22 U.S.C. § 8251 — Cooperation with democratic countries

Page 2052 TITLE 22—FOREIGN RELATIONS AND INTERCOURSE § 8242 § 8242. Sense of Congress regarding ADVANCE Democracy Award It is the sense of Congress that— (1) the Secretary should further strengthen the capacity of the Department to carry out results-based democracy promotion efforts through the establishment of an annual award to be known as the ‘‘Outstanding Achieve- ments in Advancing Democracy Award’’, or the ‘‘ADVANCE Democracy Award’’, that would be awarded to officers or employees of the Department; and (2) the Secretary should establish procedures for selecting recipients of such award, includ- ing any financial terms associated with such award. (Pub. L. 110–53, title XXI, § 2142, Aug. 3, 2007, 121 Stat. 534.) § 8243. Personnel policies at the Department of State In addition to the awards and other incentives already implemented, the Secretary should in- crease incentives for members of the Foreign Service and other employees of the Department who take assignments relating to the promotion of democracy and the protection of human rights, including the following: (1) Providing performance pay under section 3965 of this title to such members and employ- ees who carry out their assignment in an out- standing manner. (2) Considering such an assignment as a basis for promotion into the Senior Foreign Service. (3) Providing Foreign Service Awards under section 4013 of this title to such members and employees who provide distinguished or meri- torious service in the promotion of democracy or the protection of human rights. (Pub. L. 110–53, title XXI, § 2143, Aug. 3, 2007, 121 Stat. 535.) SUBCHAPTER V—COOPERATION WITH DEMOCRATIC COUNTRIES § 8251. Cooperation with democratic countries (a) Sense of Congress It is the sense of Congress that the United States should cooperate with other democratic countries to— (1) promote and protect democratic prin- ciples, practices, and values; (2) promote and protect shared political, so- cial, and economic freedoms, including the freedoms of association, of expression, of the press, of religion, and to own private property; (3) promote and protect respect for the rule of law; (4) develop, adopt, and pursue strategies to advance common interests in international or- ganizations and multilateral institutions to which members of cooperating democratic countries belong; and (5) provide political, economic, and other necessary support to countries that are under- going a transition to democracy. (b) Community of Democracies (1) Sense of Congress It is the sense of Congress that— (A) the Community of Democracies should develop a more formal mechanism for car- rying out work between ministerial meet- ings, such as through the creation of a per- manent secretariat with appropriate staff to carry out such work, and should establish a headquarters; and (B) nondemocratic countries should not participate in any association or group of democratic countries aimed at working to- gether to promote democracy. (2) Detail of personnel The Secretary is authorized to detail on a nonreimbursable basis any employee of the Department to any permanent secretariat of the Community of Democracies or to the gov- ernment of any country that is a member of the Convening Group of the Community of De- mocracies. (c) Establishment of an office for multilateral de- mocracy promotion The Secretary should establish an office of multilateral democracy promotion with the mis- sion to further develop and strengthen the insti- tutional structure of the Community of Democ- racies, develop interministerial projects, en- hance the United Nations Democracy Caucus, manage policy development of the United Na- tions Democracy Fund, and enhance coordina- tion with other regional and multilateral bodies with jurisdiction over democracy issues. (d) International Center for Democratic Transi- tion (1) Sense of Congress It is the sense of Congress that the Inter- national Center for Democratic Transition, an initiative of the Government of Hungary, serves to promote practical projects and the sharing of best practices in the area of democ- racy promotion and should be supported by, in particular, the United States, other European countries with experiences in democratic tran- sitions, and private individuals. (2) Authorization of appropriations There is authorized to be appropriated $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008, 2009, and 2010 to the Secretary for a grant to the Inter- national Center for Democratic Transition. Amounts appropriated under this paragraph are authorized to remain available until ex- pended. (Pub. L. 110–53, title XXI, § 2151, Aug. 3, 2007, 121 Stat. 535.) SUBCHAPTER VI—FUNDING FOR PROMOTION OF DEMOCRACY § 8261. The United Nations Democracy Fund (a) Sense of Congress It is the sense of Congress that the United States should work with other countries to en- hance the goals and work of the United Nations Democracy Fund, an essential tool to promote democracy, and in particular support civil soci- ety in foreign countries in their efforts to help consolidate democracy and bring about trans- formational change.