During today’s meeting (25 August) the Cabinet adopted the 9th Human Rights Report of the Federal Government covering the period from 1 March 2008 to 28 February 2010.

In this connection Federal Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle today issued the following statement in Berlin:

”The Human Rights Report is proof of the central role that human rights play in Germany’s foreign and domestic policy. Commitment to human rights is a major task cutting across all areas of policy. Today no policy-maker can afford to ignore human rights.

The “Plan of Action for Human Rights”, which forms part of the Report, is our timetable for the period 2010 to 2012. In foreign policy terms this mainly involves supporting human rights defenders, condemning torture and capital punishment worldwide, and promoting the reform of the UN Human Rights Council. These are core elements of international human rights protection which we will do our utmost to achieve.“