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Updated April 10, 2023
Global Human Rights: The Department of State’s Country
Reports on Human Rights Practices
Introduction
priority in U.S. foreign policy. Section 502B of the FAA
The State Department’s Country Reports on Human Rights
(22 U.S.C. §2304), added in 1974 and substantially
Practices are an annual U.S. government account of human
strengthened in 1976, sought to withhold U.S. security
rights conditions in countries around the globe. The reports
assistance from countries the governments of which engage
characterize countries on the basis of their adherence to
in “a consistent pattern of gross violations of internationally
“internationally recognized human rights,” which generally
recognized human rights.” Section 116 (22 U.S.C. §2151n),
refer to civil, political, and worker rights set forth in the
added in 1975 and also strengthened in the years following,
Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other
imposed similar restrictions for recipients of U.S.
international human rights agreements.
development assistance. Contained within these provisions
was language requiring that the Secretary of State transmit
The most recent reports cover calendar year 2022 and were
to Congress each year a report on the human rights
issued on March 20, 2023. The reports provide individual
conditions of recipient countries; an amendment to Section
narratives on countries and territories worldwide and are
116 in 1979 broadened the reporting requirement to cover
available on the Department of State website. In remarks
all other foreign countries. This language thus served as the
introducing the reports, Secretary of State Antony Blinken
stated that “in 2022, in countries across every region, we
legislative basis for the State Department’s annual human
rights reports. Despite the legislative origin of the reports in
continued to see a backsliding in human rights conditions—
connection with U.S. foreign assistance, the role that the
the closing of civic space, disrespect for fundamental
human dignity.”
reports should play with regard to assistance decisions or
U.S. foreign policy more broadly has been the subject of
As with prior reports, the 2022 reports do not compare
debate (see “Relationship to U.S. Foreign Policy” below).
countries or rank them based on the severity of human
rights abuses documented. At the same time, in a preface to
Evolution of the Reports
the 2022 reports, Blinken stated that some of the reports
In the early reports, there was concern within the State
illustrate “violations and abuses that are appalling in their
Department about publicly characterizing the human rights
scale and severity.” Blinken noted in particular “death and
conditions in other countries, particularly that of U.S. allies.
destruction” arising from Russia’s war against Ukraine,
The first reports were criticized for lacking objectivity and
state violence against protestors and citizens in Iran and
being thin on substance. Over time, with improvements in
Burma, “genocide and crimes against humanity ... against
the breadth, quality, and accuracy of the reports, many
predominantly Muslim Uyghurs and members of other
observers have come to recognize them as authoritative. At
ethnic and religious minority groups” in China’s Xinjiang
the same time, countries whose human rights conditions are
region, and the Taliban’s “oppressive and discriminatory
criticized in the reports often publicly defend their record
measures against women and girls,” among other
and/or dismiss the reports as biased.
highlighted country situations.
The State Department has gradually broadened the scope of
the reports to add or expand coverage of certain topics,
Broad Topics Covered in the 2022 Reports
sometimes due to congressional amendments to the
Integrity of the Person
statutory requirements or other directives, such as those
Civil Liberties
accompanying State Department appropriations bills. In
Political Freedoms
addition, the reports now reference separate congressionally
Corruption and Government Transparency
mandated reports on international religious freedom (IRF)
Governmental Posture toward Human Rights Investigations
and trafficking in persons (TIP). Most recently, topics that
Discrimination and Societal Abuses
have received new or increased coverage in the 2021 and/or
Worker Rights
2022 reports include “transnational repression,” threats and
Legislative Mandate
violence against human rights defenders, and abuses against
The foundational statutory requirement for the human rights
lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex
reports is found in Sections 116 and 502B of the Foreign
individuals. Members of Congress have at times introduced
Assistance Act (FAA) of 1961 (P.L. 87-195), as amended.
bills that would further amend the FAA to require new or
Both of these provisions were first enacted via
additional coverage related to these or other specific issues
congressional amendments in the mid-1970s and have been
(or permanently mandate coverage that is currently
broadened and strengthened over time through additional
included in practice).
amendments.
Drafting and Review Process
The 1970s was a formative period for human rights-related
The State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human
legislation as Congress sought to enshrine human rights as a
Rights, and Labor (DRL) coordinates the drafting and
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Global Human Rights: The Department of State’s Country Reports on Human Rights Practices
issuance of the human rights reports. Embassy officers use
States underwent its third and most recent review in 2020,
reporting guidance, issued annually by DRL, to formulate
and the council adopted the United States’ UPR report in
initial drafts for each country. The reports are then edited
March 2021. In his remarks introducing the 2022 reports,
by DRL staff and further refined in consultation with other
Secretary of State Blinken stated that “while this report
relevant State Department offices and the embassies (see
looks outward to countries around the world, we know the
Figure 1). The Department of Labor also contributes to the
United States faces its own set of challenges on human
portions concerning worker rights. Information sources for
rights,” and argued that a “willingness to confront our
the reports are wide-ranging and may include
challenges openly ... not to sweep them under the rug or
nongovernmental organizations, press reports, academic
pretend they don’t exist” is a distinguishing feature of the
and congressional studies, international organizations,
United States and other democracies.
governments, and alleged victims of human rights abuses.
Relationship to U.S. Foreign Policy
Figure 1. Overview of the Report Drafting Process
Given that most nations may seek to avoid being identified
as a human rights-violating nation by the U.S. government,
the human rights reports may help incentivize
improvements in human rights practices in some cases.
More directly, while the reports have often served as an
information source for U.S. policy, findings from the
reports appear to have infrequently been used to restrict aid
in accordance with Section 116 or Section 502B of the
FAA. These provisions do not require that the State
Department characterize in the reports which, if any,
governments have met the aforementioned statutory
standard of “a consistent pattern of gross violations of
internationally human rights.” This differs somewhat from
other similar annual reports that Congress mandated in later
years, such as those on IRF and TIP, which feature
mechanisms to publicly designate problematic governments
for potential punitive action. Human rights advocates have
at times argued for the reports to play a more concrete role
in influencing U.S. relations with foreign governments,
with some pointing to what they view as historically
Source: Created by CRS based on GAO-12-561R (May 2012), p. 8.
insufficient adherence by the executive branch to the
Note: Timelines are for il ustrative purposes and may vary; according
provisions requiring the withholding of assistance from
to an appendix to the 2022 reports, the State Department “provides
consistent gross violators of human rights.
guidance to U.S. diplomatic missions annual y in July for submission of
updated reports in September and October,” and “updates these
As a general matter, some analysts argue that tying U.S.
texts by year’s end.”
policy too closely to human rights can overly constrain the
U.S. government’s flexibility to address other challenges
By law, the reports are to be issued by February 25 each
affecting U.S. interests. Supporters of robust human rights
year, but in practice the issuance is often delayed until
and democracy promotion conversely argue that doing so
March or April. According to a 2012 report by the
serves U.S. interests over the long term, such as by
Government Accountability Office (GAO), preparing the
reports “involves a significant commitment of State t
reducing threats to U.S. security and fostering international
ime
and resources” within DRL and at embassies.
peace. In response to a question during a press briefing on
In an October
the 2022 reports, Secretary of State Blinken stated that “we
2018 report, the State Department Office of Inspector
have a multiplicity of interests that we’re working on, and
General (OIG) found that DRL had “established generally
effective processes” for report production.
we always try to determine how we can most effectively
advance them. Human rights is a central interest of ours;
Human Rights in the United States
it’s not the only one.”
The FAA requires that the reports cover foreign countries
The scope and content of the reports and the role they
and does not mandate coverage of human rights conditions
should serve, as well as the role of human rights in U.S.
in the United States. (The aforementioned annual report on
foreign policy more broadly, have been contested since the
IRF similarly covers only foreign countries, while the
reports began in the 1970s. Congress has been a key actor
annual report on TIP is required to cover U.S. domestic
in these debates, often as a source of pressure on the
efforts to combat the practice.) An appendix to the 2022
executive branch to place greater emphasis on human rights
reports states that the reports “do not describe or assess the
when formulating foreign policy.
human rights implications of actions taken by the U.S.
Government or its representatives.” State Department
officials have at times noted that the United States
participates in mechanisms that evaluate domestic human
Michael A. Weber, Analyst in Foreign Affairs
rights conditions, such as the United Nations Human Rights
Council’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR).
IF10795
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Global Human Rights: The Department of State’s Country Reports on Human Rights Practices
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