An Introduction To People Speak

Please look at my posting for today on the "People Speak" weblog here. I've reposted below.

Were the reforms of the UN Human Rights Council sufficient?

Earlier this year, the Member States of the United Nations created a new Human Rights Council to replace the ineffective Commission on Human Rights. The Commission on Human Rights failed in its core mission to examine, monitor, report and respond to human rights worldwide. This was due to its structure and composition, including membership by countries accused of gross human rights abuses that could derail any attempts of public condemnation or punishment. The debate surrounding the creation of the new Human Rights Council focused on the desire for substantial reform. The UN needed the establishment of a credible body that could properly punish States that are responsible for human rights abuses, regardless of geo-strategic or border relationships. In the end, the negotiations led to a compromise. The size of the Council was reduced, but not substantially, in a modest attempt to be more effective (from 53 to 45 members). A provision for a 2/3 vote to gain membership on the Council was stripped and replaced with the requirement of a simple majority, thus possibly weakening options for excluding certain “bad actors.” In the end, Iran was not elected and Syria did not stand for election, but six countries with notoriously bad human rights records (Russia, Azerbijan, China, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Cuba) were elected and almost half of the members of the Council are considered non-democratic or not-free states by Freedom House. The new Council does contain many positive provisions, including a human rights compliance review of all Member States and longer sessions to confront pressing issues. The question is whether the reforms were enough to meet the pressing issues throughout the world. The Human Rights Council faces significant challenges to “uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights” and confront those states responsible for human rights abuses. These challenges include the situation in Darfur, suppression of rights throughout the Middle East and in former Soviet states, and successful operation without complete U.S. support. Were the reforms enough for the Council to truly have an impact on peace, security and human rights throughout the world?