Pentagon Correspondents Dawn Casey and Adrian Frost will attend Defense Secretary Gates’s speech at a summit on wounded warriors and amputees. The Washington Bureau will also cover the House Budget
Committee’s hearing on “Economic Recovery: Options and Challenges,” a summit held by U.S. News and World Report on America’s high schools, a news conference by the American National Standards Institute and the Internet Security Alliance on “The Financial Impact of Cyber Risk,” a discussion on voter fraud by the Heritage Foundation, and a discussion by the Brookings Institution on “U.S. Democracy Promotion after the Bush Years.”

Chief Pentagon Correspondent Meredith MacKenzie will cover a statement by President Bush at the White House. The Washington Bureau will also cover Education Secretary Margaret Spellings’ remarks to the Global Summit, an address by Colombian President Alvaro Uribe on “Colombia, a Success Story,” and the National Endowment for Democracy’s presentation on “Promoting Democracy in the Arab World: New Ideas for U.S. Policy.”

At a speech in front of the United States Agency for International Development, President Bush reflects on the victims of tyrannical governments he has met, among them: Blanca González, whose son Normando Hernández González is a political prisoner in Cuba, and Olga Kuzulina, whose father Alexander Kozulin is imprisoned in Belarus for running for president. (1:50)

 

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The summer Olympics and human rights in China were discussed at an event held by the National Endowment for Democracy. Panelists discussed a number of topics including China’s reluctance to permit an open media, response to opposition in Tibet, the Sichuan earthquake, and international pressure that calls for a more transparent Chinese government.

According to Sharon Hom, the executive director of Human Rights in China, assurances from Chinese officials that the Olympics would be a catalyst for increased democratization have largely been forgotten. Hom said that defenders of human rights continue to disappear or be jailed throughout China. She also added that the (International Olympic Committee) IOC has an obligation to oversee decisions made by an Olympic’s host country and should not buckle to the desires of the host as the IOC recently did in Athens by permitting the Olympic Torch Relay to pass through Tibet, an action she considers “provocative.” Sophie Richardson, the media director of Human Rights Watch, said that the numbers of dead from the earthquake in Sichuan province and riots in Tibet are still unknown due to the lack of a free press.

Richardson said China not only lacks democracy but also continues to support regimes that find little support worldwide. Richardson believes that governments in Zimbabwe and Myanmar still exist thanks to Chinese support. Richardson continued, saying that involving itself in foreign affairs contradicts China’s policy of noninterference.

Minky Worden, the editor of “China’s Great Leap: The Beijing Games and Olympian Human Rights Challenges” said that Olympic sponsors are unwilling to address human rights violations in China and thus contradict the actions of the Chinese government. She said the Olympic torch’s presence in Tibet is bad publicity for the three sponsors of the relay: Coca Cola, Lenovo, and Samsung. Richardson also said that defenders of human rights in China look outside of their country for support and that President Bush has an obligation to speak against certain Chinese policies.

Bill Delahunt (D-Mass.), the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, proclaims a need for openness in diplomacy between the U.S. and Iraq at a briefing on “The Future of U.S.-Iraqi Relations: The Perspective of the Iraqi Parliament.” He says the U.S. has an obligation to support a viable Iraqi democracy.

 

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At the American Turkish Council’s 27th Annual Conference on U.S.-Turkish relations, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice praises NATO enlargement despite controversy. (0:20)

 

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At the American Turkish Council’s 27th Annual Conference on U.S.-Turkish relations, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says that Turkey’s democracy and economy have modernized, and that the U.S. supports Turkey’s candidacy for the European Union because “it will be good for Turkey, and it will be good for Europe.” (0:20)

 

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At the American Turkish Council’s 27th Annual Conference on U.S.-Turkish relations, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said that even though they may have their occasional differences, the two governments are united by democratic principles of tolerance and human rights. (0:21)

 

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Voters at the George Washington University polling place in Washington D.C. answer the questions, “Why did you chose the candidate that you voted for?”, and “What issue is the most important to you in this election?” (1:57)

 

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