The Geneva-based United Nations Human Rights Commission has suspended its
annual session for a week to allow further talks on a new global watchdog.
Manuel Rodriguez Cuadros, the commission's president, obtained the postponement
on Monday in the hope that a decision can be reached shortly on the proposed
Human Rights Council.
Cuadros cited the "extraordinary situation" brought about by ongoing
talks in New York over the council, which stems from a Swiss initiative. Negotiations
have been deadlocked for weeks following opposition from the United States.
Washington says the latest draft for the body, which would replace the commission,
contains major deficiencies. Its main gripe is that states which seriously
violate human rights could win a seat on the council, repeating a key flaw
of the widely criticised commission.
Jan Eliasson, president of the UN General Assembly, who has been leading
negotiations on what form the new council should take, wants more time to
obtain "the strongest possible support".
According to reports, Eliasson, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and the
US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, will hold last-ditch talks this week
to try to find a solution to the impasse.
Compromise
Switzerland has made it clear that the current draft is the best possible
compromise; a view shared by the European Union, Latin America and leading
non-governmental organisations Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.
Swiss Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey has warned that if the text has
to be renegotiated, as Washington demands, there is a real risk that the council
could be shelved.
Failure to agree on the council would also leave the task of policing human
rights in the hands of the commission, whose 53 members currently include
Cuba, Zimbabwe, Sudan and Nepal.
According to the text, the commission would be replaced by a 47-member council
elected by an absolute majority of the 191-member General Assembly. The US
wants members to be elected by a two-thirds majority to keep abusers out.
The new body would meet three times a year for a total of ten weeks, with
the possibility of holding emergency sessions.
Members found guilty of gross human rights violations could be kicked off
the council by a two-thirds majority of the General Assembly.
Source: NZZ
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