U.S. Secretary of State Clinton Praised at Prague’s RFE/RL Headquaters its ‘Smart Power’ and Talked to the Afghan People

Hillary Clinton and RFE/RL President Jeffrey Gedmin. © RFE/RL

April 17, 2009

During a recent visit to RFE/RL's Prague New Headquarters on April 5, Secretary of State Clinton said "RFE/RL is smart power. [...] What you do here is an essential part of everything America stands for."

 Transcript of U.S. Secretary of State Clinton's remarks at RFE/RL's Prague headquarters

At RFE/RL Hillary Clinton took the first opportunity as Secretary of State to answer questions directly from the Afghan people and fielded calls from listeners during an interview with RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan. In this interview she said she is "deeply concerned" about a controversial new Afghan law restricting the rights of Shiite women.

„I have expressed my concerns and objections directly to [Afghan] President Hamid Karzai,“ Clinton said about the Shiite Personal Status Law, which, among other things, requires a woman to gain permission from her husband or father to leave the house, pursue an education, or hold a job. It also stipulates how often a husband is entitled to sex. „I hope the leadership will look carefully and determine that this law is not in the best of interests of Afghanistan, particularly its women and children.“

More you can read in the article „Clinton Criticizes Afghan Womens' Rights Law“

Audio: US Secretary of State, interviewed by Radio Free Afghanistan in Prague