U.S. Conservatives Push Ahead with EDAD Bill

A few U.S. conservatives are planning to push ahead with an EDAD (End Dictatorship, Assist Democracy) bill in an attempt to break down autocratic states including North Korea.

Since the bill is being promoted by U.S. Senator Sam Brownback and Michael Horowitz, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute in the U.S. who drafted the North Korea Human Rights Act, its potential legalization is drawing a great deal of attention.

The bill is known to include contents regarding U.S. diplomats building consistent relationships with democratic forces inside the autocratic state, and transformation of the “Democracy Community”—held every two years—into a “Democracy Center,” with standing offices established.

In addition, the bill contains provisions regarding democracy expansion and rescuing North Korean defectors through international broadcasts and expanded assistance by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

The U.S. must make the matter of ending dictatorship and promoting democracy in a non-military way the central strategy goal of its foreign diplomacy policy, said Horowitz in his documents presented to President Bush in late August. He argued that the bill would serve as a multi-faceted tool that could remove the current 45 autocratic states around the world by 2025 as well as promote democracy.

This bill is not targeting North Korea alone, but the concerned people said that that state would be the priority.

The bill was put before Congress last September, but was called off due to a number of political schedules, including the presidential election. Now, supporters are known to try to present it in Congress again next January.

Soon-Taek Kwon maypole@donga.com