Secretary of State Clinton Addresses International Labor Issues During Cambodia Stop

Source: wepartypatriots

Recently, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton did what no diplomat had done before: she visited her 100th country, breaking Madeleine Albright’s record of 98:

Since taking over the role in 2009, Clinton has spent 351 days traveling. She visited 102 different countries and has flown 843,839 miles according to the State Department. Some other secretaries may have flown more miles, but none have visited as many countries as Clinton has.

Clinton broke the travel record last month when she passed Madeleine Albright’s record of visiting 98 countries. Clinton’s 99th country was Finland, followed by Latvia, marking her 100th country. Since then,Clinton has also visted Mongolia and Laos, putting her at 102 countries. According to Politico, Clinton was the first secretary of state to visit Laos in 57 years and she’s only the second secretary to do so.

Laos is among a group of Southeast Asian countries not well-known for their workers’ rights, a problem that labor leaders were elated to hear Clinton address during her stop in Cambodia:

“So as I traveled across Asia this week – from Japan to Mongolia, to Vietnam, to Laos, and now Cambodia – I’ve been talking about the mutually reinforcing role that economics and human rights play in not only your lives, but in America’s engagement in the region – what is sometimes called our pivot to Asia. Labor issues promoting workers rights, improving labor conditions, supporting women’s economic participation, protecting people from modern day slavery is all part about how you build prosperous, peaceful societies. 

And so today, I want to focus on the rights of workers here in Southeast Asia and in our modern global economy. It’s important that we understand fair labor standards for men and women can spur economic growth and widen the circle of prosperity. And governments, businesses, and workers all have a responsibility to make that happen.”

As for the photoshopped Hillary Clinton + Wilt Chamberlain photo at the top of this post, what can we say other than, “you’re welcome.”