    [United States Statutes at Large, Volume 117, 108th Congress, 1st Session]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    Proclamation 7634 of December 9, 2002

    Human Rights Day, Bill of Rights Day, and Human Rights Week, 2002

    By the President of the United States of America
    A Proclamation

    America's commitment to individual freedom and democracy provides the
    foundation for our society. As a Nation, we cherish the values of free
    speech, equal justice, and religious tolerance, and we steadfastly
    oppose the forces of cruelty, injustice, and tyranny. Since the founding
    of our country, the Bill of Rights has served to guide our people and
    our Government to ensure basic human rights and liberties. The United

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    States is a country where all citizens have the opportunity to voice
    their opinions, practice their faith, and enjoy the blessings of
    freedom.
    Today, countless people around the world cannot exercise their basic
    human rights. America has pledged to support all individuals who seek to
    secure their unalienable rights. Across the globe, we will continue to
    stand with those who fight for fundamental freedoms, whether they be
    democracy activists in Cuba, university faculty and students in Iran,
    opposition leaders in Zimbabwe, journalists in Belarus, or the people of
    North Korea who have never known freedom. We are leading a coalition of
    more than 90 nations to defeat terror and to secure liberty and
    opportunity for people throughout the world. Our fight against
    oppression demonstrates our Nation's dedication to a future of hope and
    understanding for all people. One year after the liberation of
    Afghanistan from the clutches of terror and tyranny, we are helping the
    Afghan people build institutions of democracy and tolerance that are
    essential to the country's future stability, security, and prosperity.
    And I hope the brave people of Iraq will soon realize their own dreams
    of peace and freedom.
    In commemorating Human Rights Day, Bill of Rights Day, and Human Rights
    Week, we renew our pledge to uphold the vital principles of freedom,
    equality, and opportunity that have made our Nation strong. By working
    together to advance the rights of all people, we help to build mutual
    trust and peace for all individuals across this land and around the
    world.
    NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of
    America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
    laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim December 10, 2002, as
    Human Rights Day; December 15, 2002, as Bill of Rights Day; and the week
    beginning December 10, 2002, as Human Rights Week. I call upon the
    people of the United States to honor the legacy of human rights passed
    down to us from previous generations and to resolve that such liberties
    will prevail in our Nation and throughout the world.
    IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this ninth day of
    December, in the year of our Lord two thousand two, and of the
    Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and twenty-
    seventh.
    GEORGE W. BUSH