NETHERLANDS/HUMAN RIGHTS: WORKING TOGETHER ON

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 THE HAGUE 002156

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/03/2015
TAGS: PREL PHUM PGOV NL USUN
SUBJECT: NETHERLANDS/HUMAN RIGHTS: WORKING TOGETHER ON
HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL AND IN THIRD COMMITTEE

REF: SICADE-FALLS-SCHOFER E-MAIL 8/3/05

Classified By: DCM CHAT BLAKEMAN FOR REASONS 1.4(B) AND (D).


1. (C) SUMMARY: The Dutch support the establishment of a
Human Rights Council to replace the Commission on Human
Rights (CHR),but have specific questions regarding numbers
and criteria for membership. The Dutch believe that the new
Council should be a standing body with the status of a
"principle organ" of the UN. During the upcoming Third
Committee session, the EU will seek U.S. support for
resolutions on Burma, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, and
possibly DPRK and Sudan. The Dutch have asked whether the
U.S. would support an EU resolution on Zimbabwe; please see
guidance request in para 7. END SUMMARY.


2. (C) DCM took advantage of an August 3 introductory call on
Piet de Klerk, the Dutch MFA's Special Ambassador for Human
Rights, to discuss current proposals for a new Human Rights
Council (to replace the UN Commission on Human Rights) and
the Third Committee agenda for the upcoming UNGA. (Note:
Guantanamo discussion reported septel.)
De Klerk was accompanied by Anneke Adema (Director of the
MFA's Human Rights Department) and Guillaume Teerling (Desk
Officer in the Human Rights Department); POLCOUNS accompanied
DCM.

HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL: MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION


3. (C) De Klerk and Adema agreed that, in principle, the
Dutch supported the objectives of the Ping report and U.S.
proposals for creating a new "Human Rights Council" to
replace the UN Commission on Human Rights. Thinking on this
new body, they said, appeared to be "shaping up" nicely and
gaining support. On the specific question of numbers, the
Dutch understood the U.S. desire to keep membership
restricted, but worried that "20-30" was too low; the SYG's
range of "30-50" appeared more realistic. Dutch concerns in
this area, they stressed, are purely practical -- as a small
nation, the odds of being elected to the Council are more
favorable with a larger membership. At the same time, the
Dutch were looking favorably at the idea of combining the
Western and Eastern European groups -- even though this could
work against them getting elected -- because it sent a
positive signal about the end of Cold-War divisions in Europe.


4. (C) Commenting on the U.S. proposal to limit membership in
the new body to UNGA members not under UNSC sanctions, de
Klerk observed that the Dutch would also like to see some
"positive" incentives for membership. These might take the
form of "pledges" taken by candidates for membership -- for
example, to sign international Human Rights agreements and
uphold their principles. DCM reiterated that the U.S. was
only looking at a "very narrow" basis for denying membership,
i.e., states should not be under sanctions. POLCOUNS asked
how the additional Dutch "incentives" would work given the
continuing relevance of regional groupings; would all states
in all groups be expected to make the same commitments? De
Klerk and Adema acknowledged that their ideas in this area
were still not fully developed, and stressed that such
pledges or other commitments would be primarily "moral" in
nature rather than obligatory.


5. (C) De Klerk and Adema said that the Dutch supported
making the Human Rights Council a "principal organ" of the UN
system. Adema added that it would send the right signal to
have all three "pillars" of the international system --
cooperation, development, and human rights -- identified with
similar "organs." De Klerk suggested that calling the new
body a "council" would raise its status "into the Security
Council range." Both stressed that making the new Council a
standing body and giving it the power to react quickly to
crises and emergencies would be essential to its success.
Pressed on what sort of actions they envisioned being taken
by the new Council, Adema and de Klerk agreed that these
should primarily involve drawing attention to human rights
concerns, tasking the HR commissioner and rapporteurs, and
referring the most serious issues to the Security Council.

THIRD COMMITTEE AGENDA


6. (C) Turning to the Third Committee, Adema said that the
Dutch hoped to work closely with the U.S. in the upcoming
round to ensure that the U.S. and EU coordinated their
efforts effectively. The EU, she said, expected to put
forward resolutions on Burma, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and
possibly the DPRK and Sudan. On DPRK, she stressed that the
EU was still considering whether it was worthwhile to pursue
a resolution both in New York and Geneva, or just the latter.
She noted that the EU was considering putting forward some
African resolutions, including on Sudan, but hoped to
coordinate first with the African Union (which was proving
problematic.) Drawing from ref, DCM observed that the U.S.
felt that Sudan was an currently more of an issue for the
Security Council than the Third Committee. In response,
Adema observed that failure to address the Human Rights
aspects of the Sudan situation by those bodies explicitly
tasked with Human Rights responsibilities -- whether the
Third Committee, the CHR, or the new Human Rights Council --
would only undercut the credibility of those bodies over the
long term. DCM asked whether the EU was considering putting
forward a resolution on Belarus, noting (per ref) that the
U.S. considered the CHR resolution with a special rapporteur
to be sufficient at this time. Adema did not push back.


7. (C) Following the meeting, POLCOUNS was contacted by
Guillaume Teerling, who asked whether the U.S. would be
prepared to support an EU Third Committee resolution on
Zimbabwe. He stressed that, while the coinciding Zimbabwean
elections made such a resolution politically impractical
during the CHR, the EU now believes that such a resolution is
necessary in light of the devastating effects of operation
restore order. Post would appreciate guidance on how to
respond.
BLAKEMAN