GOJ DISAGREES ON CHR REFORM SESSION

UNCLAS KINGSTON 001250 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/CAR (BENT) DEPARTMENT ALSO FOR IO/SHA (SMEHRA),S/UNR (JGERAN),AND USUN (MZACK) E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM JM UNCHR UNGA SUBJECT: GOJ DISAGREES ON CHR REFORM SESSION REF: STATE 082967 On May 6, poloff met with Angella Brown, Deputy Director, International Organizations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade (MFAFT),to deliver reftel talking points. Brown disagreed that a working group in Geneva would be redundant and inappropriate. She argued that, since the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) sits in Geneva, it would not be unreasonable to discuss CHR reform there. Brown added that a discussion in New York of broader UN reforms would quickly get bogged down in the vast number of issues being considered, and that a more focused discussion on the human rights body could take place in Geneva. As a result, she anticipated that members would be more likely to reach their goal -- consensus on reform -- in Geneva. In addition, Brown said that the costs of such a meeting would likely not be particularly high, since most members are already represented in Geneva at the WTO. TIGHE