NETHERLANDS/HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL: NO VOTES FOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L THE HAGUE 000835 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/13/2011 TAGS: PHUM KUNR OPDC PREL UNGA NL SUBJECT: NETHERLANDS/HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL: NO VOTES FOR VIOLATORS REF: A. A) STATE 57036 ¶B. B) THE HAGUE 765 ¶C. C) THE HAGUE 659 Classified By: DCM Chat Blakeman; reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (SBU) Summary: Ambassador delivered the Secretary's letter (ref A) to FM Bot on April 11. Poloff, Political Counselor and DCM followed up April 11, 12 and 13, with working level officials. The Dutch are pleased, but not surprised, by our commitment to the success of the new Human Rights Council. They stress that they will absolutely not vote for any country that is a systematic abuser of human rights nor seek their support for a Dutch candidacy. End summary. ¶2. (C) MFA Ambassador at Large for Human Rights, Piet de Klerk, told DCM April 13 that the GONL will not support egregious human rights violators. The Dutch have come up with a list of seven or eight countries they would not support under any circumstances (e.g., Zimbabwe, Iran, Sudan, North Korea). Examples are for our information and should not be shared with others. De Klerk repeated (per ref B) that The Netherlands hopes we will join the Council at a later date. He offered to keep us fully informed of Council proceedings should the Dutch be elected. ¶3. (C) Political Counselor made similar points to MFA Deputy Director General for Political Affairs Peter de Gooijer on April 12. De Gooijer reiterated that the Dutch did not want to see serious violators of human rights sitting on the Council. For this reason, he continued, they would neither vote for such states nor seek their support for the Dutch candidacy. On the other hand, de Gooijer stressed that the Dutch were very interested in having the support of the U.S. and other like-minded states for their candidacy. ¶4. (C) Poloff spoke with Peter van der Vliet, Head of MFA Legal Affairs Division, UN and IFIs, on April 11. V/d Vliet stressed that the Netherlands will not/not vote for any country that is a systematic or repeat human rights abuser. He worried, though, that regions such as Africa might put forward slates that included abusers. Although The Netherlands would refuse to vote for the abusers, these countries might ultimately end up on the Council. Anneke Adema, Head of the MFA Human Rights Division, emphasized that, although The Netherlands voted for the resolution creating the HRC, it was acutely aware of the resolution's shortcomings. The GONL, she said, hopes to use its influence (and a hoped for seat on the HRC) to shape the direction of the new body. BLAKEMAN