democracy programs

democracy programsSec. 526. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, of the funds appropriated by this Act to carry out the provisions of chapter 4 of part II of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, not less than $15,000,000 shall be made available for assistance for activities to support democracy, human rights, and the rule of law in the People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong and Tibet: Provided, That not to exceed $3,000,000 may be made available to nongovernmental organizations to support activities which preserve cultural traditions and promote sustainable development and environmental conservation in Tibetan communities in the Tibetan Autonomous Region and in other Tibetan communities in China: Provided further, That funds appropriated under the heading “Economic Support Fund” should be made available for assistance for Taiwan for the purposes of furthering political and legal reforms: Provided further, That such funds shall only be made available to the extent that they are matched from sources other than the United States Government: Provided further, That funds made available pursuant to the authority of this subsection shall be subject to the regular notification procedures of the Committees on Appropriations.(b) In addition to the funds made available in subsection (a), of the funds appropriated by this Act under the heading “Economic Support Fund” not less than $15,000,000 shall be made available for programs and activities to foster democracy, human rights, civic education, women’s development, press freedoms, and the rule of law in countries with a significant Muslim population, and where such programs and activities would be important to United States efforts to respond to, deter, or prevent acts of international terrorism: Provided, That funds made available pursuant to the authority of this subsection should support new initiatives or bolster ongoing programs and activities in those countries: Provided further, That not less than $3,000,000 should be made available for programs and activities that provide professional training for journalists: Provided further, That notwithstanding any other provision of law, funds made available pursuant to the authority of this subsection may be made available to support the advancement of democracy and human rights in Iran: Provided further, That funds made available pursuant to this subsection shall be subject to the regular notification procedures of the Committees on Appropriations.(c) Of the funds made available under subsection (a), not less than $9,000,000 shall be made available for the Human Rights and Democracy Fund of the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Department of State, to support the activities described in subsection (a), and of the funds made available under subsection (b), not less than $7,000,000 shall be made available for such Fund to support the activities described in subsection (b): Provided, That funds made available in this section for such Fund are in addition to the $12,000,000 requested by the President for the Fund for fiscal year 2003.117 STAT. 190(d) Of the funds made available under subsection (a), not less than $3,000,000 shall be made available for the National Endowment for Democracy to support the activities described in subsection (a), and of the funds made available under subsection (b), not less than $5,000,000 shall be made available for the National Endowment for Democracy to support the activities described in subsection (b): Provided, That the funds appropriated by this Act that are made available for the National Endowment for Democracy may be made available notwithstanding any other provision of law or regulation, and the Secretary of State shall provide a report to the Committees on Appropriations within 120 days of the date of enactment of this Act on the status of the allocation, obligation, and expenditure of such funds.