Group: Obama must emphasize human rights

WASHINGTON, Jan. 14 (UPI) -- Human Rights Watch called on the incoming Obama administration Wednesday to put human rights at the center of U.S. foreign and security policy.

The group, releasing its World Report 2009, said that in recent years the countries most involved with human rights have been those trying to avoid international scrutiny of their own abuses and those of their allies.

"For the first time in nearly a decade, the U.S. has a chance to regain its global credibility by turning the page on the abusive policies of the Bush administration," said Kenneth Roth, the executive director. "And not a moment too late. Today, the most energetic diplomacy on human rights comes from such places as Algiers, Cairo and Islamabad, with backing from Beijing and Moscow, but these 'spoilers' are pushing in the wrong direction."

The 564-page report is the 19th published by Human Rights Watch on abuses around the world.