[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 161 (Thursday, September 17, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5698-S5699]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





                     INTERNATIONAL DAY OF DEMOCRACY

  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, today I rise to commemorate the 
International Day of Democracy. Since 2007, September 15 has offered an 
opportunity each year to reflect on the democratic values that we 
cherish and to recommit ourselves to promoting them around the world.
  The democratic project is especially important at this moment. 
Although some communities are experiencing greater rights and freedoms 
than ever before, there is also an alarming trend of democratic 
backsliding in many corners of the globe.
  Countries that were becoming increasingly open and egalitarian are 
moving back toward authoritarianism under unlawful, oppressive leaders.
  Meanwhile, countries that were already unfree are suffering even more 
disturbing civil and human rights abuses.
  If we turn a blind eye to these developments, it will embolden bad 
actors to continue undermining freedom, peace, and equality. The United 
States must lead all democracy-loving people in calling out subversions 
of democratic rights wherever they exist and holding those responsible 
to account.
  One country that requires our urgent attention is China. The 
Government of China has not adhered to democratic norms for a long 
time, but we should never allow that failure to normalize ongoing human 
rights abuses such as the vicious opposition to the Uighurs.
  International nongovernmental organizations have documented China's 
mass surveillance, arbitrary detention, torture, and political 
indoctrination of these communities for no reason other than their 
religious and cultural differences.
  We must do everything possible to fight for the freedom and equality 
of the Uighurs to help end this atrocity.
  We also need to stand up for the rights of the people of Hong Kong. 
Beijing's attempt to circumvent Hong Kong's independent legal system 
with a far-reaching, oppressive national security law is dangerous and 
in complete disregard of the one-country, two-system principle. I am 
likewise disturbed that the Hong Kong government inexplicably postponed 
the September regional elections for another year. The people of Hong 
Kong deserve to see their democratic aspirations realized and 
protected. I am pleased that there is bipartisan, strong support in the 
U.S. Senate and in the House for the people of Hong Kong, and I joined 
with Senator Rubio in introducing legislation to make that clear.

  China is certainly not the only place where democratic rights are 
threatened. We need to look closer to home, as well, to countries like 
Venezuela. In Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro's illegal regime has produced 
one of the worst humanitarian crises by plundering the country's 
resources for personal gain and using the distribution of food as a 
tool for social control. Maduro has completely ignored the Venezuelan 
people's call to return to democracy and is using the current global 
pandemic as an opportunity to consolidate his own power.
  In addition to addressing quasi-dictatorships in the Western 
Hemisphere, we must maintain pressure on the so-called ``last 
dictator'' of Europe, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko. While 
Lukashenko's near three-decade rule has been full of corrupt power 
grabs and crackdowns and dissent, his behavior surrounding the recent 
Presidential election demonstrates a new level of lawlessness. 
Lukashenko refused to certify opposing candidates and then imprisoned 
them. He claimed victory through clearly fraudulent election results. 
He restricted the free flow of information by shutting down the 
internet and targeting journalists. And he oversaw the brutal 
repression of protesters, including many instances of Belarusian 
security forces repeatedly torturing detained civilians. Lukashenko 
knows that the Belarusian people are ready for a new democratic chapter 
that does not include him. Instead of stepping aside to serve the 
interests of his country, he has abandoned the rule of law in order to 
protect his own power.
  It is no surprise that Lukashenko has appealed to Vladimir Putin to 
endorse this tyrannical approach. President Putin is, after all, a 
veteran when it comes to destabilizing democracies. He has done so not 
only in his own country of Russia, where he overcomes dissent by 
changing the constitution to secure his rule and poisoning political 
opponents, but also in other parts of the world. That includes his 
continuous attempts to undermine our democracy here in the United 
States.
  President Trump has completely failed to hold Vladimir Putin 
accountable for abusing his own people's human rights and attacking the 
United States. Even worse, President Trump appears to have taken a page 
out of Putin's book, suggesting that if he were not reelected this 
November, he may not accept the results of that election. It is a sad 
commentary on the state of our domestic affairs that we have to take 
such a ludicrous statement seriously. We know that global democracy is 
in trouble when the leader of the United States is copying undemocratic 
heads of state instead of condemning them.
  These are but a few snapshots of what is happening in many countries 
around the world. If there is anything that I have learned in my many 
years of public service, it is that we can never take democracy--and 
all the freedoms, rights, and opportunities it entails--for granted. My 
work in the House and the Senate on the Helsinki Commission really 
embodies that commitment to stand up for human rights. The Helsinki 
Final Act made it clear that all States in Europe, the former Soviet 
Union, United States, and Canada embraced not only democratic 
principles and human rights of good governance but also the principle 
that we have a right to challenge the compliance with those commitments 
in any other member state. It is not interfering in their internal 
matters; it is holding them to the commitments they made in the 
Helsinki Final Act.
  Democracy is fragile. It must be constantly tended to and protected 
to survive and flourish. Therefore, while we have a responsibility to 
monitor the status of democracy in other parts of the world, we have a 
parallel duty to safeguard and tend to our democracy here at home. I 
cannot remember a more dangerous time for American democracy since the 
Civil War.
  To protect our democracy, we must protect the ability of every 
individual to exercise her or his right to vote. In the middle of a 
pandemic, that means expanding the ability to vote by mail so that we 
do not force people to choose between participating in our democracy or 
protecting their health.
  We need to make sure that State and local election boards get the 
resources they need to cover the costs of mail-in voting, and we need 
to defend the strength, integrity, and impartiality of the U.S. Postal 
Service.
  Our President also openly invites foreign powers to interfere in our 
election, and his encouragement has been effective. The same external 
factors that we know influenced the elections in 2016 are once again 
actively planning to interfere in the upcoming election. Regardless of 
party affiliation, we should all be able to unite in pursuit of a 
healthy, functioning democracy. That requires us to take action against 
the foreign actors seeking to spread misinformation and divide 
Americans for their own benefit.
  When we fail to protect democracy in the United States, it has 
consequences all over the world. After he was confronted about his 
recent brutal crackdown on protesters, journalists, and opposition 
members, Belarus President Lukashenko said that the United States 
``should sort out their own affairs'' before attempting to interfere in 
Belarus. His statements made clear that President Trump and his 
administration and supporters' undemocratic behavior is eroding our 
credibility on the global stage as a voice for human rights. Let today, 
International Day for Democracy, be a reminder for us to stand up in 
defense of democracy, whether we are talking about China, Venezuela, 
Belarus, or here in our own backyard. The world is counting on us.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Braun). The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that I be 
allowed to use, during my remarks, two

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exhibits of the Federal aid application form.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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