WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Sam Brownback today applauded passage of three amendments he authored in the Omnibus Appropriations bill under State Department and foreign operations funding. The amendments appropriate and direct pro-democracy and human rights funding in Iran, North Korea and Egypt.

The bill directs $3 million for pro-democracy efforts in Iran, $2 million for a human rights conference on North Korea, and redirects pro-democracy funding in Egypt to the United States Agency for International Development without prior approval of the government of Egypt.

“We must take proactive steps to promote democracy and human rights abroad,” Brownback said. “North Korea and Iran, the remaining members of the Axis of Evil, are focal points for anti-American, anti-democracy, anti-freedom, pro-terrorist efforts around the world. We will bring key leaders and stakeholders together to map out how we can bring freedom to the people of Iran and North Korea. I am also happy that we are able to redirect pro-democracy funding for Egypt to an appropriate forum. It is an abuse of taxpayer funds to have these funds spent at the discretion of the government of Egypt.”

The Omnibus bill includes $2 million for an International Conference on North Korean Human Rights. This conference will bring together experts as well as human rights advocates and non-governmental organizations, for the purpose of discussing steps to address human rights for North Koreans living under the Kim Jong-Il regime. The conference will be held in South Korea and hosted by Freedom House.

With respect to Iran, the bill funds $3 million for programs that promote democracy. A portion can be used for funding a conference in the United States to bring together Iranian dissident groups, human rights advocates, and non-governmental organizations to discuss the state of the democracy movement and human rights in Iran.

The Egyptian government is currently the only government in the world that has discretion over the manner in which U.S. funding for democracy programs is spent. The Brownback amendment will give USAID the same authority in Egypt as it has everywhere else in the world: the discretion to control and oversee how American funds for democracy programs are used. There is currently no mechanism in place to ensure that the government of Egypt appropriately allocates such funds for democracy promotion.

Brownback is a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and chairman of the East Asia Subcommittee.