Archive for the 'Universal Periodic Review (UPR)' Category

Cuba Organizing Rogue Speakers’ List of Hardliners in Bid to Ambush U.S. at Friday’s U.N. Review

Published by
UN Watch
- at November 3, 2010 in Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and Universal Periodic Review (UPR). 0 Comments

UN Watch Backgrounder on U.N.’s 1st UPR Review of America’s Human Rights Record

The U.S. is trying to stop the Cuban delegation from organizing the list of countries at the Human Rights Council that will review America’s human rights record on Friday.

“We are concerned that Iran, Cuba, Venezuela and other non-democracies are planning to hijack the session to score propaganda points and drum up anti-American sentiment worldwide,” said Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch, a Geneva-based non-governmental monitoring group. “We applaud the U.S. for setting a model for openness in its approach to the UN review, and it’s tragic that many states are seeking to misuse and politicize the process.”

Diplomats in Geneva report that Cuba took the lead last week in circulating an advance sign-up sheet so that critics of Washington dominate the two hours reserved for country statements on America’s record. The list was challenged last week at the Human Rights Council chamber but diplomats confirm it is still valid.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast announced this week that Tehran will take the floor to slam the US for alleged violations.

In previous reviews, country delegates have lined up all night to obtain one of the limited speaking slots.

UN Watch research, “Mutual Praise Society” of 2009, shows that the UN process which will review the U.S. record has too often been misused.

Rights Group Calls UN Review of Iran ‘Insufficent’; Urges Emergency Session, Inquiry, and Permanent Monitor

Published by
UN Watch
- at February 15, 2010 in Iran and Universal Periodic Review (UPR). 0 Comments

GENEVA, February 15, 2010 -  Following Iran’s review today by the UN Human Rights Council (click here for summary and full transcript), Geneva-based human rights group UN Watch commended the U.S., France and other democracies for their “forceful criticism” of Iran’s abuses, but expressed alarm over a report by Le Monde that Asian countries might facilitate Iran’s election this May to the 47-member body, “an eventuality underscored by the litany of speeches today — by China, Cuba, Libya and others – falsely praising Iran.”

UN Watch executive director Hillel Neuer welcomed the statements made today on behalf of Iranian rights victims, but cautioned that the outcome of today’s UN procedure is limited to a “toothless” report to be adopted on Wednesday.

“There are recognized and significant ways for the UN Human Rights Council to place a country on its watchlist of abusers, but this week’s procedure, which all states undergo automatically every four years, is not one of them,” said Neuer.

“If the Human Rights Council is serious about tackling Iran’s wide-scale and escalating attacks on its own citizens — and this an open question — then it must use its available tools to convene an emergency session; adopt a resolution condemning the violations and establishing an international inquiry into Iran’s post-election arrests, rapes, show-trials and exections; and reinstate the permanent post of a Special Rapporteur to monitor and report on the Iranian government’s compliance with international human right covenants.” Continue reading ‘Rights Group Calls UN Review of Iran ‘Insufficent’; Urges Emergency Session, Inquiry, and Permanent Monitor’

Democracies slam Iran abuses at UN review, others offer praise

Published by
UN Watch
- at February 15, 2010 in Human Rights Council (UNHRC), Iran and Universal Periodic Review (UPR). 0 Comments

Iran’s record was reviewed today by the 47-nation UN Human Rights Council, under its quadrennial Universal Periodic Review (UPR) procedure. Click here for UN Watch’s full transcript of the debate, or see summary below. The video webcast archive will be available here.

Iran’s delegation was headed by Mohammad Javad Ardashir Larijani, Secretary General of Iran’s High Council for Human Rights, who used the N-word to describe President Obama in a recent speech to the Islamic Engineers Society in Tehran. He mentioned to the UN today that his brother is Iranian parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani.

Continue reading ‘Democracies slam Iran abuses at UN review, others offer praise’

North Korea defiant amid harsh UN criticism

Published by
UN Watch
- at December 9, 2009 in Human Rights Council (UNHRC), North Korea (DPRK) and Universal Periodic Review (UPR). 0 Comments

On December 7, North Korea underwent the Universal Period Review (UPR), a process which involves a review of the human rights records of all 192 UN Member States once every four years.  North Korea has become a country of special interest for the UPR process because of several reports submitted to the UN concerning the country’s grave human rights violations, including torture, forced labor camps, public execution, and violence against children and women. 

During the three hour review process, North Korea denied the existence of all human rights violations, despite Western state concerns of North Korea’s current human rights situation.  North Korea claimed the concerns were the result of bias and “unfair resolutions” regarding their country, which are discussed every year at the Human Rights Council. Several delegations spoke in support of the North Korean government. Continue reading ‘North Korea defiant amid harsh UN criticism’

Islamic and African States Fail to Block UN Webcast of Human Rights Hearings

Published by
UN Watch
- at April 7, 2008 in Uncategorized and Universal Periodic Review (UPR). 0 Comments

Bahrain First to Undergo “Seriously Flawed” Review Procedure

Geneva, April 7, 2008 — Facing opposition by Arab, Islamic and African states, the UN Human Rights Council’s decision to webcast its review of Bahrain, the first to undergo a new procedure that will scrutinize all UN members, constituted a small victory for reform, UN Watch said today.

“The new system of universal periodic review has serious institutional flaws, including its grant of excessive control over the outcome to the state under review,” said Hillel Neuer, executive director of the Geneva-based human rights monitoring organization.

“Although the official verdicts are likely to be questionable at best, the very fact of holding debates on countries that were previously given a free pass, even if only once every four years, helps activists to shine an international spotlight on human rights violations, and to challenge government responses that are inadequate or false.”

Today’s three-hour session on Bahrain offered little in the way of scrutiny, and was dominated by praise of the gulf state’s record. In his presentation, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Nizar Al Baharna told the council that Bahrain respected women’s rights, equality and freedom of expression. Of the more than 30 states that then took the floor, most were fellow Islamic nations that complimented Bahrain’s record on “social and economic rights,” with Pakistan citing the growth of its GDP.

“We are deeply disappointed that the session summarily ignored the detailed NGO submissions, which presented evidence of restrictions on freedom of expression and assembly, torture, and violations of women’s rights,” said Neuer. “Although the U.S., Canada, France and a handful of Western democracies posed questions, their interventions were overly cautious and diplomatic, and did little to make this new procedure into one of real scrutiny. Human rights victims deserve far better.”

On Friday, the Arab, Islamic and African blocs made a last-ditch effort to block UN webcasting of the session, but their attempt failed. Click here to read set of demands.

“After a series of major setbacks at the council—including the outrageous insertion of anti-blasphemy provisions into the freedom of expression mandate—this is one small victory that human rights activists must cherish,” said Neuer.

Don’t webcast review of countries, Islamic states tell UN

Published by
UN Watch
- at April 4, 2008 in Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and Universal Periodic Review (UPR). 0 Comments

The Arab, Islamic and African blocs demanded that the UN Human Rights Council cancel its plans to webcast its review of countries’ human rights records.

“As per the existing practice of the Council and the Commission on Human Rights,” they wrote in an April 3, 2008 set of demands circulated today, “only the Plenary meetings are webcast. There should be no exception. The Institution-Building text [the June 2007 rules] does not provide for webcasting of the Working Group proceedings.”