[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 27 (Friday, February 18, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E297-E298]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              SUPPORT THE HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY FUND

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. DONALD M. PAYNE

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, February 18, 2011

  Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to oppose amendment #380, 
proposed by our colleagues Mr. Reed and Mr. Graves, which eliminate the 
State Department Democracy Fund and the Human Rights and Democracy Fund 
(HRDF).
  The Human Rights and Democracy Fund funded by the Democracy Fund 
appropriation, finances innovative projects across the world to support 
the long-standing bipartisan U.S. foreign policy goals of defending 
human rights and advancing democratic values. Continued HRDF 
programming is vital to U.S. national

[[Page E298]]

security because democratic governance fosters more stable countries 
and regions, and free nations are more peaceful towards other 
democracies. Democracy promotion funding, started under President 
Reagan, has grown to its current consistent level of $70 million. 
Sustained congressional support for HRDF is critical.
  Promoting democracy and human rights is a cornerstone of U.S. foreign 
policy goals and the advancement of our national interests because it 
is the most effective long-term way to strengthen international 
stability. By reducing regional conflicts, countering terrorism and 
terror-supporting extremism, and extending peace and prosperity, the 
U.S. protects liberty and justice and the non-negotiable demands of 
human dignity.
  The Human Rights and Democracy Fund is the foundation for U.S. 
support for democracy and human rights across the globe. With HRDF, the 
U.S. addresses the most egregious of human rights abuses, open 
political space in struggling and nascent democracies and authoritarian 
regimes, promote religious freedom and tolerance, support civil 
society, protect at risk populations, and further global internet 
freedom and corporate social responsibility throughout the world. With 
HRDF, the United States was able to help counter extremism by 
supporting at risk populations in the Middle East, thereby reducing 
breeding grounds of future terrorists. DRL was able to provide 
thousands of Haitians with internet and radio access in the immediate 
aftermath of the Hurricane there.
  The Human Rights and Democracy Fund is enabling the U.S. to implement 
innovative programs across Africa. In Morocco, the Democracy Fund 
supports justice sector institutions to develop alternatives to pre-
trial detention of youth offenders that enable rehabilitation outside 
of prison. To stem gender-based violence (GBV) in the war-torn region 
of eastern Congo, the State Department's Bureau of Democracy, Human 
Rights, and Labor (DRL) initiative provided legal assistance to victims 
of sexual violence. As a result, 296 GBV survivors received legal 
counseling and 212 survivors received psychological counseling; 98 
criminal complaints were filed against suspected perpetrators; and an 
unprecedented 25 rape convictions were secured. In Sudan, in response 
to widespread violence against women in Darfur, DRL used Democracy Fund 
appropriations to provide critical services and community outreach to 
survivors of gender-based violence. Through the establishment of women 
centers, tens of thousands of women received an array of services, 
including literacy classes, health education, income-generating 
activities and treatment for sexual violence including medical, 
psychosocial, and case management services.
  Without HRDF, victims will lose valuable avenues for recourse, civil 
society activists will become increasingly isolated, women will become 
more vulnerable, and truth-telling journalists will be quieted. DRL 
would not be able to support efforts to push the Chinese government to 
more actively disclose food and drug safety information that directly 
affects the well-being of the American public; foster critical advances 
in the rule law, including criminal justice reform; support the growth 
of the NGO sector and its advocacy on behalf of the marginalized in 
society; or widen space for religious freedom. Without HRDF, DRL would 
not be able to help male civic and religious leaders be a powerful 
voice for the rights of women in Afghanistan.
  I urge my colleagues to support democracy and human rights in the 
developing world by voting NO on the Reed/Graves amendment #380.

                          ____________________