Clinton plans to meet with Syrian opposition representatives in Geneva
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State, is about to come to town, but not just for a conference and a chat with the press: her Tuesday-Wednesday stopover includes major appearances at three Geneva international organization events.
The US State department has announced she will also be meeting with seven exiled opponents of Syria’s Bashar Assad regime, who are coming from various areas in Europe. It is the second such meeting, following one in August.
Clinton is in Bonn Monday 5 December for the International Conference for Afghanistan, the first high-level meeting on the future of the country that is hosted by Afghanistan itself.
Tuesday she flies first to Lithuania, then to Geneva where she will deliver remarks commemorating International Human Rights Day, which is 10 December. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay’s office notes that “It has been a year like no other for human rights. Human rights activism has never been more topical or more vital. And through the transforming power of social media, ordinary people have become human rights activists.”
One country where social media have not been able to penetrate government forces as easily is Syria. The US has taken an increasingly strong stance on Syria amid reported human rights abuses.
Syria Monday ignored a deadline set by the Arab League to allow observers in as it echoed a UN Human Rights Council declaration last week that condemned “gross and systematic” violations by Syrian forces.
Clinton 7 December will address a UNHCR ministerial event commemorating the 60th and 50th anniversaries of the Refugee and Statelessness conventions. It is the largest-ever event at this level to focus on refugee and statelessness issues, says UNHCR, with ministers from more than 70 nations. The meeting will be hosted by UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres. Former Finnish President and Nobel Peace Laureate Martti Ahtisaari is the keynote speaker.
Secretary Clinton will “also deliver the US national statement at the Biological and Toxin Weapons (BWC) Review Conference [in The Netherlands], where we hope to revitalize international efforts against biological threats,” the US Mission said Monday evening in a press release.
She ends her trip with an address to a ministerial conference on Internet freedom, in The Hague.
The visits follow several high-profile US remarks at UN organization meetings in Geneva in recent days, including those by Ambassador to the World Trade Organization Michael Punke on China’s Transitional Review of the Protocol of Accession to the WTO: “China seems to be embracing state capitalism more strongly each year, rather than continuing to move toward the economic reform goals that originally drove its pursuit of WTO membership. This is a troubling development, and the United States urges the Chinese government to reconsider the path it is on.”
Participants of the 18th session of Human Rights Council in Geneva - Photo Jean-Marc Ferré UNIS
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – A panel of five independent UN rights experts reporting to the Human Rights Council unanimously rejected the conclusion of the Palmer Report that says Israel’s blockade of Gaza is legal.
On a statement produced by the UN in Geneva on 13 September, the panel says it rejected the Palmer Report findings because the blockade had subjected Gazans to collective punishment in “flagrant contravention of international human rights and humanitarian law.”
“The Palmer report was aimed at political reconciliation between Israel and Turkey. It is unfortunate that in the report politics should trump the law,” said Richard Falk, Special Rapporteur on human rights, on the statement.
According to the panel, the blockade should immediately cease as “the people of Gaza must be afforded protection in line with international law.”
For the United Nations experts, “decisive steps must be taken to defend the dignity and basic welfare of the civilian population of Gaza, more than half of whom are children.”
Olivier De Schutter, Special Rapporteur on the right to food said at least two-thirds of Gazan households are food insecure, and “evidence has shown that the so-called ‘easing’ of the blockade has not led this to improve.”
IRHA blue school rainwater harvest project
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The world has in the past two weeks focused heavily on the damage nature can cause, following the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, but Tuesday 22 March the celebration of World Rainwater Day offers a reminder that nature also brings us much that is good, if only we know how to harvest it.
“Rainwater is a valuable water resource and its management desires drastic improvement,” three organizations, including Geneva-based International Rainwater Harvesting Alliance, note in a statement issued Tuesday. ” Better rainwater management will decrease the over-exploitation of surface and underground water resources, will shorten the dry periods and reduce the peak of floods in rainy seasons.”
US official reply Tuesday rejects some of criticisms as “political provocation”
US Ambassador Eileen Chamberlain Donahoe at the final report session, UNHRC in Geneva 9 November 2010
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The US and Libya were criticized by other countries during their Universal Periodic Reviews (UPR) by the UN Human Rights Council in the past week. Switzerland, under review 5-8 November by a council committee for its adherence to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, struggled to explain how its political system and direct democracy work in relationship to international law.
The US, at a final report meeting on its review Tuesday 9 November in Geneva, took umbrage with part of the report on the state of human rights in the US, saying”several recommendations are plainly intended as political provocations, and cannot be taken seriously.”
The first-ever Universal Periodic Review of the US by the council took place Friday 5 November (background story) and the report on it was accepted by the council Tuesday. Its review is one of several during the November 2010 session, but those of the US and Libya have attracted the most attention.
Libya taken to task over torture practices, lack of freedom of expression, detentions, migrants
Libya, too, had its first-ever review, Tuesday 9 November, and it was assailed by several countries. Switzerland has had a tense diplomatic relationship with Libya over an incident in Geneva where the son of leader Muamar Qadaffi was arrested and two Swiss businessmen were subsequently held for months in Libya. It asked Libya to make three major changes: allow freedom of expression; end arbitrary detainments including those of people cleared by the courts and free the “hundreds of thousands” held in Libya’s jails and prisons; abolish the death sentence, corporal punishment and torture. The US also said it is concerned about several cases of torture in Libya and lack of freedom of expression, as well as handling of refugees and migrants, which has included shooting at boats of would-be migrants.
Criticism of US focuses on abolishing death penalty
Harold Hongju Koh, legal adviser of the US State Department, who gave the initial reply from the US, told the council that the US believes the recommendations fell into three broad categories:
“First, many of the recommendations fit well with the Obama Administration’s existing approach to human rights, and can be implemented in due course. Second, several recommendations are plainly intended as political provocations, and cannot be taken seriously. Yet a third group of recommendations invite fuller discussion within our government and with our own civil society. Because we take this process seriously, we now plan to conduct a considered, interagency examination of all 228 recommendations, and to give our formal response at the March 2011 Council session.”
The US came in for criticism from several countries during the review session, even from some of its friends, including Switzerland, over its refusal to end the death penalty.
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The report by a panel that investigated the Israeli raid on a flotilla of boats aiming to land in Gaza in May has been endorsed by the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. The raid by Israeli armed forces resulted in the deaths of nine Turkish activists, one of them also a US citizen. The report says that six of the dead activists were summarily executed by Israeli marines. The panel found that Israel violated international law by using excessive force.
A resolution backing the findings was adopted 30-1 with 15 abstentions 29 September by the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, which ordered the investigation. The resolution leaves the door open to legal action.
The USA was the sole country to oppose the motion, charging that the investigation was not balanced. Israel declined to cooperate with the investigation. Israel says it will cooperate with a separate panel established by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to investigate the May incidents.
Links to other sites: AFP, Haaretz, Washington Post
Navi Pillay, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – United Nations human rights chief Navi Pillay 17 May in Geneva called on the government of Thailand and protesters to “step back from the brink” of disaster and hold talks to end violence there.
Leaders of the two sides reportedly held a brief phone conversation where a ceasefire was proposed, but elsewhere, the Pillay’s words appear to be falling on deaf ears, with former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s foreign minister suggesting Tuesday 18 May that the current prime minister could well be investigated by the ICC (International Criminal Court) for charges against humanity in the wake of shootings by troops in Bangkok.
Links to other sites: Bangkok Post, Sky News, UN news
Switzerland and Spain are two new European members
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Switzerland and Spain were voted in as members of the UN Human Rights Council Wednesday, and Libya scooted in as well, one of four candidates for four slots, although it had a relatively low number of votes. But Iran, which had hoped to gain one of four seats up for grabs in the Asia region, failed in its bid. There were five candidates for the four seats. Iran’s election was firmly opposed by the United States.
Link to UNHRC membership page
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – A US official in Geneva says that the United States “is very concerned” over the possibility of Iran becoming a member of the UN Human Rights Council. Iran is one of five countries presenting themselves for four seats. The vote will take place 13 May. The other countries vying for the Asia region seats are: Thailand, Qatar, Malaysia and the Maldives.
Iran would like the seat, says the official, “for legitimacy.” But the US is worried that the council, still struggling to leave behind the tattered reputation of its predecessor organization, the UN Human Rights Commission, will be weakened by the presence of a country with Iran’s poor record on human rights. The US was highly critical of Iran in February when it came up for its UPR (Universal Periodic Review). This is a regular assessment each country undergoes by others, of its human rights performance.
Fortunately, says the official, who asked not to be named, the other candidates are anxious to have council seats.
The US is not alone in arguing against admitting Iran.
Francisco Santos Calderon, vice-president of Colombia
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The Human Rights Council has begun its 13th session in Geneva. A high-level meeting took place 1 March with the participation of the vice-presidents of Colombia and Spain, and the vice-prime ministers of Belgium and Equatorial Guinea, among other representatives.
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Criticism rained down from Western governments on Iran during its periodic review by the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva Monday morning 15 February. The review session was opened by Mohamad Jabad Larijani, responsible for human rights in Iran, but his country’s human rights record was immediately attacked by the United States and other Western governments.
Michael Posner, US assistant secretary for state with responsibility for human rights told the meeting that “the United States strongly condemns the recent violent and unjust suppression of innocent Iranian citizens, which has resulted in detentions, injuries and deaths.
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The UN Human Rights Council, meeting in a special session 15 and 16 October, has approved the report into possible war crimes during the December 2008-January 2009 incursion by Israel into the Gaza Strip. The council will forward the report to the UN General Assembly for consideration. At the end of the session countries voted, 25-6, to approve the report, and 11 countries abstained.
Israel argued that the report was one-sided and ignored the attacks by Hamas on Israeli civilians which precipitated the war. The US voted against approval, saying that it would hamper Mideast peace efforts.
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The UN Human Rights Council in Geneva will reopen a debate Thursday 15 October on the conduct of both sides in last winter’s brief war in Gaza, Palestine, between Israel and Hamas, the Gaza strip’s political authority. A report by former South African judge Richard Goldstone suggests both armed groups may have committed war crimes. It recommends that they conduct their own impartial investigations within six months or have the case referred to the International Criminal Court. A call by Libya for the UN in New York to take up the report by strongly rebuffed by Israel which said late Wednesday 14 October that as long as the report is “on the table” there can be no peace negotiations with Palestine.
The Palestinian Authority (PA), the nominal representative of the Palestinians, initially asked for the debate on the report to be deferred, but it came under sharp criticism from Hamas, which has controlled the Gaza strip since elections in 2007 forced out Fatah and the PA.
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The UN Human Rights Council is this week debating whether to take action on the 557-page report on the Gaza conflict produced for it by South African judge Richard Goldstone and published 15 September. The report has been the subject of accusations of bias from Israel and Palestine, both of which are accused, by the report, of serious crimes. The United States jumped into the fray Tuesday 29 September with Michael Posner, US assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labor, calling the report “deeply flawed” and saying the US disagrees “sharply with its methodology and many of its recommendations.”
Asst Secretary of State, Esther Brimmer © 2009 United States Mission
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Esther Brimmer, assistant secretary of state for international organization affairs, addressed the UN Human Rights Council as US representative, and announced 14 September that the US was committed to ensuring the council’s operational independence.
She pointed out that the US is already the council’s top donor, and that the US would continue to support the technical assistance programmes of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights worldwide. Brimmer added that the US record on human rights was not perfect, and that the US looked forward to its universal periodic review (UPR), a review mechanism that aims to improve the human rights situation in all 192 UN member states.
US Charge d’Affaires Mark C. Storella and Ambassador Martin Umohoibhi
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The United States Friday 19 June put in its first day of a three-year term as a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council, the day after the US Senate formally apologized to African Americans for decades of slavery. The US House passed a similar motion in 2008.
The US was elected to the council 13 May, after years of keeping its distance. US Charge d’Affaires Mark Storella told the Geneva-based council Friday “For our part, the United States hopes to reinforce the ability of this Council to speak with one voice about situations that are an affront to human dignity.
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – World headlines about endless casualties and aid organizations being kept out of Sri Lanka’s conflict area have died away, last week’s news, but the battle to find out what really happened and how many died may be only beginning, media reports 29 May show. Le Temps and Le Monde jointly carry an article by reporter Philippe Bolopion in Colombo that accuses the Sri Lankan government of hiding the real number of deaths and the UN of collusion out of fear that its ability to work in the country would be compromised. In the UK, The Times front-page story Friday 29 May says that 20,000 civilians – three times the official number – were killed.
The Times story is based on photos taken on the beaches in the conflict area, UN documents as well as “witness accounts and expert testimony.” The numbers are in fact the same as those published a day earlier by Le Monde, which also cites UN sources. The photos were taken for The Times. Le Monde refers to satellite images taken by Unosat of the conflict area, which reportedly show shelling damage, possibly after the date when the Sri Lankan government said it had stopped.
In Geneva Wednesday 28 the Human Rights Council, an independent inter-UN organization, rejected a Swiss-European draft resolution to investigate possible war crimes in Sri Lanka and instead adopted a Sri Lankan counter-resolution. Human Rights Watch condemned the UNHRC move, saying it had “passed a deeply flawed resolution on Sri Lanka that ignores calls for an international investigation into alleged abuses during recent fighting and other pressing human rights concerns.”
US gives green light and is elected to Human Rights Council in Geneva
Update 12:30 Geneva, Switzerland and New York, USA (GenevaLunch) – The US was last night elected to a three-year term on the Geneva, Switzerland-based UN Human Rights Council, by the UN General Assembly, after years of refusing to participate in what it called a flawed institution. US President George Bush’s administration claimed that some countries manipulated the Council to hide human rights offenses, pointing to a group of members that included Russia, Cuba and others which the US said had suspect human rights records.
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – December 10 marks the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (see video below) adopted by the general assembly of the United Nations. The declaration, signed in Paris, states that all human beings, regardless of race, colour, creed, age, class and gender, are born free and equal in dignity and rights.
