(CNSNews.com) – Amnesty International, which has fought the Bush administration at every turn, is urging President-elect Barack Obama to show “true leadership” by making human rights central to his new administration.
 
"President-elect Obama must reverse the damage done at home and abroad by the U.S. government's unlawful actions in the name of national security," said Larry Cox, executive director of Amnesty International USA.
 
"The U.S. government's policies during the past eight years have violated the basic rights of thousands of individuals, damaged the United States' credibility on human rights issues and strained diplomatic relations,” Cox added.
 
In the first 100 days, Amnesty International is specifically calling on the new administration to:
 
-- announce a plan and date for the closure of the detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba;
 
-- issue an executive order to ban torture and other ill-treatment, as defined under international law and applicable to all U.S. agents; and
 
-- ensure an independent commission is set up to investigate abuses
committed by the United States in its war on terror.
 
Those demands are only part of a “checklist” of actions the human rights group wants the new president to move on.
 
According to Amnesty International, the U.S. government also should provide “principled leadership in halting mass atrocities against civilians in places such as Darfur, ending the continued violence against women and girls in the United States and abroad, and supporting human rights defenders and the international system of justice with the International Criminal Court at its heart.”
 
“Human rights must be an integral aspect of every policy, action and issue embarked on by President-elect Obama and his administration," said Cox.
 
"Although the current economic circumstances will dominate much of the public debate and international agenda, a strong and vigilant human rights agenda must also be a priority. The importance of reversing the legacy of the United States as a human rights abuser cannot be overstated."
 
"The new administration must focus on righting some of the wrongs of the Bush administration and restoring the United States as a human rights champion at home and abroad," said Irene Khan, secretary general of Amnesty International.