoughts? When will you announce the motion?
And then coming again to the report once more, on this report you could have a sentence saying Israelis working in Gaza took no publicly seen steps to establish and punish officers accused of committing rights abuses. The accusations about IDF’s army conduct in Gaza have piled up; they embody utilizing meals as a weapon, focusing on civilian infrastructure, indiscriminate bombing – one thing even the President has stated is going down. So I’m questioning, we all know you’ve received ongoing processes about this, however may you inform us why is it taking so lengthy to make a definitive evaluation about these? And the truth that it’s taken so lengthy triggers, like – leads lots of people suggesting that U.S. has a double customary in relation to making use of the legislation with Israel. Does the U.S. have a double customary? Thank you.
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Great. Thanks, Humeyra. Let me begin with the final a part of the query: Do we now have a double customary? The reply is not any. As this report makes clear, typically, as we’re taking a look at human rights and the situation of human rights around the globe, we apply the identical customary to everybody, and that doesn’t change whether or not the nation in query is an adversary, a competitor, a pal, or an ally. And that’s vastly essential.
With regard to the Leahy Law report that I believe you have been referring to on the outset, this can be a – I believe an excellent instance of a course of that could be very deliberate, that seeks to get the information, to get all the data, that needs to be accomplished fastidiously, and that’s precisely how we proceeded, as we proceed with any nation that’s the recipient of army help from the United States. And once more, the identical customary applies.
I don’t have extra to say about it right this moment, however I believe you’ll see within the days forward that we are going to have extra to say, so please keep tuned on that.
On Gaza itself, a couple of issues. First, from day one, we’ve been working to do every little thing we will to attempt to improve safety for civilians in addition to to facilitate the supply of humanitarian help for the Gazans who so desperately want it. When it involves allegations of incidents of – whether or not it’s violations of worldwide humanitarian legislation, rights abuses, you title it, we now have processes inside the division which might be taking a look at incidents which were raised. Those processes are ongoing. And right here, once more, it’s essential that we take the time to do our greatest to get the information, to get the data, to do the evaluation. It’s very difficult to do that in actual time. And most – as you’ll see when you look again at different locations the place we’ve made determinations ourselves, it normally takes time to try this to get the – to get the data.
QUESTION: Can you at the very least present a timeline for any of that?
SECRETARY BLINKEN: So I’m not going to present you a timeline besides to say that these efforts are ongoing. And once we really feel that we’ve made the – that we now have the information, we’ve been capable of do the evaluation, we’ll make recognized the findings. Similarly, although, once we see studies of incidents, we additionally take these on to – on this case – the Israeli Government and ask for an evidence, details about what did or didn’t occur. That too is an ongoing course of, and it’s, I believe, crucial to guarantee that nations know that we’re watching this very, very fastidiously. But as I say on the Leahy piece of this, extra to come back within the coming days.
MR MILLER: Kylie.
QUESTION: Thank you for doing this, Secretary. I’ve a query on the report as properly with regard to what it says about Gaza, and it says that warfare crimes have been dedicated by Israel and Hamas. And I ponder if this constructing is definitely trying into these allegations to find out their validity, such as you guys regarded into allegations of warfare crimes in Ukraine; and if there isn’t an evaluation taking place on this constructing, who the U.S. Government is counting on for that evaluation to be made.
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Yeah, so Kylie, as I stated, we’re trying into studies, incidents which might be delivered to our consideration, and we now have a course of to try this, significantly if there are questions on whether or not U.S. arms have been concerned, and that’s ongoing. And we’re persevering with to be targeted on that.
Every scenario, each nation is totally different. For instance, the case of Ukraine, the place we now have made sure determinations, completely totally different scenario than in Gaza. The Ukrainians, to begin with, themselves weren’t in any method a authentic goal the best way, in fact, Hamas is in Gaza. They have been additionally not embedding themselves with civilians, hiding in and below condo buildings, mosques, hospitals, you title it. And as well as, within the case of Ukraine, when Russian forces, for instance, withdrew from Bucha, we have been capable of see, the world was capable of see very plainly what had occurred, and we have been capable of get the proof.
So every of those conditions is totally different, and we now have to do our greatest to gather the information and observe the information, and that’s what we’re doing.
QUESTION: So in the end, simply to be clear, this constructing will make its personal dedication if warfare crimes are being dedicated by Israel or Hamas or any of these different teams?
SECRETARY BLINKEN: We will – we make our personal determinations, and naturally there could also be different our bodies that do the identical, however we make our personal determinations. But importantly within the case of Israel, Israel has and has demonstrated the capability additionally to have a look at itself. And once more, that is what separates democracies from different nations – the flexibility, the willingness, the dedication to have a look at themselves. It’s my understanding that they’ve many open investigations primarily based on studies which were – which have come ahead with allegations about abuses of human rights or abuse of worldwide humanitarian legislation, legal guidelines of warfare, et cetera.
So within the first occasion, I believe that’s crucial factor, that any of our democracies need to guarantee that we’re policing ourselves, holding ourselves to the requirements that we’re asking of others. I consider Israel is within the technique of doing that primarily based, on information of open investigations that they’ve. And as I stated, when incidents are delivered to our consideration, we have a look at them, and significantly if there’s a risk that U.S. arms have been utilized in these incidents.
Thanks.
MR MILLER: Thank you, Mr. Secretary.
QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, does the Geneva Convention apply to Gaza? Reporters have been asking this for months and never gotten a solution.