[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 121 (Monday, July 12, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4817-S4818]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                        Nomination of Uzra Zeya

  Mr. MENENDEZ. Madam President, I rise today to express my support for 
the nomination of Uzra Zeya to be the next Under Secretary of State for 
Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights.
  Ms. Zeya is immensely qualified to lead U.S. efforts to recenter our 
most fundamental values in our foreign policy efforts and to strengthen 
the Bureaus she will lead. Her experience and the more than 20 years as 
a Foreign Service officer, including as the Acting Assistant Secretary 
of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor in the State 
Department, make her the perfect fit for this position.
  The previous administration abdicated our global responsibility, but 
we now have the opportunity to restore U.S. leadership in the fight for 
democracy, human rights, and rule of law around the world. It is an 
exciting prospect for us, but more importantly, it will give hope to 
those still fighting for their rights, the millions of people

[[Page S4818]]

around the world who look to the United States for inspiration and 
support in their own democratic struggles.
  We see that in places like Cuba today. Looking around the globe, we 
see China stripping away Hong Kong's autonomy and freedoms at an 
alarming pace. Military dictators are cementing their illegitimate rule 
in places like Burma and Mali, eroding and eliminating the institutions 
of democracy, while Russia and Belarus have imprisoned political 
opponents without accountability.
  At the same time, an unprecedented 80 million people have been 
forcibly displaced from their homes, communities, and countries. We 
must look no farther than our own southern border to see the 
destruction, desperation, and displacement wrought by violence, climate 
change, and lack of economic opportunity.
  All of these developments negatively impact American national 
security interests. Our Secretary of State and, indeed, our country 
need senior human rights leadership of the caliber of Ms. Zeya.
  The fact that the nomination of Ms. Zeya--a nominee so superbly 
qualified and whose leadership is so essential to rebuilding the State 
Department--has languished for 82 days is a travesty. I strongly urge 
my colleagues to join me in voting to confirm her to the position of 
Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human 
Rights, and I hope my Republican colleagues will stop blocking 
qualified and critical nominees to the Nation's foreign policy and 
national security mission from moving forward
  With that, I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Florida.