For anyone following Libyan affairs, yesterday’s revelation about the Gaddafi family’s mistreatment of Shweyga Mullah, an Ethiopian nanny for the family of Gaddafi’s son Hannibal was hardly a revelation. Certainly the UN knew about this conduct — we told them about how it, but they didn’t want to listen. Continue reading ‘Torture of Gaddafi maids: UN knew, refused to act’
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Archive for August, 2011
Syria tells lies in UN debate. UN Watch responds. Testimony delivered by Lama al-Atassi, Syrian pro-democracy activist, to UN Human Rights Council emergency session on “The Situation of Human Rights in Syrian Arab Republic,” August 22, 2011, Geneva.
The Human Rights Council condemned Syria today at the conclusion of its 17th special session on the “Situation of human rights in the Syrian Arab Republic.” The EU-sponsored resolution passed with 33 votes to 4, with 9 abstentions.
China, Russia, Cuba and Ecuador voted against the resolution. Abstaining were Mauritania, Angola, Philippines, Cameroon, Uganda, India, Bangladesh, Djibouti and Malaysia.
For further details on the voting outcome, click here to see the Voting Chart.
The resolution strongly condemned “the continued grave and systematic human rights violations by the Syrian authorities” and decided to create a full commission of inquiry “to investigate all alleged violations of international human rights law since March 2011 in the Syrian Arab Republic.”
For the full text of the resolution, click here.
UN Watch statement delivered today by Ms. Lama al-Atassi, Syrian pro-democracy activist, to United Nations Human Rights Council emergency session on The Situation of Human Rights in Syrian Arab Republic, August 22, 2011.
Thank you, Madam President.
We have heard various statements in support of the Syrian government. Allow me to provide an entirely different picture — one reflecting the true reality in Syria.
My name is Lama Atassi. I am a Syrian citizen of Homs, the town which witnessed the greatest number of prisoners and martyrs. The inhabitants of Homs confront fear and live bullets on a daily basis to reclaim their freedom and their rights, as guaranteed under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
I would like to share with you the story of Hadi Al Jendi, a 22-year-old student of Homs who was murdered by his own government on July 22.
Hadi led demonstrations in the streets of Homs. For this sole reason, and after severe threats, he was shot with a bullet to the forehead.
He left the following message:
Go into the streets and claim your freedom, do not return to your homes until it is yours again, even if this means dying as martyrs. My soul longs to see freedom prevail in our country.
Hadi was one of the first students to leave the path of academic education in order to join one committed to democracy and dignity, a new source of education for people in the Syrian streets, which they hope to see applied one day.
I therefore appeal to all of you present today to stand in support of the Syrian people.
I have but one question for those countries which, in UN debates held here or in the Security Council in New York, have opposed a firm condemnation of the crimes committed by the Syrian government – for those countries which have chosen to side with the executioners instead of with the victims.
I ask China, Russia, Egypt, Nigeria, Lebanon, Pakistan, India, Brazil and Cuba:
How do you justify your support for a regime that slaughters its own people?
How do can you continue to ignore the rights of the Syrian people?
How will you justify your actions when, in the near future, the people of Syria achieve their freedom?
Thank you, Madam President.
In advance of today’s UN Human Rights Council emergency session on Syria, the EU apparently watered down it draft resolution to include a reference to Syria’s “territorial integrity.” See UN Watch’s rush summary below. Friday’s talks are summarized here. Continue reading ‘EU waters down UN Human Rights Council resolution on Syria’
In advance of today’s urgent meeting in Geneva of the UN Human Rights Council to address Syria’s Ramadan Massacre, President Bashar al-Assad’s allies are leaping to his defense.
In informal talks Friday on the proposed resolution, China, Russia, Cuba, Egypt, Nigeria and Pakistan all demanded a severe weakening of the text, calling to delete or water down condemnatory language, to praise Syria for so-called “positive acts,” and to condemn “other armed forces”. The moves were opposed by France, the US, Australia and Canada.
GENEVA – An international coalition of 50 human rights and church relief organizations are calling for Monday’s UN Human Rights Council session on Syria to mandate a permanent special investigator into violations by the regime of President Bashar al-Assad and the holding of televised hearings in Geneva for Syrian victims to testify.
Led by UN Watch, a Geneva-based human rights advocacy group, the appeal was submitted in a letter today to the ambassadors of all 47 council member states.
The open letter is signed by Franciscans International, Initiatives for China headed by eminent dissident Yang Jianli, and 48 other non-governmental, humanitarian and church groups from Australia, Belgium, Burkina Faso, DR Congo, France, Germany, India, Kenya, Mali, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria Nepal, Switzerland, the UK, Uganda, the US and Vietnam.
“It’s vital for the UN meeting to produce a meangingful outcome that will pressure the Syrian regime and help protect victims on the ground,” said UN Watch director Hillel Neuer. “Public hearings with victim testimony, coupled with the creation of a permanent investigator on Syria, would do that.”
The NGOs criticized the council for holding only one meeting on Syria more than three months ago, saying the UN body had “failed to take prompt or effective action to protect the victims of Syrian mass killings.”
The NGO appeal also called on the council to hold the Syrian military and political leadership personally accountable for alleged “crimes against humanity.” Continue reading ’50 rights groups urge UN’s Syria meeting to mandate victim hearings, special investigator’
GENEVA — An international coalition of human rights and church relief organizations are urging the UN’s 47-member Human Rights Council to “end its silence on the atrocities now being committed by the Syrian regime.” The groups are calling for the council to convene an emergency session on the bloody crackdown, hold televised hearings in Geneva for victims to testify, and create a special investigator into rights violations by the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.
Led by UN Watch, a Geneva-based human rights advocacy group, the appeal was submitted in a letter today to council president Laura Dupuy Lasserre, signed by 24 non-governmental, humanitarian and church groups from Australia, Burkina Faso, DR Congo, France, Germany, India, Kenya, Mali, Morocco, Namibia, Nepal, Switzerland, Uganda, the US and Vietnam.
The NGOs criticized the council for holding only one meeting on Syria more than three months ago, saying the UN body had “failed to take prompt or effective action to protect the victims of Syrian mass killings.” Continue reading ’24 NGOs call for UN rights council emergency session on Syria’
GENEVA – North Korea today began chairing the summer plenary of the UN-backed Conference on Disarmament, eliciting a boycott by the Canadian government and a sharp protest by 28 non-governmental organizations. Menawhile, Burma, Iran, Nigeria and Norway offered varying degress of congratulations to the North Korean chair. For more on today’s plenary, click here.
- Joint appeal by 28 human rights NGOs
- Remarks by N. Korean defector Kim Joo-il at UN press conference: Transcript Audio
- NGO protest in front of CD headquarters in Geneva: Photos YouTube Video
- Photos of today’s CD plenary chaired by North Korea
“Allowing an international outlaw to oversee international arms control efforts is just plain wrong,” advocacy group U.N. Watch’s director Hillel Neuer said today. “North Korea is a ruthless regime that menaces its neighbors and starves its own people, and should not be granted the propaganda coup of heading a world body dedicated to peace.” Continue reading ‘North Korea opens disarmament plenary as Canada boycotts & 28 groups protest’
North Korea today chaired the first plenary of the August-September session of the UN-backed Conference on Disarmament (CD). UN Watch reporters monitored covered the proceedings in Geneva.
The first speaker was Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the Director General of the United Nations Office in Geneva (UNOG) who also serves as Secretary General of the CD as well as the Personal Representative of the UN Secretary General to the CD. He said that the status quo “risks making the CD irrelevant and obsolete. He also said that “procedures such as the rotating presidency are impairing the efficiency of the conference,” although it’s doubtful he was specifically referring to North Korea.
None of the countries taking the floor followed UN Watch’s call to protest Pyongyang’s presdiency. On the contrary:
Burma (Myanmar): “Warmest congratulations on your assumption of the presidency of the CD at this critical juncture. I’m confident that your great diplomatic skills and vast experience will bring great progress to this body.”
Iran: “Thank you for how you are presiding on the CD… We support every measure to strengthen the [CD's] position… [there's an] urgent need of disarmament machinery today: to avoid stockpiling of nuclear weapons…”
Norway: [We express our] “support to your presidency and we assure our full cooperation”
Nigeria: “Thank you for your election and your leadership”
For the UN’s official summary of the proceedings, click here.
Demonstration in front of the Conference on Disarmament at UN European Headquarters, Geneva, Switzerland, August 2, 2011. UN Watch led the protest supported by 27 other human rights NGOs. Director Hillel Neuer spoke, followed by North Korean Kim Joo-il. Click here for full details.
Protest today at UN Geneva headquarters, with UN Watch director Hillel Neuer and North Korean defector Kim Joo-il
GENEVA – A North Korean defector and 28 advocacy groups led by the Geneva-based UN Watch are urging nations to protest Pyongyang’s chairmanship of the UN-backed Conference on Disarmament, the world’s only multilateral forum for nuclear arms diplomacy.
- See below for today’s joint appeal by 28 human rights NGOs
- Transcript of today’s remarks by North Korean defector Kim Joo-il
- Photos of today’s protest in front of CD headquarters in Geneva
“Allowing an international outlaw to oversee international arms control efforts is just plain wrong,” advocacy group U.N. Watch’s director Hillel Neuer told reporters Tuesday in Geneva. “North Korea is a ruthless regime that menaces its neighbors and starves its own people, and should not be granted the propaganda coup of heading a world body dedicated to peace.”
Canada is boycotting the conference until North Korea’s presidency expires in September. Continue reading ’28 rights groups protest North Korea heading arms control body’
Transcript of statement today by North Korean defector Kim Joo-il, presented at press conference at the UN European headquarters in Geneva, organized by UN Watch in cooperation with the group North Korean Gulag.
I would like to first of all thank the head of UN Watch and you, everyone here, for preparing this press conference today.
While I would love to discuss a lot of problems in North Korea, I will only mention three things today.
I would like to mention three things vis-à-vis the imminent presidency of North Korea of the Conference on Disarmament. I would like to mention, first, the reactions of North Koreans who defected from North Korea who live outside. Second, I would mention the reaction of North Korean residents, at least as far as I know. And finally, I would like to mention how North Korea is treating its own citizens, its problems concerning famine, and human rights violations. Continue reading ‘North Korean defector blasts Pyongyang arms control presidency’
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