Human Rights

I strongly protest the detention of Nabeel Rajab, president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, and I call upon the Government of Bahrain to release him immediately. Read more »

“I welcome the Administration’s announcement today on landmines. It brings the United States that much closer to full compliance and becoming a party to the international landmine ban treaty.  I will continue to press for changes on the Korean Peninsula, because I believe that appropriate ‘material and operational solutions’ can be developed and are within… Read more »

Rep. McGovern recently made several requests to Bahrain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs for a guarantee of access to Bahrain for himself, one of his staff, and Brian Dooley, Director of the Human Rights Defenders program at Human Rights First. Rep. McGovern planned a fact-finding mission and sought to engage in discussions of the current situation with all involved parties – Bahraini government, opposition, and civil society organizations. Bahrain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs failed to provide a guarantee that Rep. McGovern would be able to travel to Bahrain. Read more »

U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern (MA-02) traveled earlier this week (August 3-4) on a two-day fact-finding mission to the U.S.-Mexico border. He was accompanied on the trip by Adam Isacson of the Washington Office on Latin America. Rep. McGovern released the following statement about his trip: Read more »

U.S. Representative Jim McGovern joined members of the region’s Tibetan community to announce the introduction of HR 4851: The Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act, in the U.S. House of Representatives.  This bipartisan bill promotes access to Tibetan areas of China for U.S. officials, journalists, and average citizens. Currently, travel restrictions imposed by the Chinese… Read more »

I am deeply concerned about the safety and well-being of unaccompanied children and families from Central America who have arrived at our borders.  I believe our existing laws, and our obligations under international humanitarian law, allow us to respond humanely and efficiently to these families and children.  They allow us to provide safe haven to those who qualify for such… Read more »

This bipartisan bill promotes access to Tibetan areas of China for U.S. officials, journalists, and average citizens. Currently, travel restrictions imposed by the Chinese government on Tibet are more severe than for any other provincial-level entity of China. Read more »

M. Speaker, Over and over again, House Republicans complain about federal spending, especially when it comes to our nation’s premier anti-hunger safety net program known as SNAP. They say the program is too big – that it’s bloated and it’s full of fraud, waste and abuse. These claims are patently false and have been dispelled over and over again. But… Read more »

I welcome the news that Nabeel Rajab, President of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, was released from prison today, after serving a two-year sentence for participating in public protests. Read more »

Over 800,000 people of Rohingya ethnicity live in Burma, mostly in the state. Even though many Rohingyas have lived in the Rakhine for generations, the Burma Citizenship Law of 1982 has excluded them from approved ethnic groups, thereby rendering them stateless and vulnerable to exploitation, violence and abuse. I am very proud to rise in support of this resolution urging the Government of Burma to end the persecution of the Rohingya people and respect internationally recognized human rights for all ethnic and religious minority groups within Burma. Read more »