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| International-UN-NGOs |
| New UN rights body targets Israel |
| 2006-06-30 |
| The new UN Human Rights Council voted Friday to make a review of alleged human rights abuses by Israel a permanent feature of every council session. The resolution, which was sponsored by Islamic countries, was passed by a vote of 29-12, with five abstentions. It effectively revives a practice of the UN's dissolved Human Rights Commission, which also reviewed alleged Israeli abuses every time it met. Israel protested Friday's vote, calling it a perpetuation of "the old infamous habits" of the widely discredited commission. The resolution requires UN investigators to report at each council session "on the Israeli human rights violations in occupied Palestine." The resolution also said the council "decides to undertake substantive consideration of the human rights violations and implications of the Israeli occupation of Palestine and other occupied Arab territories at its next session and to incorporate that issue in its following sessions." One of the United States' main criticisms of the 53-nation Human Rights Commission that was replaced this year by the council was that it spent one week of its annual six-week session criticizing Israel and made other frequent attacks on the Jewish state. "Voting in favor of this draft resolution will lead you directly to the old infamous habits of the commission," Israeli Ambassador Itzhak Levanon told the council. "Voting yes essentially means that no lessons have been drawn. It means that there is no fresh beginning." Besides Arab and other Muslim countries, "yes" votes were cast by African nations, Brazil, China, Cuba, Ecuador, Guatemala, India, Mexico, the Philippines, Russia and Sri Lanka. Canada and European Union members on the council voted against it. The United States is not a member of the council and, like Israel, was unable to vote. The council has two more sessions this year, starting in September and December. |
| Posted by:lotp |
| #11 Man, what do we have to do to get rid of these diplomatic scumbags. First, UN employees are now being accused of killings in the Rwanda massacre, and now this tripe? Almost makes me wanna hijack a plane myself and fly it into the UN building (/rant off/). |
| Posted by: BA 2006-06-30 23:55 |
| #10 Wow. Good to see how things are so very, very different over there at Human Rights. Keep it up UN. Keep pissing what infinitismal credibility you've got left in this country right down the shitter... |
| Posted by: tu3031 2006-06-30 22:21 |
| #9 Well, damn, you didn't think they were going to investigate human rights violations in Cuba or North Korea, did you? That would require possibly doing something about them. Just say that we'll pay what we owe when Hamas makes good on their paychecks to their personnel. Yanking all the money overnight is so....unilateral. ;) |
| Posted by: Swamp Blondie 2006-06-30 22:16 |
| #8 Just in case someone doesn't know Membership of the "new" Human Rights Council. Algeria , Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brazil, Cameroon, Canada, China, Cuba, Czech Republic, Djibouti, Ecuador, Finland, France, Gabon, Germany, Ghana, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Japan, Jordan, Malaysia, Mali, Mauritius, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Tunisia, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Zambia. A plus ça change ... |
| Posted by: Snise Grogum7151 2006-06-30 21:14 |
| #7 Dead on, AH6228, and I've repeatedly written my Representative and both Senators to urge that option. If you (and other Rantburgers) haven't done the same, I strongly suggest you do so ASAP. |
| Posted by: mac 2006-06-30 18:12 |
| #6 Worthless damn organization. Minor quibble: they're worse than worthless - they're actively harmful. |
| Posted by: Xbalanke 2006-06-30 17:44 |
| #5 Not at all, IMO. Cut it all off. Close it down. Deport them all. Raze the building and let the property become productive, once again. |
| Posted by: Angomoper Hupoluth6228 2006-06-30 17:30 |
| #4 Cut off their money now. Or am I overreacting? |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2006-06-30 17:27 |
| #3 Confirming why the US opposed this "reformed" pile of dung. |
| Posted by: Whuling Ulons4237 2006-06-30 17:25 |
| #2 Worthless damn organization. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2006-06-30 17:23 |
| #1 Get rid of this damned travesty. |
| Posted by: Dave D. 2006-06-30 17:22 |