ARGENTINA WELCOMES DIALOGUE ON PRIORITIES FOR UNGA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BUENOS AIRES 001249 SENSITIVE SIPDIS FOR DRL/MLGA ALYSON GRUNDER AND LYNN SICADE FOR IO/RHS REBECCA JOVIN E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM PREL UN AR SUBJECT: ARGENTINA WELCOMES DIALOGUE ON PRIORITIES FOR UNGA THIRD COMMITTEE REF: A. SECSTATE 93981 ¶B. GOMEZ-GRUNDER 9/4/08 TELCON ¶C. 2007 BUENOS AIRES 1055 ¶1. (SBU) Poloff raised ref A points with Minister Silvia Fernandez, Director for the Argentine MFA's Office of Human Rights on September 5. No-action motions -------------- Poloff thanked the GOA for voting against all no-action motions and voting for country-specific resolutions against Belarus, Burma, the DPRK, and Iran in 2007. She asked whether the GOA would do the same this year. Fernandez indicated that the GOA would continue to take a stand against all no-motion actions raised in the Third Committee. She also stated that although the GOA does not have instructions on country-specific resolutions, in principle, the GOA has not changed its position since last year. Country-specific Resolutions -------------- Belarus: Poloff explained that although the GOB's overall human rights record remains very poor, the recent release by the GOB of its last political prisoners in August was a welcome sign. She added that if this positive trend continues, the USG believes introducing a human rights resolution at the UNGA Third Committee this year might be counterproductive. Fernandez stated that Argentina's position on Belarus had not changed, but agreed that the release of political prisoners was a good sign. She said that Argentina will continue to monitor the situation in Belarus, but it must continue positive change for Argentina to reconsider its position. Zimbabwe: Fernandez stated that Argentina would "wait and see" whether negotiations would help resolve the current conflict before deciding whether a resolution is warranted. Sudan: Fernandez stated that the GOA has not issued formal instructions yet, but that in principle, the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) should renew all Special Rapporteur mandates, especially the Sudan's. Thematic Resolutions -------------- Freedom of Religion: Fernandez explained that Argentina abstained last year on the "defamation of religions" resolution sponsored by the Organization of Islamic Countries. She stated that if the resolution's text is the same, Argentina will continue to abstain. She noted that Argentina co-sponsored the EU's Religious Intolerance resolution last year, and would do so again this year. When asked if Argentina could work to encourage the EU to introduce the resolution in the Third Committee as well as the UNHRC, she said the GOA would have to consider the matter. She added that the GOA supports the idea in principle, but prefers to avoid the duplication of debate in the UNHRC and the Third Committee. Freedom of Expression: Fernandez noted that Argentina upholds the right to freedom of expression but would have to discuss internally to suggest tactics to defend this principle at the UN. She opined that a generic resolution condemning states that restrict freedom of expression would be "too problematic" and could lead to an "infernal debate" over the definition of freedom of expression. Speaking unofficially, she stated that the GOA would "not discard" strategies to vote against resolutions that infringe freedom of expression rights when they come up at the UN or supporting amendments to resolutions to strengthen such rights. Prisoners of Conscience: Fernandez noted that the GOA did not sign the declaration and was studying it. She said that if the Declaration were re-opened to new signatories, the GOA would look at the text closely. She stated that in principle, the declaration is a good one, but that there may be concerns in the Latin American region over the paragraph where countries commit to making the release of prisoners of conscience a priority in their relations with other countries. BUENOS AIR 00001249 002 OF 002 Human Rights Consultations -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Per ref B, poloff told Fernandez that DRL/MLGA would be willing to discuss these issues in the coming weeks in response to the GOA's interest in holding informal bilateral consultations on human rights issues expressed at the July senior-level bilateral consultations (ref C). Poloff relayed that DRL/MLGA had held digital video conferences (DVCs) with Canada, the EU and Poland to discuss human rights issues with positive results. Fernandez welcomed the idea, saying that she is traveling to Geneva to participate in the upcoming UNHRC, and a DVC would be a good opportunity to share perspectives after the UNHRC session. WAYNE