[United States Statutes at Large, Volume 128, 113th Congress, 2nd Session]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

 
PROCLAMATION 9147--JULY 18, 2014

Proclamation 9147 of July 18, 2014

Captive Nations Week, 2014

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

As the grip of the Cold War tightened, America pledged our solidarity to
every nation held captive behind the Iron Curtain and every individual
who refused to accept that fate. We stood with them through a long
twilight struggle until--from Europe to South America to Southeast
Asia--democracy took root, a wall tumbled down, and people who had known
only the blinders of fear began to taste the blessings of freedom.
During Captive Nations Week, we celebrate this progress and stand with
all who still seek to throw off their oppressors and embrace a brighter
day.
In recent years, convulsions in the Middle East and North Africa have
laid bare deep divisions within societies. Dictators have answered
peaceful movements with brutality. Extremists have tried to hijack
change, seeking to replace one form of tyranny with another. And around
the world, authoritarian regimes continue to deprive men, women, and
children of their most basic human rights.
America extends our support to all peoples seeking to build true
democracy, real prosperity, and lasting security. While the road to
self-determination is long and treacherous, history proves it is
passable. This week, as we carry forward that age-old struggle--of
liberty against oppression, of unity against intolerance--let us once
again demonstrate the enduring strength of our ideals.
The Congress, by joint resolution approved July 17, 1959 (73 Stat. 212),
has authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation
designating the third week of July of each year as ``Captive Nations
Week.''
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of
America, do hereby proclaim July 20 through July 26, 2014, as Captive
Nations Week. I call upon the people of the United States to reaffirm
our deep ties to all governments and people committed to freedom,
dignity, and opportunity for all.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighteenth day of
July, in the year of our Lord two thousand fourteen, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
ninth.
BARACK OBAMA