[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 5]
[Senate]
[Page 6826]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




             DANIEL PEARL FREEDOM OF THE PRESS ACT OF 2009

  Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
Committee on Foreign Relations be discharged from further consideration 
of H.R. 3714 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The bill clerk read as follows:

       A bill (H.R. 3714) to amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 
     1961 to include in the Annual Country Reports on Human Rights 
     and Practices information about freedom of the press in 
     foreign countries, and for other purposes.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I congratulate the Senate for enacting the 
Daniel Pearl Freedom of the Press Act, H.R. 3714, a bill to strengthen 
and protect press freedoms around the world. I am proud to cosponsor 
the Senate companion to this bill, S. 1739.
  I congratulate and commend my good friend, Senator Dodd, for his 
leadership on this bill and for his longstanding commitment to freedom 
of the press. I have worked closely with Senator Dodd for many years on 
legislation to establish a Federal shield law for journalists, and I am 
pleased that the Judiciary Committee recently reported Federal shield 
legislation. I also commend Representative Adam Schiff for championing 
this important legislation in the House of Representatives.
  The Daniel Pearl Freedom of the Press Act will amend the Foreign 
Assistance Act of 1961 to require the Secretary of State to include 
information about freedom of the press practices in other countries in 
the Annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. The bill will 
also require that this report identify countries in which there are 
violations of freedom of the press, such as physical attacks on 
journalists, imprisonment, and censorship by foreign governments.
  The Committee to Protect Journalists reported that more journalists 
have been killed around the world in 2009 than in any other year since 
that organization first started tracking this data in 1981. This 
troubling report demonstrates that the press freedoms that we often 
take for granted at home are in danger of being snuffed out in many 
other parts of the world. I believe that this bill will help to reverse 
this trend and to signal to the world community that the United States 
is committed to ensuring freedom of the press at home and abroad.
  Thomas Jefferson once wrote in a letter to fellow Founding Father 
John Adams that ``[t]he light which has been shed on mankind by the art 
of printing has eminently changed the condition of the world . . . And 
while printing is preserved, it can no more recede than the sun return 
on his course.'' Although these words were written almost two centuries 
ago, the critical role of a free and vibrant press is no less 
significant today. Again, I congratulate the lead sponsors of this 
important legislation for their commitment to freedom of the press. I 
urge the President to promptly sign this important legislation into 
law.
  Mr. WHITEHOUSE. I ask unanimous consent that the bill be read a third 
time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, with 
no intervening action or debate, and that any statements relating to 
the measure be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The bill (H.R. 3714) was ordered to be read a third time, was read 
the third time, and passed.

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