Two stockholder proposals listed in Google’s proxy statement address the uncomfortable issue of the company’s presence in China and other countries with less than sparkling records in the human rights area. Google’s board recommended shareholders vote against each proposal.

“Technology companies in the United States such as Google, that operate in countries controlled by authoritarian governments have an obligation to comply with the principles of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights,” reads part of Proposal 4.

The Office of the Comptroller of New York City and St. Scholastica Monastery submitted that one. They want Google to not engage in pro-active censorship, as they do as a condition of operating in China.

Proposal 5 requests the establishment of a Board Committee on Human Rights. Harrington Investments thinks this Board “could be an effective mechanism for addressing the human rights implications of the company