    [United States Statutes at Large, Volume 132, 115th Congress, 2nd Session]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    Proclamation 9767 of July 13, 2018

    Captive Nations Week, 2018

    By the President of the United States of America

    A Proclamation

    Two hundred and forty-two years ago, America was founded on the
    fundamental principle that all men and women are created equal and share
    an inherent dignity that government must value, respect, and protect.
    The founding of our great country lit a spark of freedom that spread
    around the world, unleashing human potential and lifting billions out of
    poverty. Today, we continue this sacred legacy. We hold in common the
    responsibility to strengthen the bonds of liberty for future generations
    to inherit and carry forward.
    At the same time, we recognize that many around the world continue to
    live under the dark shadow of oppression and despotism. During Captive
    Nations Week, we remember that the rights and privileges we enjoy in the
    United States are not held by all. We stand in solidarity with those who
    continue to suffer under governments that stifle basic freedoms and deny
    the opportunity to build a better life.

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    President Dwight D. Eisenhower proclaimed the first Captive Nations Week
    in 1959 during the height of the Cold War. At that time, the United
    States was locked in an enduring struggle to preserve and advance
    freedom for nations held captive by totalitarian communist regimes in
    Eastern Europe, Asia, and elsewhere. These regimes dismissed the very
    idea of individual rights. Then, as it does today, the United States
    blazed as a beacon of hope for the oppressed, for lovers of freedom and
    justice, and for those who strive for the rule of law.
    When the citizens of East Germany tore down the Berlin Wall in 1989, it
    was a defining moment for freedom. But much work remains unfinished. In
    many countries today, people remain subject to unjust arrest, detention,
    and execution. Individual rights, such as freedom of expression, freedom
    of association, and freedom to assemble, which are necessary to hold
    governments accountable, are significantly circumvented or denied
    entirely. The United States stands with the repressed and continues to
    encourage despotic regimes to turn away from authoritarianism and
    respect the God-given rights of life and liberty.
    As we observe Captive Nations Week, let us recall the words of President
    Ronald Reagan, declared on this occasion in 1983: ``Free people, if they
    are to remain free, must defend the liberty of others.''; Let us today
    resolve to continue the work of those who came before: to ensure that
    America remains the world's brightest example of liberty; to do justice;
    to respect the rule of law; and to never, ever give up on liberty.
    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, THERFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of
    America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
    the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim July 15 through July
    21, 2018, as Captive Nations Week. I call upon all Americans to reaffirm
    our commitment to those around the world striving for liberty, justice,
    and the rule of law.
    IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirteenth day of
    July, in the year of our Lord two thousand eighteen, and of the
    Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-
    third.
    DONALD J. TRUMP