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US: Group lauds U.S. bid for seat on top UN human rights body
[ADN Kronos] The United States' decision to run for election next month to the United Nations Human Rights Council is a step toward more engaged and effective US leadership on human rights worldwide, Human Rights Watch said on Wednesday."Active involvement by the US will bring new energy and focus to the Human Rights Council's deliberations and actions, helping it become a more credible force for human rights promotion," said Kenneth Roth, executive director at Human Rights Watch. "We hope this marks the start of a new era of US engagement and leadership on behalf of human rights." The Human Rights Council, established in 2006 and based in Geneva, Switzerland, is the leading multilateral body tasked with protecting and enforcing human rights. It also carries out routine, periodic reviews of human rights conditions in every UN member nation. The administration of president Barack Obama's announcement on Tuesday that it would run for a seat in May's elections to the council represents a significant policy shift. The administration of previous US president George W. Bush declined to run for a seat on the council and, in 2008, suspended its participation as an observer at the council. The Human Rights Council has been criticised in the past for failing to address effectively the wide range of serious human rights problems around the world and has been accused of bias in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Nevertheless, the council has an array of pressing issues on its agenda, including torture, women's rights, and the need to ensure that human rights violators are brought to justice, the group said. It is also monitoring crisis situations in Sri Lanka, Somalia and elsewhere in the world. "By running for a seat, and exercising principled leadership as a member of the council, the United States can now help this important institution fulfil its potential," HRW concluded. Posted by: Fred 2009-04-02 |
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