SPANISH FEELING GOOD ABOUT UNHRC CANDIDACY

C O N F I D E N T I A L MADRID 000519

SIPDIS

IO/RHS
DRL/MLGA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/09/2018
TAGS: PHUM PREL UNHRC SP
SUBJECT: SPANISH FEELING GOOD ABOUT UNHRC CANDIDACY

REF: STATE 46477

Classified By: Charge d'Affaires a.i. Hugo Llorens for reasons 1.4 (b)
and (d)


1. (C) SUMMARY: The Spanish MFA Human Rights Office
believes France and Spain are poised to win the two WEOG
seats on the UN Human Rights Council. Deputy DG
Fernandez-Arias asked for U.S. support and also asked that
the U.S. remember a "debt" to Spain from a previous election.
END SUMMARY.


2. (C) Spanish Deputy Director General for Human Rights
Fernando Fernandez-Arias told Poloff May 9 that Spain is
confident it is well-positioned to win one of two WEOG seats
on the UN Human Rights Council in the May 21 elections
(reftel). Fernandez-Arias said that Spain believes it has
received sufficient commitments "with some margin to spare,"
including 24 of 27 EU votes. According to their analysis,
France is likely to win the most votes of the three WEOG
candidates, while there are signs of "panic" in the UK camp.


3. (C) Fernandez-Arias noted that one advantage for Spain is
the UK and France are both seeking reelection, while Spain
declared its 2008 candidacy at the outset of the UNHRC two
years ago. He also said that some delegations with whom the
Spanish have lobbied have expressed reservations about the
UK's recent human rights record. Spain has argued for the
need to respect the principle of rotation of seats, which he
said carries weight with non P-5 nations. He noted that
Foreign Minister Moratinos will be in New York May 19-20 to
make a final strong push for the candidacy.


4. (U) Laying out some of the arguments for Spain's
candidacy, Fernandez-Arias noted that Spain is the third
leading donor to the Office of the High Commissioner for
Human Rights, the second leading donor for UNIFEM, the
leading donor for the International Commission against
Impunity in Guatemala, and also created a Euro 528M trust
fund within the UNDP for the achievement of the Millennium
Development Goals.


5. (C) Fernandez-Arias noted recent lobbying in Washington
by Ambassador Westendorp, and he said he hoped Spain could
count on U.S. support based on the strength of the Spanish
candidacy and its outstanding human rights record, both
domestically and in international fora. Fernandez-Arias said
the GOS understands well the U.S. reservations about the
Council and is committed to making the HRC effective and
balanced. He expressed his hope that bilateral cooperation
would continue to be strong in international HR fora. He
said he hoped the maxim that P-5 countries always vote for
P-5 countries would not hold true in this case.

//"DEBT TO SPAIN"//


6. (C) Finally, Fernandez-Arias asked Poloff to relay to
Department that the Spanish human rights team believes the
U.S. "has a debt" to Spain from the 2002 UNCHR elections. He
said Spain, at U.S. request, withdrew its 2002 candidacy for
the Commission at the eleventh hour, providing a WEOG clean
slate and ensuring the victory of the last-minute U.S.
candidacy. Said Fernandez-Arias, "We did not ask for
anything then, and we are not asking for anything now. The
only thing we ask is that it be remembered."


7. (U) Post has sent a scanned copy of the MFA Dip Note
announcing Spain's candidacy, along with Spain's pledges and
voluntary commitments to EUR/WE.
Llorens