UN HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL: GAINING SUPPORT FOR USG

UNCLAS LIMA 003331 SIPDIS I/O FOR SASHA MIRA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM PREL PE UNCHR UNGA SUBJECT: UN HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL: GAINING SUPPORT FOR USG PROPOSAL (PERU) REF: A. STATE 140192 ¶B. LIMA 2748 ¶C. STATE 114051 ¶D. LIMA 1233 ¶1. Poloff delivered the demarche on gaining support for the USG proposal to create a UN Human Rights Council to replace the UN Human Rights Commission to Carlos Roman, the Foreign Ministry's Director of Human Rights, on 8/2. Roman said Peru supported the principles behind the U.S. initiative, but was not/not prepared to commit to the proposal that states under Security Council sanctions be prohibited from membership in the Council. ¶2. With respect to Peru's position on the creation of a UN Human Rights Council, Roman gave Poloff a slightly abbreviated version of the non-paper he provided to A/Polcouns in June (full text translated in Ref B). That non-paper notes that Peru favors the efforts of the Lausanne Group, led by Switzerland, and seeks to reconcile the Lausanne Group's position with the proposal for an independent commission of experts advanced by Peru in March (Ref D) to create two bodies to replace the UNCHR: a Human Rights Council and an Oversight Commission, made up of independent experts, elected through a system ensuring balanced geographical representation. ¶3. COMMENT: The GOP supports the replacement of the UNCHR with a new UN Human Rights Council, but remains hopeful that its own initiative to create an independent group of experts can still be worked into the final formula. Peru also remains non-committal on our proposal to exclude countries under Security Council sanction from membership in the new UN Human Rights Council. We do not/not see the GOP as being insistent on either issue, however, and can expect the Peruvians to follow emerging consensus on both the final composition of the body/bodies that replace the UNCHR, as well as on the eligibility criteria for membership on the UN Human Rights Council. END COMMENT. STRUBLE