WHO DEMARCHE/LOSS OF CHR SEAT

C O N F I D E N T I A L ABUJA 001128

SIPDIS


IO/S, IO/T, DHHS


E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/15/2006
TAGS: AORC PHUM NI UNCHR WHO
SUBJECT: WHO DEMARCHE/LOSS OF CHR SEAT


REF: SECSTATE 84094



1. (U) Poloff delivered reftel demarche on May 14 to Nonye

C. ("Joel") Udegbunam, Minister Counselor in the Second U.N.
Division at the MFA. Udegbunam said that as a member of the
Fifth Committee, he had personally worked on the negotiating
the reduction in the UN scales of assessment, and said he
would be returning to New York to participate in the WHA
later this week. He asserted that Nigeria would abide by the
negotiated agreement, and would not support any attempt to
change the U.S. portion of the WHO scale of assessment.



2. (C) In an aside, Udegbunam mentioned that he was
"shocked" that the U.S. had lost its seat on the CHR.
However, he implied that the loss came as no surprise to him:
he claimed that he had expressed concern to G-77 colleagues
prior/prior to the vote about what the reaction of the U.S.
Congress might be to losing the seat. He asked Poloff if the
USG had been aware that the Europeans had been actively
working to deny the U.S. re-election. Poloff replied that he
had no persnal knowledge of such an endeavor. Udegbunam
acknowledged that Nigeria did not vote with the U.S. on every
issue during the latest CHR session, but asserted that
Nigeria had voted for the U.S. to keep its seat on the
Commission.



3. (C) Comment: Udegbunam said he developed his sensitivity
to U.S. Conressional views as a member of the Fifth
Committee. He said he was in New York, and not in Geneva, as
CHR-related events unfolded. Embassy has not had much
interaction with Udegbunam and does not know hoow accurate
his recollection of conversations and their exact timing
might be. He was, however, a more sympathetic interlocutor
than Christy Mbonu. End Comment.


End Comment.


Andrews