US State Department Names World's Worst Human Rights Offenders

North Korea, Myanmar, Iran, Syria, Zimbabwe, Cuba, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Eritrea and Sudan were named the world's ten worst human rights offenders in a new report detailing 2007 abuses. To the surprise of many China was dropped from the list, although their “overall human rights record remained poor.” Some question whether the upcoming Summer Olympics in Beijing are the reason for China's drop.

Meanwhile, groups like Amnesty International noted the irony of having the Bush administration create a detailed list of human rights abuses. Amnesty International USA executive director Larry Cox's statement seems right on point:

"It is also shocking to read the horrific record of what amounts to torture and cruel treatment of individuals held by allies of the United States in the war on terror, knowing that the U.S. government has sent people to those countries for interrogation through its extraordinary renditions program."

The report's release seems a bit untimely for the Bush administration considering the President's recent veto of a bill that would limit harsh interrogation techniques that some consider to be torture (see post below).

To see the 2007 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices head over to the US State Department site here.