General Assembly resumes talks on Human Rights Council
Regional-UN, Politics, 1/12/2006

The United Nations General Assembly yesterday resumed closed-door talks on setting up the new UN Human Rights Council to replace the Commission on Human Rights, as called for by leaders meeting at the 2005 World Summit last September.

The creation of a new Council is widely seen as an opportunity to open a new chapter in the UN's human rights work, which, though comprehensive and respected, suffered from the tainted reputation of the Commission.

The Secretary-General, who proposed the creation of the Council last March, subsequently explained that the Commission "in its current form has some notable strengths and a proud history, but its ability to perform its tasks has been overtaken by new needs and undermined by the politicization of its sessions and the selectivity of its work."

He envisioned the Human Rights Council as a standing body, able to meet regularly and at any time to deal with imminent crises while conducting timely and in-depth consideration of related issues. National leaders meeting at the 2005 World Summit resolved to create the Council and asked the General Assembly president to conduct negotiations on the issue.

In November, Assembly President Jan Eliasson recalled that the Summit had called for dealing more effectively with key issues, including human rights. "We are now challenged to produce multilateral solutions," he said. "And if we do not pass that test of multilateralism, I think we are facing a very bleak future."

At this critical juncture, governments must hammer out the details of the Council's workings. Annan has been actively engaged in diplomacy on the issue, raising the subject whenever possible and pledging to continue advocating for progress.

The new Council is one piece of human rights reform. Together with the doubling of regular budget resources for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights over the next five years, officials said the Council signals the revitalization of the Organization's work in the field of human rights.

The new UN Human Rights Council must be a clear departure from the discredited Commission on Human Rights or current efforts to improve the protection of human rights will be undermined, US Ambassador John Bolton said yesterday.

Changes in the design of the human rights body cannot be solely cosmetic, Bolton told closed-door negotiations on the new council.

"The United States will not support artificial changes," he said.

"Recreating the Human Rights Commission with only a name change, while replicating all of its flaws, will simply serve to undermine the goal that most of us, but sadly not all, share -- namely, the promotion of freedom, liberty, and human rights," the ambassador said in pressing for a streamlined, action-oriented mandate that focuses on abuses of civil and political rights.

The General Assembly began intensive negotiations January 11 in an effort to establish the Human Rights Council to replace the existing Commission on Human Rights before the commission begins its regular session in March. Secretary-General Kofi Annan first suggested replacing the commission in his March 2005 report recommending wide-ranging UN reforms.

Bolton said that the United States still has "grave concerns" about the current draft resolution setting up the Human Rights Council.

The ambassador said that the United States would like to see the council have no more than 30 members with a fair distribution of seats among the various regions and a firm understanding that "members of the new Council should have a strong commitment to the protection and promotion of human rights." Candidates for the council should have nominations and endorsements from at least half of their regional groups and be elected by two-thirds of the General Assembly. Any country under Security Council sanctions for human rights violations or terrorism should be categorically excluded.

In addition, Bolton said, the new council should have regular periodic meetings throughout the year as well as a trigger mechanism to call for additional sessions as needed.

"We must also have an objective and principled position prohibiting those who turn a blind eye to their own human rights abuses from being allowed to stand in judgment of others," Bolton said. "We must firmly establish that members of the new council should have a strong commitment to the protection and promotion of human rights."

"To fall short of these objectives will signal to the world that the United Nations is not functional or credible on human rights," he said.

Previous Stories:
  Annan has full confidence in UN human rights chief after US criticism   (12/10/2005)
  UN rights chief: 'war on terror' is violating ban on torture   (12/8/2005)
  UN reform must not stall long-term budget planning, Annan says   (12/5/2005)
  Human Rights Council Essential to U.N. Reform, Bolton Says   (9/2/2005)
  United States seeks U.N. reform in seven areas, U.S. envoy says   (6/24/2005)
  US agrees to expansion, continues efforts to shift focus from real Security Council reform   (6/17/2005)

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