UN: We still consider Gaza “occupied” by Israel

Published by
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- at January 27, 2012 in Human Rights Council (UNHRC). 0 Comments

Earlier this month, on Jan. 6, the UN chief’s spokesman promised to respond to UN Watch’s question as to why the UN still considers Gaza “occupied” even though Hamas admits it’s not, given that Israel hasn’t been there since 2005.

The UN has now answered:

Spokesperson:  Under resolutions adopted by both the Security Council and the General Assembly on the Middle East peace process, the Gaza Strip continues to be regarded as part of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.  The United Nations will accordingly continue to refer to the Gaza Strip as part of the Occupied Palestinian Territory until such time as either the General Assembly or the Security Council take a different view.
Question:  Can I follow up on that?  It is the legal definition of occupation and why is Gaza considered occupied?
Spokesperson:  Well, as I have just said, there are Security Council and General Assembly resolutions that cover this.  For example, there was a Security Council resolution adopted on 8 January 2009 — 1860 — and that stressed that the Gaza Strip constitutes an integral part of the territory occupied in 1967.  And as you know, Security Council resolutions do have force in international law.
Furthermore, there is a resolution from the General Assembly from 20 December 2010, and while it noted the Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and parts of the northern West Bank, it also stressed, in quotes, “the need for respect and preservation of the territorial unity, contiguity and integrity of all of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem”.  So just to repeat that the United Nations will continue to refer to the Gaza Strip as part of the Occupied Palestinian Territory until either the General Assembly or the Security Council take a different view on the matter.

UNESCO praised participation of Syria

Published by
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- at January 26, 2012 in Human Rights Council (UNHRC), Syria and UNESCO. 0 Comments

On Nov. 22, UNESCO director-general Irina Bokova distanced herself from UNESCO’s election of Syria to two human rights committees, with her spokesperson telling UN Watch, “given the developments in Syria, the Director-General does not see how this country can contribute to the work of the Committees.”

However, only three weeks earlier, her approach toward Syria’s role at UNESCO appeared very different. This is from the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), November 1, 2011: Continue reading ‘UNESCO praised participation of Syria’

Syria may be kicked off UNESCO rights panel thanks to UN Watch campaign

Published by
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- at January 25, 2012 in Syria and UNESCO. 1 Comment

GENEVA, Jan. 25 – For the first time in its history, the UN’s culture and education agency is preparing to condemn Syria and expel it from a human rights committee, revealed a Geneva-based human rights organization today, releasing a motion filed by the U.S., Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Qatar, Kuwait and six other countries, now backed also by Japan and South Korea.

After UNESCO in November elected Syria, which already sits on its 58-member executive board, to a committee that judges human rights complaints, the independent UN Watch monitoring group launched a campaign of 55 parliamentarians, religious groups and human rights activists urging member states to reverse the decision.

In response, according to diplomatic documents obtained exclusively by UN Watch, the U.S., its EU allies, Canada, Japan and a handful of Arab states are now among a growing coalition of countries that is formally requesting an agenda item for next month’s UNESCO board meeting to “review” Syria’s controversial membership.

Continue reading…

Correction: On William Schabas and Richard Goldstone

Published by
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- at January 17, 2012 in Goldstone "Fact Finding" Mission for UNHRC, Human Rights Council (UNHRC), Richard Falk and William Schabas. 1 Comment

UN Watch’s recent briefing listed international law scholar William Schabas among those who had hailed Richard Goldstone as a saint after his UN report, only to turn on him when he retracted it.

In response, Professor Schabas states as follows: “I have never turned on my good friend Richard Goldstone, ‘with a vengeance’ or otherwise.” We have corrected the briefing and regret the error.

Indeed, a closer examination shows the  following. After the Goldstone Report was published, Schabas proclaimed that Goldstone “had better be on next year’s Nobel short list.” Schabas also shared his belief, on the same occasion, that Goldstone’s act of condemning alleged Israeli war crimes was performed “as a Jew.” “The world should be thankful that we have people like Richard Goldstone,” said Schabas. Continue reading ‘Correction: On William Schabas and Richard Goldstone’

Iran Censorship Extends to Golden Globes Stage

Published by
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- at January 17, 2012 in Freedom of Expression and Iran. 0 Comments

The contrast couldn’t have been any clearer at the Golden Globe Awards ceremony Sunday when it came to presenting the prize for Best Foreign Language Film.

Host Ricky Gervais’s irreverence for authority, and Madonna’s unrestrained immodesty were – for better or for worse – testaments to the universal right to express oneself freely.

Then came the solemnity of Iranian filmmaker Asghar Farhadi’s acceptance speech after Madonna announced that his film “A Separation,” which he made in Iran and is still showing there, had won the category. Continue reading ‘Iran Censorship Extends to Golden Globes Stage’

Released Burma Dissident: We’re On a Leash

Published by
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- at January 15, 2012 in Burma (Myanmar) and UN Watch News. 0 Comments

Two Burmese dissident journalists spotlighted during UN Watch’s September human rights summit in New York are among political prisoners just released by the Burmese government.

The plights of Sithu Zeya, 21, and Hla Hla Win, 27, featured in the We Have a Dream presentation of Dr. Thaung Htun, United Nations representative of the opposition-in-exile National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma.

They were serving lengthy prison terms – 18 years for Sithu Zeya; 27 years for Hla Hla Win – for dispatching news video to the exiled Democratic Voice of Burma news service (DVB).

The freeing Friday of more than 300 political prisoners prompted the United States to pledge it would restore full diplomatic ties with Burma as U.S President Barack Obama called the move a “substantial step” towards democracy. Continue reading ‘Released Burma Dissident: We’re On a Leash’

After Embracing PLO, UNESCO Lobbies to Circumvent U.S. Funding Penalty

Published by
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- at January 13, 2012 in Palestinian UN membership bid and UNESCO. 7 Comments

UNESCO officials are braced for “months” of back-and-forth with the United States as they seek restoration of U.S. funding following mandated cuts in response to the Paris-based agency’s embrace of “Palestine” as a member, diplomatic sources report.

One confirmed that the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama has been seeking ways to effect a waiver of the law that mandates immediate cessation of Washington’s contributions to any UN agency that allows Palestinian membership. But this official added that the one key person holding out is Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who chairs the Foreign Affairs Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Indeed, the Florida Republican launched a call this week for the United States to “strengthen and preserve” the funding prohibition law. In a press release, she says that the Obama administration has “failed” in what she describes as efforts to “gut” the law and restore Washington’s UNESCO contributions. Continue reading ‘After Embracing PLO, UNESCO Lobbies to Circumvent U.S. Funding Penalty’

Islamic States Pledge Tolerance as Report Says They Practice Persecution

Published by
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- at January 13, 2012 in "Defamation of Religion", Freedom of Religion, General Assembly, Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). 2 Comments

Concerns about an Islamic-sponsored “combating intolerance” initiative at the United Nations are brought into sharp relief by results of a new world survey on religious persecution.

Muslim nations make up nine out of the top ten countries where Christians face the “most severe” persecution, and 38 of the top 50, reports U.S.-based Open Doors in its 2012 World Watch List.

Topping the list is North Korea, where the Stalinist regime enforces cult worship of its leaders.

The results lay bare the sheer incongruity of the idea that the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), whose 56 member states control more than a quarter of the votes in the UN General Assembly, can be serious about promoting religious tolerance.

Yet that is what it claimed by successfully pushing for an assembly resolution titled “Combating intolerance, negative stereotyping, stigmatization, discrimination, incitement to violence and violence against persons, based on religion or belief.” The measure, which passed last month, mirrored an almost identical resolution in the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) in Geneva last March. Continue reading ‘Islamic States Pledge Tolerance as Report Says They Practice Persecution’

Arab League Poll Choices: Good, Very Good, Excellent

Published by
Hillel Neuer
- at January 10, 2012 in League of Arab States and Middle East. 0 Comments

The Arab League’s human rights monitoring mission in Syria is seen as a sick joke by the victims on the ground. Protesters across Syria, reports Al Jazeera, are calling for it to end.


The mission is headed by Sudanese General Mohammad Ahmed Mustafa al-Dabi, whose main expertise on human rights abuses lies in committing them on a mass scale. As the Telegraph reports in detail, al-Dabi visited Homs and reported seeing no tanks, while a video shows the monitors standing next to a tank. The general tells the Syrian victims to believe in “dialogue.”

You may ask: What does the Arab League know about democracy, and about making independent, critical evaluations ?

A glance at its Internet home page is revealing. Continue reading ‘Arab League Poll Choices: Good, Very Good, Excellent’

China-Uyghur Clash: UN Watch Summit Speech Prescient

Published by
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- at January 8, 2012 in China, Terrorism and Xinjiang. 0 Comments

In an operation aimed at countering “violent terrorists,” Chinese government authorities killed seven “kidnappers” who were trying to leave the country to attend “foreign jihad camps” – but had stopped along the way to take two hostages.

That’s the official Chinese backstory – presented at a press conference this week – to a Dec. 28 shootout in the restive province of Xinjiang, where indigenous Muslim Uyghurs are struggling to preserve their culture in the face of a still-rising presence of Han Chinese.

Uyghur exiles give a different account of the shootout, which also left one police officer dead. They say police opened fire when locals clashed with officers during a demonstration outside the police bureau to protest a recent security crackdown.

Branding Uyghurs as “terrorists” when they’re involved in clashes with China’s authorities fits a pattern that Rebiya Kadeer, a prominent Uyghur businesswoman and human rights activist, outlined in detail when she spoke at UN Watch’s “We Have a Dream” human rights summit in New York in September. Continue reading ‘China-Uyghur Clash: UN Watch Summit Speech Prescient’

UK announces bid to remove Syria from UNESCO rights committee

Published by
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- at January 6, 2012 in Human Rights Council (UNHRC). 0 Comments

UK announces bid to cancel Syria’s “abhorrent” membership on UNESCO rights committee

GENEVA, Jan. 6 – UN Watch applauded the UK for announcing today that it will act with other countries to expel Syria from two UNESCO human rights committees, as the government disclosed in an email sent today to the Geneva-based human rights group, which heads a campaign of 60 MPs and rights activists to remove the Assad regime from the global posts (see text of Dec. 15 appeal below).

On November 11, UNESCO’s 58-nation executive board, which includes the UK, US, France, Britain, Spain, Austria, Belgium, Italy and Denmark, ratified the Arab group’s nomination of Syria to two committees dealing with human rights (details below).

However, in an email sent today to UN Watch responding to its December joint appeal, a representative of the Foreign Office stated that the UK “deplores the continuing membership of Syria on this committee and does not believe that Syria’s presence is conducive to the work of the body or UNESCO’s reputation.”

“We have therefore joined with other countries in putting forward an item for the first meeting of the Executive Board at which we will seek to explicitly address Syria’s membership of the body.”

The UK also expressed hope that other members of the executive board will join London in ending what it called “this abhorrent [and] anomalous situation.”

“We congratulate the UK and its allies for doing the right thing,” said UN Watch executive director Hillel Neuer.

“It’s shocking that only two months ago the UN’s leading agency on science, culture and education gave two position of global influence on human rights to a regime that is raping, torturing and killing its own men, women and children.” said Neuer.

“This was an unconscionable decision that must be reversed immediately, and we hope that all 58 countries on the UNESCO board will join the UK in doing do.”

Links:

* UNESCO list showing Syria on the two committees

* Membership of 58-member UNESCO executive board which elected Syria

*****************
. Continue reading ‘UK announces bid to remove Syria from UNESCO rights committee’

Burma Receives High-Level Visitors, but Reforms Slow

Published by
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- at January 6, 2012 in Burma (Myanmar). 0 Comments

Burma’s government is getting a lot of attention for being a so-called “reformist dictatorship,” but activists are warning there is a disconnect between what is being promised, and what is happening on the ground.

An order to cut jail terms and release some prisoners has been slammed as focusing too much on “common criminals.”

The League for Democracy Party of Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese opposition leader, highlighted that only about a dozen of up to 1,700 political detainees were among 900 prisoners the nominally civilian, but military-sanctioned government released Tuesday as it seeks an end to decades of economic sanctions. Continue reading ‘Burma Receives High-Level Visitors, but Reforms Slow’

UN Watch Congratulates Human Rights Activist Nazanin Afshin-Jam

Published by
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- at January 6, 2012 in Children's Rights, Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and Iran. 0 Comments

UN Watch sends congratulations and warm wishes to  Nazanin Afshin-Jam, a devoted activist and cherished colleague in the cause of universal human rights, and to Peter MacKay, Canada’s Minister of Defence, on their recent marriage.

Iranian-born Afshin-Jam has earned international recognition for her tireless advocacy on behalf of human rights victims in the Islamic Republic of Iran, deepening her activism after she rose to prominence in Canada and beyond as a beauty queen, singer, model and actress.

UN Watch gave Afshin-Jam its Human Rights Hero Award in 2009 in recognition of her activism, including as president and co-founder of Stop Child Executions, which fights for minors facing execution in Iran.

Appearing together with dissident and former political prisoner Ahmad Batebi,  Afshin-Jam represented UN Watch in a dramatic speech before the UN Human Rights Council in 2009, reproduced below.

Continue reading ‘UN Watch Congratulates Human Rights Activist Nazanin Afshin-Jam’

UN Indifferent to Gaza Rocket Attacks on Israel: Ambassador

Published by
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- at January 4, 2012 in Israel, Middle East, Security Council, Terrorism and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. 1 Comment

The absence of any United Nations condemnation of the ceaseless Gaza-sourced rocket attacks on southern Israeli cities is highlighted in a letter Israel has sent to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the UN Security Council.

“This is a dangerous trend,” Ambassador Haim Waxman, Israel’s deputy permanent representative to the UN, says in comments reflecting the letter’s content.

“During the past month, more than 40 rockets and mortars have been fired into Israeli cities. Israel holds Hamas fully responsible for all acts of terrorism emanating from Gaza. We will continue to exercise our right to self-defense and take all measures necessary to protect our citizens.” Continue reading ‘UN Indifferent to Gaza Rocket Attacks on Israel: Ambassador’

UN flag at half-mast for Kim Jong-il

Published by
UN Watch
- at December 29, 2011 in North Korea (DPRK). 2 Comments

GENEVA, Dec. 28 – With UN flags at half-mast today at its Human Rights Council (photo) and other buildings to mark the funeral of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il, a Geneva-based human rights group called on the UN to show equal sympathy for the victims of Kim’s ruthless regime.

“We understand that the UN follows diplomatic protocol, but the world body must not forget that its founding purpose is to defend basic human rights, and sadly that message is at serious risk of being blurred today,” said Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch, a leading advocacy group at the UN for human rights in North Korea. See below UN Watch’s recent statements on North Korea.

“Today should be a time for the UN to show solidarity with the victims — the millions of North Koreans brutalized by Kim’s merciless policies of starvation, torture and oppression — and not with the perpetrator,” Neuer said.

“We call on UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay to make clear that today’s gesture in no way signals respect for a mass murderer of his own people, a man personally responsible for some of the worst atrocities of our time.”

Neuer also expressed concern that the North Korean regime “is likely to exploit the images of flags at half-mast to claim world sympathy for Kim Jong-il and his regime.

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UN Member States Denounce Burma Rights Record – With Exceptions

Published by
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- at December 25, 2011 in Burma (Myanmar), General Assembly and Human Rights Council (UNHRC). 0 Comments

Twenty countries voted with Burma Dec. 24 in opposing the UN General Assembly’s majority support for a resolution denouncing the  human rights record of the Burmese government. The resolution, titled Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar (Burma), expresses the assembly’s “grave concern about the ongoing systematic violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms of the people of Myanmar.”

As 83 countries endorsed the measure, 39 abstained from the vote, and 50 were absent, the 20 backing Burma’s opposition were:

Algeria, Bangladesh, Belarus, Brunei, Cambodia, China, Cuba, Ecuador, Egypt, Iran, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Nicaragua, Oman, Russian Federation, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Uzbekistan, Venezuela and Viet Nam.

Iran, Syria, N. Korea Condemned, But Not By All

Published by
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- at December 20, 2011 in General Assembly, Human Rights Council (UNHRC), Iran, North Korea (DPRK) and Syria. 0 Comments

Roll calls detailed below reveal which countries voted with Iran, Syria and North Korea as the UN General Assembly passed resolutions Dec. 19 denouncing the human rights records of those three regimes. As in past years, Afghanistan, where NATO-led forces continue to battle on behalf of the country, split with the alliance’s members for the vote on Iran, and voted with the Islamic republic.

1. Situation of Human Rights in Iran: 89 in favour, 30 against, 64 abstentions.

Against:  Afghanistan, Algeria, Armenia, Bangladesh, Belarus, Bolivia, Brunei Darussalam, China, Cuba, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Ecuador, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Russian Federation, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Zimbabwe. Continue reading ‘Iran, Syria, N. Korea Condemned, But Not By All’

Libya returns to the UN Human Rights Council

Published by
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- at November 19, 2011 in Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and Libya. 0 Comments

The UN General Assembly voted on Friday to end  Libya’s suspension from the UN Human Rights Council. Chavez & Co. opposed the move,  in a post-mortem show of solidarity with brother Col. Qaddafi.  See vote below. Continue reading ‘Libya returns to the UN Human Rights Council’

Rights Groups Welcome UN Draft on Syria, Urge Creation of Investigator

Published by
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- at November 17, 2011 in Syria and Third Committee. 0 Comments

GENEVA, Nov. 17– In an attempt to influence a UN resolution on Syrian abuses now being debated by member states, a coalition of 20 famous dissidents and rights groups today circulated their own draft which specifically calls for the post of an independent UN expert to investigate gross violations in that country. Click here for proposed UNGA Resolution on Situation of Human Rights in Syria.

“We welcome the draft UN General Assembly resolution on Syria, and congratulate Britain, France and Germany for their initiative,” said Hillel Neuer, director of the non-governmental UN Watch monitoring group in Geneva, which sent the draft to 193 UN member states on behalf of a coalition of human rights groups and dissidents. “We strongly hope that Arab states including Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar, Morocco and Kuwait will stand up and be counted as co-sponsors.”

Sponsors of the NGO draft resolution include well-known former political prisoners Yang Jianli of China, Ahmad Batebi of Iran, Fidel Suarez Cruz and Berta Antunez of Cuba, Rebiya Kadeer of the Uyghur people and Grace Kwinjeh of Zimbabwe, as well as UN Watch, the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights, Human Rights Foundation and Viet Tan.

The text was drafted at a recent summit of dissidents held in New York during the UN General Assembly, which included an opening address by Syrian rights activist Rami Nakhleh.

The dissidents’ draft calls upon the Human Rights Council to “urgently establish the mandate of a Special Rapporteur for human rights in the Syrian Arab Republic, to monitor the situation in the country, collect information and recommend to the UN system actions to be taken.”

The NGO text also asks the Secretary-General to report on Syria to the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council at its next sessions, and would ensure discussion of the Syrian human rights situation at future sessions.

The debate on the official UN text is expected within the next week at the world body’s Third Committee on human rights, which meets this month in New York.

UNESCO inconsistency in protesting Haaretz cartoon

Published by
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- at November 11, 2011 in UNESCO. 1 Comment

In a letter of protest handed to Israel’s ambassador to UNESCO on Wednesday, the agency’s director general complained about a cartoon published in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, saying it constituted “incitement” and “endangers the lives of unarmed diplomats.”

The November 4 cartoon depicted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak sending an air force squadron to attack Iran, with Netanyahu ordering, “And on your way back, you’re gonna hit the UNESCO office in Ramallah!”

First of all, Haaretz is a frequent critic of the Israeli government, and this cartoon was clearly meant as a wry referral to the government’s anger at UNESCO for having accepted Palestine as a full member. And so it’s ironic that the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, whose mandate includes press freedom, should object to such legitimate commentary – especially since it appears in a country whose laws protect freedom of speech.

But most shocking is UNESCO chief Irina Bokova’s display of inconsistency in having Eric Falt, the agency’s assistant director general for external relations and public information, summon Ambassador Nimrod Barkan to make the protest.

In June 2010, UN Watch raised the issue of anti-Semitic and racist caricatures that regularly appear in the state-controlled press of Jordan, Syria, Qatar, Oman and elsewhere. Our compelling testimony before the UN Human Rights Council described several cartoons that we showed were “reminiscent of the Nazi era.” We wonder whether the UNESCO chief or her spokesman have ever said anything about those cartoons.

Al-Watan, September 30, 2011 (Qatar)

Many of the cartoons depict the UN as being controlled by evil Jewish forces. We are not aware of any UN agency having ever been concerned about the safety of its staff based on what they show.

Finally, in many similar instances in the past, UN officials used a traditional and effective way to response to news stories that they did not agree or wanted to clarify: they submitted a letter to the editor.  Edward Mortimer, Director of Communications for Kofi Annan, publilshed several such letters to the New York Times. Imagine if they had summoned the US Ambassador…

UN official Richard Falk posts profane poem about Alan Dershowitz

Published by
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- at November 10, 2011 in Richard Falk. 0 Comments

In response to Professor Alan Dershowitz’s New Republic critique,  Richard Falk, the UN Human Rights Council’s permanent investigator of Israeli violations, has published a profane poem.  Screenshots below. Continue reading ‘UN official Richard Falk posts profane poem about Alan Dershowitz’

UNESCO vote to admit Palestine: Who objected?

Published by
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- at November 1, 2011 in Middle East and UNESCO. 8 Comments

Following is the full count of yesterday’s vote at UNESCO to admit Palestine as a member.

No: Australia, Canada, Czech Republic, Germany, Israel, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Palau, Panama, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Sweden, United States of America, Vanuatu.

Abstentions: Albania, Andorra, Bahamas, Barbados, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Colombia, Cook Islands, Côte d’Ivoire, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Fiji, Georgia, Haiti, Hungary, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kiribati, Latvia, Liberia, Mexico, Monaco, Montenegro, Nauru, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Switzerland, Thailand, Macedonia, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Zambia.

Yes: Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Chad, Chile, China, Congo, Costa Rica, Cuba, Cyprus, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Finland, France, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Honduras, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Luxembourg, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Qatar, Russian Federation, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Slovenia, Somalia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Republic of Tanzania, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen, Zimbabwe.

Absent: Antigua and Barbuda, Central African Republic, Comoros, Dominica, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Madagascar, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Confederated States of Micronesia, Mongolia, Niue, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Swaziland, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Turkmenistan.

Today: Palestinians fire rockets on Beersheva, win UNESCO membership

Published by
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- at October 31, 2011 in Middle East and UNESCO. 3 Comments

GENEVA, Oct. 31 – “On a day when Palestinians continued firing rockets against Israeli civilian centers,” said UN Watch executive director Hillel Neuer, in reaction to the vote by UNECO to admit the non-existent state of Palestine as a member, “the United Nations sent the wrong message about state privileges and responsibilities.”

A week-long assault from armed groups based in Gaza, part of the territory claimed by President Mahmoud Abbas to be under his jurisdiction, has injured 20 Israelis, and killed Moshe Ami, 56, who was mortally injured by flying shrapnel from a rocket fired Saturday at a residential neighborhood in the southern city of Ashkelon.

“The long-sought peace that the Palestinian and Israeli peoples so rightly deserve cannot be achieved by unilateral actions at the UN, but only by face-to-face talks,” said Neuer.

“The UNESCO decision may be a victory for rhetorical point-scoring on the international stage, but it does nothing to help Palestinians resolve the real issues on the ground. It’s time for Abbas and the Palestinians to choose the path of Egypt’s Anwar Sadat and Jordan’s King Hussein and return to the negotiating table.”

Out of 173 countries voting, 107 voted in favor of the Palestinian request, sufficing under UNECO rules but falling short of the two-thirds support that many expected. There were 14 opposed, including the US, Germany and Canada, and 52 abstentions, including the UK.

Full text of official Palestinian UN membership request

Published by
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- at October 27, 2011 in U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. 0 Comments

Click here for the full text of  the official Palestinian request for UN membership, as submitted in September by PLO Chairman Mahmoud Abbas to UN chief Ban Ki-moon.

UN’s World Food Program: Jean Ziegler causes “withdrawal of food aid & medicine from needy people”; actions are “profoundly immoral,” “unconscionable”

Published by
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- at October 24, 2011 in Jean Ziegler. 0 Comments

Letter from WFP Executive Director James T. Morris to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, dated October 24, 2002

Dear Mr. Secretary-General:

Knowing how busy you are, I regret having to take your time on this issue, but since I arrived here at the World Food Programme, I have been following with some concern the public statements of Jean Ziegler, the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food. In particular, I was disturbed by the attached release by Reuters which gives the impression that Mr. Ziegler speaks on behalf of the United Nations. You will note in the text that Mr. Ziegler has attacked the agreed position of the United Nations and the views of the director-general of WHO on GM/Biotech foods and he has done so without citing any scientific authorities, studies or reports. WFP staff in Geneva confirmed directly with him that the substance of the Reuters report was correct and that he had not been misquoted. Continue reading ‘UN’s World Food Program: Jean Ziegler causes “withdrawal of food aid & medicine from needy people”; actions are “profoundly immoral,” “unconscionable”’

45 rights groups urge UN Rights Council to investigate its Gaddafi apologists Jean Ziegler & Al-Hajjaji

Published by
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- at October 21, 2011 in Libya. 2 Comments

Where is Qaddafi’s Woman at the U.N.?

GENEVA, October 21 – While the UN human rights office today called for an investigation into Gaddafi’s death, an international coalition of 45 human rights groups today urged Ban Ki-moon and UN rights chief Navi Pillay to investigate two UN Human Rights Council officials for their alleged actions over three decades to shield Libyan dictator Col. Qaddafi from scrutiny of his regime’s gross violations of human rights. (See full text below.)

The appeal names Jean Ziegler, a member of the UNHRC Advisory Committee, who in 1989 announced the creation of the “Moammar Qaddafi Prize for Human Rights.” While Libya’s rights record was being reviewed last year by the UNHRC, a Libyan-funded group tied to Ziegler distributed within the UN a Ziegler-edited book comparing Qaddafi to French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau.

The 45 NGOs, mostly from Africa, also urged the council to fire Najat Al-Hajjaji, Qaddafi’s long-time representative to UN human rights bodies, from the council’s expert working group on mercenaries and human rights.

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UN Should Apologize For “Legitimizing” Gaddafi with Key Posts

Published by
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- at October 20, 2011 in Judge Richard Goldstone, Libya and Muammar Qaddafi Human Rights Prize. 2 Comments

45 NGOs urge UN Human Rights Council’s Jean Ziegler to resign for founding “Gaddafi Human Rights Prize”

GENEVA, Oct. 20 – UN Watch today welcomed the end of the Gaddafi regime, one of the world’s most brutal violators of human rights, and called on UN chief Ban Ki-moon and human rights commissioner Navi Pillay to acknowledge the UN was wrong to support Gaddafi by granting him key posts on its most influential bodies.

Gaddafi apologist Najat al-Hajjaji represented Libya as chair of UN Human Rights Commission and Durban Review Conference on racism.

 

“It’s time for the UN to formally apologize for having legitimized Gaddafi’s regime by electing Libya to its Human Rights Council last year, to the Security Council in 2008-2009, and as General Assembly president in 2009,” said Hillel Neuer, executive director of the Geneva-based watchdog organization.

“The UN should also apologize for choosing Gaddafi’s regime to head the planning of its 2009 world conference on racism, and for designating Col. Gaddafi’s daughter Ayesha a UN Goodwill Ambassador.”

“On this day, it would also be appropriate for Mr. Ban and Ms. Pillay to call for Jean Ziegler, the co-founder of the Muammar Qaddafi Human Rights Prize, a propaganda tool for the regime, to resign from the UN Human Rights Council’s Advisory Committee.”

An international coalition of 45 human rights groups have urged Mr. Ban and Ms. Pillay to call on the UN Human Rights Council to fire Ziegler for his actions over three decades to shield Libyan dictator Col. Gaddafi from scrutiny of his regime’s gross violations of human rights.

The NGO appeal names Jean Ziegler, a member of the UNHRC Advisory Committee, who in 1989 announced the creation of the Moammar Gaddafi Prize for Human Rights. When Libya’s rights record was reviewed in November 2010, a Libyan-funded group tied to Ziegler distributed a 2010 book, edited by Ziegler, that likens Gaddafi to the philosopher Rousseau.

A recent Swiss TV report confirmed Ziegler’s key role in creating the Gaddafi prize, which it described as “an instrument of propaganda for the dictator.” As a result, citing his Gaddafi connections, the famed Salzburg Festival decided to cancel Ziegler’s keynote address this summer, sparking a heated controversy in Austria.

US Congressional Leader Warns Against UNESCO Bid to Elevate PA

Published by
UN Watch
- at October 4, 2011 in Human Rights Council (UNHRC). 1 Comment

(WASHINGTON) – U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, released the following statement after learning that UNESCO’s Executive Board will soon consider granting full membership in UNESCO to the Palestinian mission to the UN:

“It is deeply disappointing to see UNESCO, which has reformed itself in recent years, poised to support this dangerous Palestinian scheme. The U.S. must strongly oppose this move and make clear that any decision to upgrade the Palestinian mission’s status by UNESCO or any other UN entity will lead to a cutoff of U.S. funds to that entity.

“Feeling that their efforts at the UN Security Council will fail, the Palestinian leadership is shopping around the UN system for recognition. This attempt to rig the process needs to be stopped dead in its tracks. Our contributions are our strongest leverage at the UN, and should be used to stand up for our interests and allies and stop this dangerous Palestinian scheme.”

DECLARATION OF DISSIDENTS FOR UNIVERSAL HUMAN RIGHTS

Published by
UN Watch
- at September 28, 2011 in Human Rights Council (UNHRC). 0 Comments

On September 22, 2011, at the opening of the 66th session of the United Nations General Assembly, dissidents and human rights activists gathered at  the We Have A Dream: Global Summit Against Discrimination and Persecution adopted the Declaration of Dissidents for Universal Human Rights.  The appeal calls for the removal of China, Cuba, Iran, Russia and Saudi Arabia from their posts on the UN Human Rights Council and the UN Commission on the Status of Women. It also proposes UN General Assembly resolutions for the human rights situations in Pakistan, Syria, Venezuela and Zimbabwe.

Powerful UN speeches by Canadian Ministers John Baird and Jason Kenney

Published by
Hillel Neuer
- at September 27, 2011 in Human Rights Council (UNHRC). 0 Comments

Canadian cabinet ministers have delivered two powerful speeches at the UN this week,  raising the maple leaf as a banner of moral clarity within the world body. Here is today’s UNGA address by Foreign Minister John Baird. This is Immigration Minister Jason Kenney’s speech in protest of the UN’s “Durban III” meeting on racism.