海角大神

Since becoming secretary of state in April 2018, Mike Pompeo has sought to distinguish his vision of human rights from that of preceding administrations and set a new course for the promotion of human rights globally.

The conservative Republican and evangelical 海角大神 has pushed to shift the United States away from what he sees as an overemphasis on women鈥檚 reproductive rights and LGBTQ issues and toward religious freedom 鈥� which he likes to note is the first right America鈥檚 Founding Fathers listed in the Bill of Rights.

Moving the U.S. away from participation in international and United Nations-affiliated human rights bodies such as the Geneva-based Human Rights Council has also been a priority. The U.S. has a 鈥渦nique鈥� vision of human rights, he says 鈥� what he prefers to call 鈥渦nalienable鈥� rights 鈥� and should be leading in promoting that perspective rather than compromising with other visions in international forums.

Mr. Pompeo will have an opportunity to take his vision beyond rhetoric this week when he unveils the results of his Commission on Unalienable Rights in a speech in Philadelphia Thursday afternoon.

Given what the secretary of state has said about the yearlong work of his commission, it appears he intends to use the results to recast the State Department鈥檚 vision of human rights and how the U.S. goes about promoting them.

The commission鈥檚 report 鈥渋s an important restatement of how the United States thinks about human rights and our聽unalienable聽rights and our role ... in the world in preserving those rights for all people who are made in the image of God,鈥� Mr. Pompeo told reporters last week in previewing his speech.聽鈥淭hese聽unalienable聽rights are important,鈥� he added. 鈥淭hey extend across the world.鈥�

But others in the human rights community, including many who have served in past administrations, say they worry that the recasting constitutes a narrowing of the U.S. vision of human rights to a focus on Mr. Pompeo鈥檚 priorities as a conservative 海角大神.

Boon to autocrats?

Among their biggest concerns is that Mr. Pompeo鈥檚 challenging of the vision promoted by Western powers over recent decades could prove to be a boon to autocratic regimes determined to halt the expansion of rights, including democratic governance and gender equality.

鈥淥ne of my biggest concerns about this commission is that it鈥檚 really just questioning the international human rights system that we have 鈥� and at the same time that a lot of authoritarian states are putting that system under intense pressure,鈥� says Amy Lehr, director of the Human Rights Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a real risk,鈥� she adds, that 鈥渋t opens the door to the leaders of those regimes pointing to the U.S. and saying, 鈥榊ou don鈥檛 like this system [of international human rights] and we don鈥檛 like it, either.鈥欌��

It is not as though Mr. Pompeo is turning his back on human rights issues, some State Department officials say. They point out that he has recently been very vocal about the Chinese government鈥檚 treatment of the Muslim聽Uyghur population and its clampdown on democratic rights in Hong Kong. The U.S. has also imposed sanctions on Chinese officials involved in implementing those rights abuses.

But the recent focus on China has some experts wondering if that is more a reflection of the Trump administration鈥檚 demonization of China in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic (and in the run-up to the November election) than evidence of a prioritizing of human rights.

鈥淭here鈥檚 growing concern that human rights are being instrumentalized to go after certain governments we have problems with,鈥� says Ms. Lehr. 鈥淲e should be criticizing a country for its human rights record and practices and not because that country is a geopolitical rival,鈥� she adds. 鈥淭hat is why our human rights policies need to be based on principles.鈥�

One of those principles that has driven U.S. rights policy is the freedom from oppressive discrimination, especially of minority or underprivileged populations. But some experts say they see in Mr. Pompeo鈥檚 focus on religious freedom a narrowing of the U.S. vision to exclude groups that have made recent gains in recognition.

鈥淩eligion is a fundamental freedom, one I think has been promoted by recent administrations. But my worry is that Pompeo鈥檚 focus on it 鈥� as we鈥檙e seeing in this commission 鈥� will mean that other rights, like women鈥檚 rights and LGBTQ rights, will be subordinated to it,鈥� says David Kramer, who served as assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights, and labor under President George W. Bush.

Defining what is a right

Indeed, in launching the Commission on Unalienable Rights in July 2019, Mr. Pompeo questioned what he said had been a 鈥減roliferation鈥� of rights over recent years 鈥� and he tasked the commission with determining what is a basic human right and what is not.

鈥淚s it true, and therefore ought to be honored?鈥� Mr. Pompeo offered as a basic question for the commission. The 10-member body, made up largely of conservative religious scholars, should also 鈥減oint the way toward that more perfect fidelity to our nation鈥檚 founding principles,鈥� he said.

The commission and Mr. Pompeo鈥檚 characterization of its work have set off alarm bells in the human rights community, with more than 160 organizations and prominent advocates voicing concerns that the commission could backtrack on the 鈥渦niversality of human rights鈥� that they say has been built and strengthened 鈥� often with U.S. leadership 鈥� over the last 70 years.

The Bill of Rights is a fine foundation for human rights policy, Mr. Kramer says, but he worries that Mr. Pompeo has shown little interest in promoting any of the rights beyond freedom of religion.

鈥淲hat about freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, freedom of association?鈥� says Mr. Kramer, now a professor of human rights and foreign policy at Florida International University in Miami.

Another problem he sees for Mr. Pompeo is that he serves a president who has shown little interest in the promotion of human rights, as he has demonstrated an affinity for many of the world鈥檚 worst dictators and most despotic regimes.

鈥淚 give Pompeo credit for some of his work on human rights, but at the same time how do you push others on freedom of the press when you work for a president who calls the press the 鈥榚nemy of the people鈥�?鈥� he says. 鈥淚t undermines you and sets a horrible example for despots and tyrants out there who are predisposed in that direction.鈥�

Left out of conversation

The former assistant secretary is also troubled that the State Department bureau he once ran has been 鈥渕arginalized鈥� by Mr. Pompeo and denied any involvement with the commission. Indeed, some State Department observers say the way Mr. Pompeo left the human rights bureau out in the cold on his project underscores his estrangement from much of the department鈥檚 operations and career officials and his distrust of the federal government鈥檚 鈥渄eep state.鈥�

Still, it鈥檚 the narrowing of the conception of human rights implicit in Mr. Pompeo鈥檚 Commission on Unalienable Rights that Ms. Lehr of CSIS finds most worrisome.

An expert in business and human rights and the intersection of technology and human rights, she counts it as progress that the global conception of human rights has expanded to include new populations and sectors over recent decades.

鈥淎s we move into a less state-centric world, it鈥檚 important that more actors鈥� like corporations, business communities, and nongovernmental organizations 鈥渁re engaged and participating in recognizing and promoting those rights,鈥� she says.

On the other hand, 鈥渋f we go back to the beginning of our country鈥� for our vision of human rights, 鈥渨e have to remember that I as a woman wouldn鈥檛 have had full access to many of those basic rights,鈥� Ms. Lehr says. 鈥淣ot to mention people of color, who certainly did not enjoy what was promised鈥� in the Bill of Rights.