Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06USUNNEWYORK538
2006-03-20 14:15:00
UNCLASSIFIED
USUN New York
Cable title:  

HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL: ADDITIONAL REPORTING ON

Tags:  PHUM KUNR PREL UNGA 
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DE RUCNDT #0538/01 0791415
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 201415Z MAR 06
FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8368
INFO RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA PRIORITY 1984
UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 000538 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM KUNR PREL UNGA
SUBJECT: HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL: ADDITIONAL REPORTING ON
ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION TEXT

REF: USUN 515

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 000538

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM KUNR PREL UNGA
SUBJECT: HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL: ADDITIONAL REPORTING ON
ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION TEXT

REF: USUN 515


1. INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY: As reported reftel, the UN
General Assembly adopted the resolution on establishment of
the Human Rights Council (HRC) by a vote of 170-4(U.S.) with
3 abstentions. Reftel reported on the presentation of the
resolution text and Explanations of Vote (EOVs) delivered in
the morning session; this cable provides reporting on the
afternoon session. In its EOV, CANZ countries expressed
support for the resolution while noting that it was not
possible to reach agreement on all their hopes for the
Council, and pledged they "will not vote on to the Council
countries where there is objective evidence of gross and
systematic violations of human rights, including those that
are under sanctions of the Security Council for human rights
related reasons." Liechtenstein also agreed that States that
are under Security Council enforcement measures for their
human rights record should not serve on the new Council for
as long as those measures are in place, and expressed the
hope that all States committed to the promotion and
protection of human rights will engage with the newly created
body. Japan, Timor-Leste and Iceland also said their
countries will not vote for countries under sanctions for
human rights reasons. Brazil, speaking also on behalf of
Paraguay, Uruguay, Panama, Colombia, and Guatemala, expressed
regret that the representation of GRULAC in the Council as
compared to the Commission was decreased by 27 percent.


2. SUMMARY, CONTINUED: Sudan's statement criticized the
United States and expressed its opposition to any attempt to
politicize the HRC or link it to the Security Council, while
Iran expressed concern that the two-thirds provision to
suspend membership would be used by "certain states" to
pursue a "politically-motivated" policy. Egypt, Syria and
Algeria said the HRC should address the issues of
self-determination and foreign occupation. Pakistan said the
CHR had been discredited not by the worst violators, but by
the tendency of some states to condemn rather than to help
each other, and complained about selective targeting of
developing countries, especially Islamic ones. Pakistan also
called for a review and rationalization of all of the UN's
human rights machinery, and called the election provisions in

OP 8 "unprecedented" but suggested that with the HRC
precedent, 0.7 percent ODA should become a benchmark for
election to ECOSOC. Closing the afternoon session UNGA
President Eliasson expressed hope that Member States would
work in a positive spirit to make the HRC a strong UN
mechanism, and said that now Member States can move ahead
with other reform issues. END SUMMARY.

SUPPORT FOR HRC TEXT, THOUGH NOT PERFECT


3. New Zealand's PermRep, also speaking on behalf of Canada
and Australia, expressed CANZ support for the resolution.
The CANZ EOV said they "believe that its key elements provide
for a more effective international human rights body" than
the CHR, while noting that it was not possible to reach
agreement on all their hopes for the Council, including
stronger thresholds for membership through a 2/3 majority
vote and tougher provisions for preventing gross and
systematic abusers of human rights from being elected. The
three countries pledged they "will not vote on to the Council
countries where there is objective evidence of gross and
systematic violations of human rights, including those that
are under sanctions of the Security Council for human rights
related reasons."


4. Liechtenstein's PermRep stated that while Liechtenstein
shares the dissatisfaction of others with some of the HRC's
features, it firmly believes that "the adopted text
constitutes a significant improvement over the Commission on
Human Rights." He noted their preference for a more flexible
convening mechanism (e.g. to allow for a case-specific
dialogue with the special procedures, treaty bodies and HCHR)
and a clear division of work between the HRC and the UNGA
Third Committee, but said that this concern could be
accommodated when the HRC is set up, and more generally, that
the Council "will be what we all allow it to be and make it
to be, through our collective political will." Liechtenstein
also agreed that States that are under Security Council
enforcement measures for their human rights record should not
serve on the HRC for as long as those measures are in place.
Finally, Liechtenstein noted its preference for a consensual
adoption of the resolution, but said "More importantly,
though, we firmly believe that it is crucial that all States
committed to the promotion and protection of human rights to
engage with the newly created body and make sure it truly
reflects the new approach our Heads of State and Governments
decided on at the Summit meeting in September."


5. Japan welcomed the HRC as an improvement to the UN's
human rights machinery, despite its preference that the HRC
be a principal organ with a two-thirds majority required for
election. Saying that the task now is for Member States to
ensure the HRC is credible, Japan expressed support for
written pledges by candidate countries and said Japan will
not vote for countries under sanctions for human rights
reasons. Japan also expressed a desire for the planned
5-year review to occur earlier. Iceland's PermRep said "I
feel obliged to register disappointment that the final
outcome does not match the ambitions in the clear and
principled approach proposed by the Secretary General in his
original report" but said it supported the resolution
"because the alternative of falling back on the Commission is
unacceptable and not in the interests of human rights," and
noted several positive aspects of the resolution. Iceland
also said it will not vote for any candidate country that is
under sanctions imposed by the Security Council for human
rights related reasons or any country that is considered to
be committing gross and systematic violations of human rights.


6. Argentina supported passage of the resolution, saying
that even though the text does not contain some of the
elements that were important to Argentina, such as making the
HRC a principal organ of the UN or having elections by 2/3
majority, the resolution provides an appropriate basis for
the creation of the HRC. It continued: "Argentina will
strive for a Human Rights Council that will foremost be a
sensitive forum to the claims of victims of repressive acts,
all those who were denied the rights that the Universal
Declaration guarantees them, no matter where they may occur.
Cooperation among states must be in favor of these victims
and not to their detriment."


7. Brazil, speaking also on behalf of Paraguay, Uruguay,
Panama, Colombia, and Guatemala, firmly supported the
President's text, calling it a step forward toward the
strengthening and improvement of the human rights machinery,
and saying that it hopes imperfections will be fixed through
the day-to-day practice of the new body. Brazil noted three
particular concerns: that the text could have included more
comprehensively the concepts of dialogue and cooperation;
regret that the proposal for a global report was not included
in the final draft; and regret that the representation of
GRULAC in the Council as compared to the Commission was
decreased by 27 percent. It continued: "We understand that
regions with increased number of countries should expand
their presence. But there was no decrease in the number of
countries in our region. So we fail to see why its
representation has been reduced so drastically." Peru
welcomed the creation of the HRC, but endorsed Brazil's
statement expressing regret for the decreased presence of
Latin America and the Caribbean on the HRC.


8. Speaking for the Community of Portuguese-Speaking
Countries (Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau,
Mozambique, Timor-Leste, Sao-Tome and Principe, and
Portugal,) Sao-Tome and Principe welcomed the resolution as
an important step in the implementation of the decisions at
the 2005 summit. Timor-Leste, though associating with this
statement went further and said it would have preferred
extended negotiations, supported US and EU statements, and
pledged not to vote for sanctioned countries. Monaco,
speaking also for Andorra and San Marino, endorsed the EU
statement and stated its belief that the text could and
should have gone farther to ensure the HRC's credibility, but
said it marks significant progress over the past. Kenya
praised the spirit of accommodation and the improvements
made, but stated their disappointment that a vote took place
at all. It also stressed the need for dialogue in the HRC,
as opposed to confrontation, which it said is often the means
of interaction in the CHR.

SUDAN CRITICIZES U.S., IRAN EXPLAINS ABSTENTION


9. After reaffirming the statements made on behalf of the
African Group and OIC, Sudan said the HRC is one part of the
reform process that must "revitalize" the UN. Sudan's EOV
continued by stating that, as opposed to past actions by
"great powers" that acted "beyond the law," it hoped the HRC
is based on "international cooperation" without selectivity,
and is respectful of cultures and religions. Sudan said it
did not wish to reply to the US statement because previous
efforts made to remind the US of "lessons" from history were
made in vain. Instead of receiving "lessons" from the US,
Sudan wanted guarantees that Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib, and
other places of detention were like "5-star tourist resorts."
Sudan also expressed its opposition to any attempt to
politicize the HRC or link it to the Security Council, as
doing so would "violate" the reform process and weaken the
General Assembly.


10. Iran said it preferred consensus, but attributed Iran's
abstention to certain provisions in the resolution. Iran said
it attaches great importance to dialogue and the elimination
of double standards, and hopes the HRC will promote cultural
and religious understanding. Though it hopes that
politicization will be eliminated, Iran expressed concern
that the two-thirds provision to suspend membership would be
used by "certain states" to pursue a "politically-motivated"
policy. Iran continued by stating that the resolution did
not duly take into consideration the OIC's concerns about
religious tolerance.

EGYPT, SYRIA AND ALGERIA - HRC SHOULD ADDRESS FOREIGN
OCCUPATION


11. Egypt explained its understanding of certain provisions
of the resolution, including that the HRC should work to
promote the principle of the right of self-determination of
peoples under "colonial domination and foreign occupation,"
that the HRC should present all its recommendations and
resolutions to the GA for consideration, that "highest
standards" in OP 9 refers to those standards that have been
internationally recognized and agreed upon by all states
collectively, and that the suspension of rights of membership
as stated in OP8 should be an exceptional application to the
HRC only and should not represent a precedent for other UN
bodies. Egypt also said that PP7 entails the responsibility
of states and international organizations in ensuring respect
for religions and prophets, and the responsibility of the HRC
and the GA "in ensuring that all states abide by their
responsibilities in this regard."


12. Egypt and Syria also associated themselves with the OIC,
with Syria commenting that OIC language had not been fully
considered during consultations. In its EOV, Syria said it
voted yes because it hoped "some others" would show
flexibility. It continued by saying the HRC must only deal
with a state's internal affairs when it is under foreign
occupation; this was followed by a statement recalling
"Israel's practices" in the "occupied territories," which
Syria called a "gross violation of human rights." Syria also
called for the CHR's Agenda Item 8 to be transferred to the
HRC. Algeria said the text is balanced while mentioning the
importance of "dialogue and cooperation," and also stated
that it would have liked to see other elements in the text,
especially the right to self-determination and freedom from
"foreign occupation."

PAKISTAN ON NEXT STEPS


13. Pakistan's PermRep Munir Akram pointed to a "long UN
tradition" that texts of the President of the GA are for
adoption by consensus, and stated Pakistan's view that
decisions on reform should be adopted without a vote, hoping
the HRC vote would not have a negative impact on other reform
issues. He said the CHR had been discredited not by the
worst violators, but by the tendency of some states to
condemn rather than to help each other, and complained about
selective targeting of developing countries, especially
Islamic ones. He also said that while the resolution focused
only on replacing the CHR, there should be a review and
rationalization of the rest of the UN's human rights
machinery, including the special procedures, SubCommission,
1503 procedure, civil society participation, and the
composition and operation of the Office of the High
Commissioner. Pakistan called the election provisions in OP
8 "unprecedented," but suggested it could now be used as a
precedent for other bodies, further suggesting that 0.7
percent ODA should become a benchmark for election to ECOSOC.
Pakistan concluded by stating that the 2005 Summit was to be
a development summit and expressed concerns with delays on
the development and ECOSOC reform resolutions, saying that
now that the HRC resolution is "out of the way," Pakistan
trusts the PGA would make these his first priority.

OTHER VOICES


14. Morocco accepted the text and associated itself with the
OIC and African statements, reminding the floor that the HRC
was a "fragile balance" of diverse views. Indonesia called
the text a fair, but not a fully satisfactory, compromise,
while saying it should provide for better human rights
machinery than the CHR. In addition, Indonesia said the HRC
must be faithful to universality and non-selectivity and the
elimination of double standards and politicization.
Indonesia also associated with the OIC statement, and in
reference to the recent Danish cartoons, said that freedom of
expression must be "exercised with responsibility."


15. Russia stated that though far from perfect, the
resolution is a starting point for the future of the new
human rights body. It expressed concerns about the term
limits in OP7 and said the paragraph contradicts the
universal membership contained in the preambular section. In
addition, Russia stated that the criteria that will be used
to judge member states are still not clear.


16. India stated that the decision on the HRC showed that
the GA "could deliver" and congratulated all members on what
they had done. India stated that the text contained an
implicit reference to the right to development, calling it an
"inalienable human right." China also called the decision
historic and praised Eliasson, but stated that there was no
guarantee that the HRC would avoid political confrontation.
In line with India, China stated the text failed to fully
address the main concerns of developing countries. China
noted that it will make further comments on its concerns
during discussions on the rules of procedure for the HRC.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines, on behalf of CARICOM,
accepted the HRC in the spirit of compromise and said it
hopes the HRC will avoid double standards and selectivity.

ISRAEL'S EOV FOR ITS "NO" VOTE


17. Israel was the only other state that voted "no" (besides
the US) to deliver an EOV. Israel expressed profound regret
that the resolution fell short of its expectations (and
noting that there is no benchmark for membership ensuring the
improvement of membership),and gave Israel no other choice
but to vote against it, as "radical failure calls for radical
change."

CUBA'S RIGHT OF REPLY


18. At the end of the afternoon session, Cuba delivered a
right of reply to the earlier U.S. statement. It criticized
the USG, saying imperialism persists and accusing the United
States of making a "self declaration of moral superiority."
Cuba asked how the United States can demand conditions for
entry into the HRC, alleging U.S. troops were mistreating
prisoners in GTMO and Abu Ghraib and attacking Muslim
sentiments. Cuba also said it was unacceptable that some
countries were taking on a right to interpret the HRC text,
"especially if to satisfy US interests," asking whether CANZ
and the EU will stand against a U.S. presence on the HRC
"since the US violates human rights"?

ELIASSON CLOSES THE SESSION


19. Closing the afternoon session with a quote from Eleanor
Roosevelt, Eliasson said the session provided an important
opportunity for delegations to listen to each other,
including regarding their interpretations of text and
aspirations for the HRC, etc. He expressed hope that Member
States would work in a positive spirit to make this a strong
UN mechanism, including through cooperation and dialogue, and
especially tolerance and respect for cultures and religions,
which he said should be worked on in different UN bodies. He
called adoption of the resolution an achievement, and praised
delegations for taking an international and long-term
perspective to strengthen the HR machinery and the United
Nations. Eliasson said he sees this action also from the
perspective of GA role and authority, and its capacity to
take decisions where needed, saying the GA can deliver and is
capable of taking such decisions. He concluded by saying
that now Member States can move ahead, with work to do on
ECOSOC reform and development and management and secretariat
reform. (Note: He listed these reform activities in this
order in his statement. End Note.)
BOLTON